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Quarterly Operator Newsletter Q2 2026

“As we reach the halfway point of 2026, I would like to thank you for your continued support. Working together remains essential to ensuring that consumers can access the protections they need quickly and easily.” We have seen continued growth throughout Q2, with May being the highest registration month in Gamstop online’s history. We also continue to see strong engagement from younger consumers, highlighting the ongoing need for early intervention and support for those at risk of gambling harm. A significant development this quarter has been the introduction of our new chat-based exclusion removal process. This provides consumers with a more accessible and streamlined experience when completing their removal journey, while ensuring that appropriate safeguards remain in place. I am also delighted to welcome Matt Burgiss to Gamstop as our new Head of External Affairs. Matt brings extensive experience in stakeholder engagement, project management and communications, and will play a key role in strengthening our relationships across the sector. As a leading authority in this sector we must navigate an evolving landscape and engage effectively with a wide range of stakeholders. Throughout this work, our focus remains unchanged: ensuring that the more than 700,000 people registered with our schemes remain at the heart of every decision we make and every improvement we deliver.

Fiona Palmer, CEO

Contents Operator Key Information

Gamstop Betting Shops Statistics

Gamstop Online Statistics

Consumer Voices Gamstop Group

Return To Gambling ChatBot Focus

Gamstop Group News

Gamstop Consumer Insights

Operator Key Information Maintaining Logs We would like to remind Operators on the importance of maintaining logs and storing responses returned from the Gamstop APIs. These IDs are essential for tracing calls within our logs if an Operator needs to verify a Y/N/P response for a consumer. Operators can optionally include an X-TraceId in their requests to the APIv2 and the Batch endpoint. We do recommend (where possible) that an X-Trace-Id is included for all requests.

Change in Platform Provider Please can we remind those Gamstop Online operators that use platform providers that if you change providers, it is important to contact us at support@gamstop.co.uk to keep us informed.

"Thanks so much again for your support, you have always been most helpful"

Novation Agreement Reminder If you are transferring your operations to a new Gambling Commission licensed entity, you will need to novate your existing Gamstop Operator Agreement to that entity. If you have changed your licensed entity, please provide us with a novation agreement.

Operator Workshop 2027 We have held two precious in person workshops which have been very well received and have covered a variety of topics and development opportunities. We would like to plan a third workshop and are looking at potential timings and venues in early 2027. We would be very grateful if you could spend 2 minutes filling out this survey to help us with our planning. It is fully anonymous. If you have any further questions then don’t hesitate to get in touch via support@gamstop.co.uk

Gamstop Operator

Q2 Statistics Registrations in Q2 2026 were significantly higher than those recorded in Q2 2025, with May 2026 receiving the highest number of registrations of any month since Gamstop launched. Growth in the under‑25 demographic continued this quarter, accounting for 30% of all registrations. Over recent years we have typically seen a drop in registrations moving into Q3, and this pattern is expected to continue as we progress through 2026.

Monthly registrations

Gender Male 72%

2025

28%

Age 18-24

25-34

30%

35-44 31%

45-54 23%

55+ 10%

Exclusion length 6 months 32%

2024

Female

1 year

5 years 25%

5 years with auto-renew 21%

22%

2026

13000 12000

614,924

11000

Active exclusions

10000 9000

35,027 Q2 registrations

8000 7000

J F M A M J

J A S O N D

Heatmap North West Focus Nationally, around 1.14% of the UK adult population has ever registered with Gamstop Online, but the distribution of registrations varies across areas of England and the rest of the UK. With 1.40% of the population having registered with Gamstop Online, the North west of England registration rate is higher than average.

Northwest England postcode areas where registration rates are the highest include: Blackpool - 2.37% Knowsley - 1.96% Halton - 1.85%

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

% of LAD population

Local Authority District 1.Blackburn with Darwen 2.Blackpool 3.Bolton 4.Burnley 5.Bury 6.Cheshire East 7.Cheshire West and Chester 8.Chorley 9.Cumberland 10.Fylde 11.Halton 12.Hyndburn 13.Knowsley 14.Lancaster 15.Liverpool 16.Manchester ©Gamstop Group 2026. All rights reserved.

17.Oldham 18.Pendle 19.Preston 20.Ribble Valley 21.Rochdale 22.Rossendale 23.Salford 24.Sefton 25.South Ribble 26.St. Helens 27.Stockport 28.Tameside 29.Trafford 30.Warrington 31.West Lancashire 32.Westmorland and Furness 33.Wigan 34.Wirral 35.Wyre 5

Return To Gambling ChatBot Focus Return To Gambling (RTG) Chatbot Overview Since Gamstop’s inception, individuals wishing to remove their self‑exclusion have needed to call our Contact Centre by phone. To improve consumer experience, strengthen service availability and provide a further option for consumers, we have introduced a new online method of removing a self‑exclusion in the form of the RTG Chatbot. The Chatbot can be accessed through a user’s account and, much like our phone service, users must answer a series of questions and watch a video in full before they can proceed with the removal. This ensures they receive signposting to active support services should they need them in the future and provides an opportunity to reflect on their decision before removing their self-exclusion. The Chatbot can only be used during the same hours our Contact Centre is open.

Improved Accessibility The introduction of the RTG Chatbot improves service accessibility by providing users with an alternative way to remove their self‑exclusion. Alongside the existing phone‑based route, the online pathway offers a structured digital option for users who prefer to manage their self‑exclusion through their account or who may find phone communication difficult. By making the removal process available across both channels, the service supports different user needs while maintaining consistent safeguards and information throughout.

Click below to see the RTG Chatbot in action.

Collaboration With LEAP The RTG Chatbot was developed with consistent feedback from the Gambling Commission’s Lived Experience Advisory Panel (LEAP), whose feedback helped shape the structure and content of the online pathway. This engagement ensured that lived experience perspectives were reflected in the design while maintaining the established safeguards and standards of the removal process. 6

Q2 Consumer Insights Friends or Family, followed by Operators, continue to be the most frequent ways in which people find out about Gamstop Online, with overall patterns remaining largely consistent across 2026. During Q2 we saw a small rise in the number of people discovering Gamstop through Internet search, while Financial Services remained the most common ‘Other’ response, alongside gambling support services, healthcare and NHS services, advertising across digital platforms and AI chatbots. In Q2 we also saw a reduction in the number of consumers who removed their exclusion in the previous quarter and reinstated it within three months, decreasing from 43% to 36%.

Sources of Gamstop Awareness Friend or family member

33%

Gambling website or app

27%

Internet search

17%

Social media

Gambling support website

Other

12% 0%

Remove expired exclusion

Fourth removal

Third removal

3% 2%

5% 5%

Questions about GAMSTOP

Removal questions/requests

4% 1%

Other

24% 0%

50%

36%

19%

69%

40%

Registration

Fifth removal

30%

50%

Cancel registration

Complaints

Second removal

20%

Helpdesk Enquiries Account amendments

Consumer Removal Behaviour First removal

10%

of consumers who removed their exclusion in the previous quarter reinstated this within 3 months.

Q2 Statistics Registrations in Q2 remained broadly consistent with the monthly levels we saw throughout 2025, with 1,644 new sign‑ups recorded this quarter. We also saw a shift in the gender split, with women increasing their share of registrations from 4% to 6%. The age profile was broadly stable, with 35– 44 continuing to be the dominant group, alongside an increase in registrations from those aged 55 and over and a drop in the 25– 34 age group. Registrations by country also remained steady, with England accounting for the majority of sign‑ups, followed by Scotland and Wales.

Gender Male

Female 94%

Age 18-24

25-34

35-44

27%

45-54

38%

55+

19%

12%

Monthly registrations 2024

2025

2026

800

Registrations by country

700 600 500 400

1,644

Q2 registrations 87% 5%

9,168

Total registrations

Consumer Voices Adam had a gambling addiction between the ages of 18 and 23. In 2020, he began his recovery with support from his family, GamCare, and Gamstop. He now documents his story online to help others in a similar situation. I first tried gambling when I was 16 years old, betting on football with my dad. Once I turned 18, that’s when I started to gamble more. I started gambling on football bets and horse racing, especially on major events like Cheltenham, but I quickly moved on to other kinds of online betting such as roulette and blackjack. I knew things had gotten bad when I gambled away the inheritance left to me by my grandmother. You’d have thought that would be enough to stop me, but that just encouraged me to chase my losses to try to make things right and win back the money that I’d lost. I was spending my whole salary in a matter of days and even took out payday loans to fund my gambling. Eventually, the bailiffs knocked on my door and I realised how much of a problem my gambling had become. Having the bailiffs at the door was the trigger I needed to take the big step of opening up to my family. Luckily, they were incredibly supportive. ©Gamstop Group 2026. All rights reserved.

Rather than being angry at me, they were disappointed in themselves for not noticing the signs that I was struggling with gambling and wanted to help me with my recovery. I joined Gamstop in 2020, just as the UK was going into lockdown, as well as going to GamCare for advice and support. Talking about my gambling was the best thing I ever did. I have been gambling-free now for 4 years. Since signing up to Gamstop, I have used social media to document my recovery experience. I have been bowled over by the positive response I have received, and it’s really helped to show me that I’m not alone, there are many others out there like me and it’s helped me to know that my story is helping others. I also took some advice that was given to me early in my recovery – to look at replacement activity ideas. I took up running and to date, I have completed 10 half marathons and counting, as well as the Yorkshire Marathon.

“Talking about my gambling was the best thing I ever did, and it really helped me to see that I wasn’t alone.”

News Welcome Matt Burgiss In Q2 we welcomed Matt Burgiss as Gamstop’s first Head of External Affairs. Matt brings extensive expertise across both prevention and support, alongside strong sector knowledge and lived experience. His understanding of how Gamstop fits within wider harm‑prevention pathways will support the continued development of our external engagement strategy and strengthen how we work with partners across the sector. Matt will be attending industry events throughout the year, and we encourage attendees to speak with him about external engagement or partnership activity.

Ethical Gambling Forum During the last quarter, we attended the Ethical Gambling Forum 2026, a conference designed to facilitate collaboration and address ethical challenges across the industry. Katie Reynolds‑Jones spoke at the event, highlighting insights from the Gamstop Group heatmap data.

Shiltons’ Silverlining Launch Event We were pleased to attend the launch of Shiltons’ Silverlining at Wembley Stadium, a new charity created to provide hope and long‑term support to individuals and families affected by gambling harms. The charity offers free, lifelong memberships, recognising that many people experiencing gambling harm are seeking stability and reassurance as they work towards recovery. The event brought together partners and supporters from across the sector, with Katie Reynolds‑Jones attending on behalf of Gamstop, joined by Matt Burgiss.

As the charity begins to develop and expand its services, we look forward to supporting its work and contributing to improved access to help for those who need it. We will continue to engage with partners across the sector to ensure individuals and families can benefit from the support Shiltons’ Silverlining intends to provide.

support@gamstop.co.uk Registered Office 3 Greengate, Cardale Park, Harrogate, HG3 1GY Registered No. 14892129

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