GamCare has urged partners and stakeholders to review the latest insights from updated research on domestic abuse in the UK, conducted in 2025 by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

New insights drawn from the 2025 Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW), are based on a new methodology aimed at capturing the evolving nature of abuse.

This recommendation comes from GamCare’s Women’s Pathway Team, a dedicated research unit focused on understanding the impact of gambling-related harm and addiction on women.

The ONS updated its domestic abuse questions to reflect legal changes, shifting societal attitudes, and increased recognition of non-physical forms of abuse.

The revised questions now include previously under-reported abuse types such as coercive control, economic abuse, health-related abuse, and abuse linked to marital status. The survey also distinguishes between abuse by intimate partners and by family members and, for the first time, asks about how frequently abuse occurs.

In the year ending March 2024, 3.9 million adults aged 16 and over experienced domestic abuse. The data shows that 9.5% of women and 6.5% of men reported being affected. Since the age of 16, more than a quarter of adults—26.1%, or around 12.6 million people—have experienced some form of domestic abuse.

GamCare welcomed the updated figures as a step forward in understanding the full scope of abuse. Although the ONS survey does not directly link gambling to domestic abuse, GamCare notes that many of the women who seek its support report experiences involving financial control and emotional manipulation linked to a partner’s gambling.

The Women’s Pathway Team says it regularly hears from women who are pressured into taking out loans, handing over money, or facing emotional coercion as a result of a partner’s gambling. These forms of abuse often overlap with those now recognised by the ONS, particularly financial and psychological abuse.

GamCare is calling on professionals across health, domestic abuse, criminal justice, and gambling support services to review the ONS data and recognise how gambling-related harm can intersect with domestic abuse. The charity is also urging services to adopt trauma-informed approaches, as many women face significant barriers to seeking help, including manipulation, isolation and fear.

Support is available through GamCare’s Women’s Pathway Programme, which offers individual services and the dedicated Way Forward support group. The organisation emphasises a person-centred approach, stating: “Our priority is to listen to your experience and offer support that centres on your needs.”

Women seeking support can contact the Women’s Pathway Team by emailing [email protected] or by calling the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133.

Further domestic abuse support is available through Refuge, which runs a 24-hour national helpline on 0808 2000 247. Women’s Aid provides local support through its online directory at www.womensaid.org.uk

Those affected by financial abuse can find resources at survivingeconomicabuse.org, and support for intimate image abuse is available via the Revenge Porn Helpline at www.revengepornhelpline.org.uk

In wider developments, GamCare has launched a tender to appoint an academic partner to conduct an independent review of the Women’s Pathway Programme. 

The review will assess how effectively the programme removes barriers that prevent women from accessing gambling-related support, and will help guide its future strategic development.

GamCare’s call for engagement comes at a time of growing recognition that cross-sector collaboration is essential to supporting people affected by both gambling harm and domestic abuse.