The finding comes from a survey last summer commissioned by the support charity In-Dependence, which saw responses from 108 people. The vast majority of those respondents said they spent up to £50 a week on the habit. But 3% said they spent more than £100, 5% said they spent £150-£200 a week, and 3% spent more than £200 on gambling. The survey also revealed that local lottery scratch cards were by far the most popular type of gambling.

In-Dependence manager Tracey Rear said this was most likely a result of the limited number of gambling products available locally.

‘The amount is not the necessarily the issue, risk increases when people gamble more than they can afford,’ said Mrs Rear.

The survey included the problem gambling severity index, which assesses each question on a four-point scale and then provides a total score, indicating the level of risk the gambler presents. Most of the respondents presented as non-problematic gamblers, but 8% were said to be high risk.

Just over 20% were identified as low risk and 9% were moderate risk.

Mrs Rear said non-problematic gamblers were people who do not gamble, or people who gamble responsibly in the range of what they can afford.

‘Risk in the context of the screening asks questions relating to gambling with more they can afford.’

She said those who are high risk would consequently experiencing a variety of problems due to this.

Just less than a third of respondents used retail and betting shops, or bookmakers more widely, as their preferred method of gambling, with 20% gambling online only and 29% using a combination of both.

Mrs Rear said this was most likely due to it being more difficult for locals to gamble online than UK residents.

In-Dependence obtained funding from the Social Investment Fund for a 12-month project. A £52,000 grant went towards an additional worker as well as a milk carton campaign which encouraged people to make contact with the charity if they think they have a problem with gambling.

The campaign ran for 12 months from June 2021 during which period the charity’s referrals doubled on the previous year, from five to 10.

Although the survey gave an insight into local gambling habits, Mrs Rear said: ‘The survey was not representative and only included those who were prepared to complete the survey. We do not know what the population looks like who did not complete the survey.’