There is an NHS clinic for this, it takes self-referrals, and most people have never heard of it. Alongside it sit free peer routes, and each one treats a different thing.
England has an NHS clinic dedicated to this: the National Centre for Gaming Disorders, for people aged 13 and over, which accepts self-referrals as well as referrals from family members and professionals. Alongside it there is SMART Recovery UK, which is free and names gaming explicitly, and two fellowships that meet online. Each treats something different.
The NHS route
**The National Centre for Gaming Disorders** is the one most people do not know exists. In its own words it "provides support for people in England aged 13 and over who are experiencing difficulties controlling their video game use", and it "also offers support for parents and carers of young people aged 13 to 16".
Three things worth knowing before you contact them.
**You do not need a GP to refer you.** The clinic "accepts self-referrals, as well as referrals from family members and professionals". A parent worried about a fifteen year old can make the referral themselves.
**The treatment is CBT, and the goal is not necessarily zero.** The clinic offers "CBT sessions focused on controlled levels of gaming and increasing other activities". That second half matters. Filling the hours is treated as part of the work rather than as something you sort out afterwards, which is exactly right.
**It is England only, and it does not do crisis.** The clinic does not offer crisis interventions. If tonight is an emergency rather than a plan, the routes at the end of this piece are the ones to use.
**Outside England**, and for anyone the clinic cannot take, the route is a GP. That is less specialised and it is not nothing: a GP can look at your sleep, your mood and anything else running underneath, refer you into local talking therapies, and those are often the things the gaming is sitting on top of. Go in with facts rather than a label. "I'm playing until four most nights, I've stopped seeing people, and I've missed work three times this month" gets you further than "I think I'm addicted to games."
The peer routes, and what each is for
These are not treatment and they do not pretend to be. What they give you is a room of people who understand the specific problem, at no cost, usually at an hour when nothing else is open.
**SMART Recovery UK** is free, secular and CBT-based, and it names this behaviour directly: it "supports a wide range of behavioural challenges, including gambling, food-related issues, shopping, gaming, and other compulsive behaviours". Meetings are run by trained facilitators rather than sponsors, and the programme rejects the idea that you are powerless. Their line is **0330 053 6022**. If the twelve-step language puts you off, start here.
**Gaming Addicts Anonymous** runs online meetings with a UK phone dial-in. "The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop video gaming." It is a twelve-step fellowship, so it comes with a spiritual framework attached. Plenty of people take the meetings and quietly leave the beliefs, and that is an entirely normal way to use a fellowship.
**Internet and Technology Addicts Anonymous** covers gaming alongside social media, streaming and other digital compulsions. Free meetings online, and in-person groups in several UK cities. Useful if your problem is not only games, which for a lot of people it is not.
Which one, for what
| If the problem is | Start with | |---|---| | Gaming specifically, and you are in England | The National Centre for Gaming Disorders, self-referral | | Gaming plus low mood, anxiety or something underneath | A GP, and say what has changed rather than naming a condition | | A young person aged 13 to 16 | The clinic, which supports parents and carers too | | You want structure without the spiritual framing | SMART Recovery UK | | You want a room every night, free, wherever you are | Gaming Addicts Anonymous or ITAA meetings online | | Screens generally rather than games specifically | ITAA | | Money spent on games that you needed | Free regulated debt advice, separately and first |
Doing two at once is normal. A clinic appointment six weeks away and a meeting on Tuesday are not competing.
What to say when you contact them
The most common reason people do not make the referral is not knowing what to write. It is shorter than you think.
Three facts and one sentence of what you want:
"I'm 27, in England. I've been gaming most nights until three or four for about a year and I've missed work several times because of it. I've tried stopping on my own a few times and it hasn't held. I'd like to speak to someone about it."
No history, no self-diagnosis, no apology. If you are referring your child, the same shape works: what has changed, over what period, what you have already tried.
Before you decide you need any of this
It is worth checking yourself against the actual criteria rather than against a bad month. Gaming disorder in ICD-11 requires impaired control, gaming taking priority over other interests and daily activities, and continuing despite negative consequences, with the pattern "normally... evident for at least 12 months". The World Health Organization also states that it "affects only a small proportion of people who engage in digital- or video-gaming activities". [Going through that properly](/guides/gaming/is-my-gaming-a-problem) takes ten minutes.
And there is a large middle ground where nothing clinical applies and things are still not good. If that is you, the practical work does not need a referral. [Filling the specific hours](/guides/gaming/the-first-week-without-gaming) is where most of the change actually happens, with or without a waiting list.
If tonight is worse than tired
Neither the clinic nor a fellowship handles emergencies.
**Samaritans** is **116 123**, free, twenty four hours a day. **NHS urgent mental health support** is **111**, option 2. If someone is in immediate danger, that is 999.
Common questions
**Is there NHS treatment for gaming addiction?** Yes, in England. The National Centre for Gaming Disorders supports people aged 13 and over who are having difficulty controlling their video game use, and offers CBT focused on controlled levels of gaming and increasing other activities. It also supports parents and carers of 13 to 16 year olds.
**Do I need a GP referral?** No. The centre accepts self-referrals, as well as referrals from family members and professionals. Outside England, a GP is the first stop.
**Are there gaming addiction meetings in the UK?** Gaming Addicts Anonymous runs online meetings with a UK dial-in, and its only membership requirement is a desire to stop video gaming. ITAA covers gaming among other digital compulsions and has in-person groups in several UK cities. SMART Recovery UK is free, CBT-based and names gaming explicitly.
**What if I'm not in England?** Start with a GP, describing what has changed rather than naming a condition, and use the free peer routes in the meantime. They are national and mostly online.
**My child needs help. What do I do?** You can refer them yourself if they are 13 or over and in England, and the centre supports parents and carers of 13 to 16 year olds alongside the young person. If eating or sleeping has genuinely stopped, a GP appointment comes first.
Sources
[CNWL, National Centre for Gaming Disorders](https://www.cnwl.nhs.uk/national-centre-gaming-disorders). Who the clinic sees, the self-referral and family referral routes, the CBT offered, support for parents and carers, and that it does not offer crisis interventions.
[SMART Recovery UK, FAQs](https://smartrecovery.org.uk/faqs/). That the programme is free and covers gaming among other compulsive behaviours.
[Internet and Technology Addicts Anonymous](https://internetaddictsanonymous.org/). The behaviours covered, free online meetings, and UK in-person groups.
[WHO, Gaming disorder frequently asked questions](https://www.who.int/standards/classifications/frequently-asked-questions/gaming-disorder). The ICD-11 criteria, the twelve month requirement, and the small proportion of people who play who are affected.
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