BGC launches £10m gambling education programme
Trade body partners with GamCare and YGAM on new safer gambling initiative funded by BGC members
The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) has launched a new £10m UK-wide campaign to provide education and support to young people about gambling awareness in partnership with charities GamCare and YGAM.
It will focus on children aged between 11-19 and will be funded independently by existing BGC members, with the aim of helping young people to better understand the risks associated with gambling.
Administered by GamCare and YGAM, the campaign will provide education to 120,000 young people and training to 100,000 education staff including teachers, youth workers and those working in the community.
As most schools in the UK are currently closed due to Covid-19, the campaign will provide educational resources digitally.
It forms part of the BGC’s 10 safer gambling commitments, which were first announced in November 2019 at the launch of the trade body. The campaign will be assessed independently and will be subject to measuring against key target objectives.
The BGC is providing the programme funding to the Charities Aid Foundation, which will then disperse the funding to both GamCare and YGAM.
Chief executive Michael Dugher said the BGC was delighted to be working with the charities on the new campaign, highlighting the importance of increased education on gambling to both young people and teachers alike.
“This important project and investment is part of our ongoing determination at the BGC to promote safer gambling and to further drive up standards,” said Dugher.
YGAM founder and CEO Lee Willows said the project would enable YGAM to scale its geographical reach and deliver an important component in reducing gambling-related harm.
“By training professionals who have influence over young people’s learning, we will equip these professionals with the skills, knowledge and confidence to not only deliver the programme but also highlight the age-appropriate support available from GamCare,” Willows said.
Elsewhere, the BGC hit out at the Welsh government’s decision not to extend business rates relief to Welsh high street betting shops and casinos during Covid-19.
The UK government had previously extended the relief to cover the retail gambling sector, but the devolved Welsh authorities have now excluded these businesses. Wales has four casinos and more than 300 betting shops, employing almost 2,000 people.
“This is a hammer-blow to the industry in Wales and it puts jobs at risk at the worst possible time for families,” Dugher wrote in a letter to Welsh parliament.
“This sends out a clear message from the Welsh government that people working in Welsh betting shops and casinos do not deserve the same support as those working in betting shops and casinos across the border in England,” he added.