YGAM and Betknowmore join forces to ‘drive greater social impact’ through authentic training

The UK-based charity, Young Gamers and Gamblers Education Trust (YGAM), has partnered with gambling support service Betknowmore UK to deliver a ‘purposeful, authentic and genuine’ approach to their training initiatives tackling gambling-related harm.  The ’not for profit’ organisations are bringing their joint expertise to two new training models with the aim of reaching more industry professionals, universities, students and clients than ever before.

Lee Willows, CEO and founder of YGAM, and Frankie Graham, CEO Betknowmore UK have each heralded the partnership highlighting the need for authentic and accredited training within the gambling sector. The new formal relationship consolidates five years of shared growth and networking with companies and individuals drawn from across the UK and international gambling spectrum.

Commenting on the new partnership, Lee Willows, explained: “I am so excited at the prospect of working even closer with Frankie Graham, a good friend and mentor. Our organisations have been generating purposeful impact for over five-years and we are both working with some incredible businesses in the gambling space. We are looking forward to working with our friends and colleagues in the gambling sector specifically to compliment the current direction of travel by operators to put social responsibility and safer gambling at the heart of their businesses.”

In the last twelve months, YGAM has more than trebled the number of young and vulnerable people it has delivered its education programme to in over 1,700 schools and youth organisations reaching more than 180,000 individuals.  Willows continued: “Over the next twelve-months we are looking to increase our reach to 3,000 schools and youth organisations/practitioners, connecting with approximately 650,000 young and vulnerable people. Commencing Autumn 2019, we will also roll out our Peer Education programme to more than three times the number of students than we did last year bringing the total to 56,000 and provide purposeful, part-time job opportunities for eight students from partnering Universities.”

Frankie Graham, CEO Betknowmore UK said: “Lee and I have been friends, critical friends, champions and motivators to each other and the organisations we have developed. We have always asked how we might combine our skills, experience and insight in this space to drive greater social impact.” He continued. “We believe we have found that special sweet spot and it lies in providing the gambling sector with authentic, accredited training. Authentic as we embrace and embed lived-experience of gambling-related harm into the training and accredited, as we are approved by the global awarding body City & Guilds, having achieved the prestigious City & Guilds Assured standard, which in the words of the awarding body recognises ‘world-class training’.

“Betknowmore UK and YGAM can work with companies to tailor the content of workshops to compliment any specific training. We can also package the training in line with the company brand, delivered on premises in the UK or overseas. Training between five and twenty-five colleagues at a time, we promise an authentic, highly engaging and practical learning experience. We are often in Malta, Gibraltar and Isle of Man and we can combine delegates from two or more operators to create a shared, collaborative experience. In addition in January 2020 we are going to offer open courses in London, Malta, Isle of Man and Gibraltar on a monthly bases to enable colleagues from within the gambling sector to experience our training for themselves, and help us create a series of products that relevant and the most effective in the market.”

“What makes our training totally unique is 100% of the profits are donated to Betknowmore UK and YGAM to enable our organisations to deliver our social purpose, which we both seek to build upon in 2020.”