London, 15 January 2024: Ygam is proudly marking a decade as a charity in 2024, commemorating ten impactful years dedicated to safeguarding children and young people.
Ygam was established in 2014 in response to the lived experience of its founders, Lee Willows and Anne and Keith Evans. Anne’s son, Alan Lockhart, died by suicide in 2010 at the age of 40, after experiencing gambling harms for over 25 years. Anne, a former teacher, embarked on a mission to use education as a powerful tool for preventing gambling harms, raising awareness, and ensuring that no other family endures the pain that hers did.
A decade later, Ygam employs over 40 members of staff and has evolved into a recognised leader in the sector. Ygam delivers education programmes in schools, colleges, universities, and various youth-focused organisations throughout all regions of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The impact of the work of Ygam has been endorsed over the years through by numerous evaluations, accreditations, and national awards.
Through a portfolio of five evidence-based programmes, Ygam’s resources have reached over 3 million children and young people. Over 17,000 delegates have been trained by Ygam, including over 11,000 teachers.
The milestone year will be marked through a series of special events, campaigns, and announcements.
Dr Jane Rigbye, Ygam CEO, said: “I joined Ygam two years ago when it was a charity on a journey from a being a small but impactful founder-led organisation, to becoming an established and respected national provider of prevention services. I’m incredibly proud to work alongside our committed, expert team to deliver our vision of society in which all children and young people are resilient to and safeguarded against gaming and gambling harms.
Launching our new three-year rolling strategy in January 2023 was a pivotal moment of change for Ygam, and our focus now is on continuing to deliver high quality, impactful programmes of work which really make a difference to the lives of our beneficiaries.
As we enter our tenth anniversary year, we are in a period of change in the external political and funding environment, and like many in the charity sector are looking to evidence the need for, and impact of, our work to encourage and attract new sources of funding to help deliver the change that is much needed to prevent gaming and gambling harms.
We will be publishing our latest Impact Report in the coming weeks, and I look forward to sharing more throughout the year on our ambitious plans for 2024 and beyond.”
Mike Wojcik, Ygam Chair of Trustees, said: “It feels both surreal and incredible to be here. This is a truly special milestone. From the very beginning, there was a drive to create the platform for success, strong independent governance, program quality assurance, and the exceptional Ygam culture.
Though I’m extremely proud of the highly regarded awards and impressive accreditations this charity has received, it is the day-to-day moments that shine. For instance, at our recent AGM and in-person team day with all the staff and trustees, seeing the passion and commitment woven throughout the team was so special.
I continue to be inspired by the work the charity has delivered during my tenure and the stimulating and engaging discussions I have regarding the critically important safeguarding of young people. As we move into our next decade, we aim to build on our success and there is much more to do to prevent gaming and gambling harms.”
You can stay informed of further announcements and updates by following Ygam on social media.
