Responsible gambling

Our commitment

The Give Us A Break Weekly Lottery exists for one reason: to fund respite breaks for families who need them. It only works for us if it stays what it is meant to be for you — a small, entertaining flutter of £1 a week that happens to do good. We would genuinely rather you stopped playing than played beyond your means, and we will never use pressure, urgency or “last chance” tactics to sell a ticket. If supporting our work matters to you but the lottery stops feeling comfortable, a straightforward donation does just as much good.

You must be 18 or over

Every part of our lottery is restricted to people aged 18 and over. You confirm your age when you enter, and we verify age and identity before any prize is paid. If an entry is found to have been made by someone under 18, the entry is void, the stake is returned and no prize is paid. We design our marketing to avoid anything with particular appeal to children, and we never knowingly market the lottery to anyone under 18.

Staying in control

Practical ways to keep the lottery fun:

• Set a budget. Decide what you can comfortably afford before you play — for most players that is the £1-a-week subscription and nothing more — and stick to it.

• Keep an eye on your spend. Your entry confirmation and subscription emails always show exactly what you are paying and how often.

• Take a break. Ask us to pause your subscription for any period you choose. Nothing is lost by stopping; you can rejoin whenever you like.

• Cancel any time. Email us and your subscription ends before the next draw, provided we receive your request by the entry cut-off. No fees, no questions.

• Close your account. Ask us and we will close your account, delete your marketing preferences and confirm in writing.

Self-exclusion

If you want to stop playing altogether, contact us at hello@giveusabreak.me and ask to self-exclude. We will exclude you from the lottery for a minimum of six months (or longer if you prefer), cancel any active subscription, stop all marketing to you and refuse any new entries in your name for the whole period. Self-exclusion does not end automatically at your first request to return — we will apply a 24-hour cooling-off period and confirm you still wish to play before restoring access.

GAMSTOP. GAMSTOP (gamstop.co.uk) provides free self-exclusion from online gambling companies licensed in Great Britain. Because our lottery is operated under a Gambling Commission society lottery operating licence (remote and non-remote), account number 000-061423-R-334912-001, registering with GAMSTOP covers this lottery too. Our own self-exclusion process above also applies to this lottery in all cases, and we recommend GAMSTOP as a wider tool if online gambling in general is a concern.

Blocking tools. Gamban (gamban.com) blocks gambling sites and apps across your devices, and most major UK banks now offer a gambling block on their cards — usually a single switch in the banking app.

Signs it may be becoming a problem

Gambling harm can build slowly, and it can affect anyone. It may be time to pause and talk to someone if you recognise any of these:

• Spending more than you planned, or more than you can afford
• Chasing losses in the hope of winning them back
• Hiding how much you play from family or friends
• Borrowing money to play
• Playing to escape stress, low mood or worry
• Feeling anxious, irritable or guilty about playing

None of these makes anyone a failure. They are simply signs that the fun has started to tip into something else — and free, non-judgemental help is available.

Where to get help

• National Gambling Helpline

  0808 8020 133 — free, confidential and open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Run by GamCare.

  Call 0808 8020 133

• GambleAware

  Advice, a self-assessment tool and signposting to free treatment across Great Britain.

  begambleaware.org

• GamCare

  One-to-one support, group sessions and live chat for anyone affected by gambling.

  gamcare.org.uk

• GAMSTOP

  Free national self-exclusion from online gambling companies licensed in Great Britain.

  gamstop.co.uk

• Gamban

  Software that blocks gambling sites and apps on your devices.

  gamban.com

• Gordon Moody

  Intensive residential treatment and recovery support for those most affected.

  gordonmoody.org.uk

• Gamblers Anonymous

  Peer support meetings across the UK, in person and online.

  gamblersanonymous.org.uk

Protecting people at risk

If a family member or friend is worried about someone’s play on our lottery, contact us — we will treat the concern seriously and confidentially, and we can restrict or close an account where that is the right thing to do. We keep self-exclusion records precisely so they can be enforced, we never market to anyone who has self-excluded, and we take care with anyone who tells us they are in a vulnerable situation.

Complaints about the lottery

Complaints go to us first — email hello@giveusabreak.me and we will acknowledge within 5 working days and give you a full response as quickly as we can. If your complaint concerns the lottery and cannot be resolved between us, it can be escalated under the route set out in our lottery terms, including free referral to our independent ADR provider, the Independent Betting Adjudication Service (IBAS). Our contact page explains the fundraising complaints route.