EPIC Risk Management has renewed its partnership with the mental well-being specialist WHYSUP for another year. Now heading into its fifth year, the alliance between the two companies will continue to deliver impactful education programs on gambling-related harm and mental health.
The renewal follows positive feedback that highlighted the efficiency of the two parties’ programs during the 2022/23 academic year. Reviews say that EPIC and WHYSUP were able to generate a significant level of awareness among secondary students in the United Kingdom.
The two companies have delivered a total of 221 sessions across 158 state and private schools, reaching 28,734 students. Post-program surveys show that 88% of pupils have developed an understanding of the harm that gambling can cause. A stellar 93% of students said that they would either gamble less or refrain from gambling.
In addition to being efficient, EPIC and WHYSUP’s initiative was lauded as high-quality and age-appropriate by an overwhelming majority of school staff members. Teacher feedback also praised the program for outlining the connections between gaming and gambling. Tutors believe that this will help students realize how their hobbies might draw them toward gambling.
EPIC and WHYSUP Will Continue to Educate Students about Gambling Harm
Simon Wootton, EPIC Risk Management’s recently-appointed programme coordinator, was satisfied with the feedback, saying that it highlights the efficiency of EPIC and WHYSUP’s initiatives. Wootton said that his team is trying to improve the program each year, which is why his team continues to see year-on-year improvements in the generation of awareness.
One teacher wrote to tell us it was “genuinely one of the most positive reactions we have ever had to an external visitor” while another said that their pupils were still discussing what they had taken from the talk two hours after it finished.
Simon Wootton, programme coordinator, EPIC Risk Management
Wootton added that his team is glad to continue its partnership with WHYSUP and leverage a lived experience model to teach secondary school students about the dangers of gambling.
WHYSUP’s founder, Mark Murray, echoed Wootton’s sentiments, saying that his team is just as happy about the opportunity to work with EPIC Risk Management for another 12 months.
When we first met Paul Buck [EPIC Risk Management’s CEO] in 2019, one of the things he shared was his passion to educate young people. Through four years of partnership, we believe we have made a real difference working in this space.
Mark Murray, founder, WHYSUP
Murray concluded that EPIC and WHYSUP’s goal hasn’t changed and promised that the two companies will continue to deliver outstanding gambling education programs to young people.