BetBlocker received the prestigious Jim Wuelfing Annual Award for Prevention at this year’s National Council on Problem Gambling Awards on Friday the 19th of July, which was received by the charity’s Chief of Safer Gambling Partnerships, Pedro Romero.
The award, which was named after a famed trainer and advocate for the prevention of problem gambling in the United States, recognises people or organisations who have advocated for the inclusion of prevention strategies in the spectrum of problem gambling services, developed effective prevention programs and who have worked to help problem gambling prevention programs reached underserved and at-risk groups.
This award comes off of the back of years of work by the BetBlocker team to deliver an effect and free blocking software that can be used anonymously by anyone, anywhere in the world.
As well as a traditional blocking software product, intended for use after a crisis, BetBlocker is the only blocking software to offer a Calendaring feature, allowing users to plan ahead and set the block to switch on during known periods of vulnerability.
Alongside these features, BetBlocker has translated its services into 6 non-English languages with many more to come, to help minority communities access support that would otherwise be unavailable to them.
Founder of the charity, Duncan Garvie, had this to say about the award: “Recognition of BetBlocker’s work within the problem gambling space by the NCPG, one of the most influential voices within the sector, is amongst the highest possible accolades our organisation could receive.”
“I speak for the entire BetBlocker team when I say how deeply honoured we are to receive this award.”
Pedro Romero added the following: “It was incredibly humbling at the NCPG conference this year to speak to so many of the harm minimisation organisation in the USA that are already referring there service users to BetBlocker.”
“Running an anonymous service and we don’t interact with our used frequently it’s easy to lose sight of just how many people are positively impacted by the support we offer.”
About BetBlocker:
BetBlocker is a UK registered charity that provides users with a free to use app that can block their device from accessing over 80k gambling websites and 1.5k gambling apps.
The service can be used anonymously and supports tens of thousands of active users every day.
Dave Sawyer has nearly 25 years experience working within the iGaming Industry. Initially starting out with Ladbrokes based in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar in 2000, after 5 years with the tier one operator in his role of IT Services Manager, Dave left to setup his own casino affiliate site.
During the years Dave has spoken at several industry events, including the Casino Affiliate Convention held in Amsterdam in 2006, where Dave appeared on the forum panel. Other events Dave has been a speaker at include the iGB London Affiliate Conference.
More recently Dave has written for Casinomeister.com and has been a moderator on the popular Casinomeister Forum since 2010, where he posts under the user handle Webzcas.