Participant protection

is at the heart of our strategy to grow The National Lottery responsibly

Participant Protection

is at the heart of our strategy to grow The National Lottery responsibly

Participant Protection is our top priority, and our investment in this field underpins our plans to transform The National Lottery. We want people to enjoy The National Lottery, and to do so in a responsible way.

Our strategic focus is to use technology and data to support our 30 million customers by understanding them and their play behaviour, ensuring The National Lottery remains a trusted and safe environment.

A group of three people smile as they look at something together, likely a winning lottery ticket or game result, in a store setting with various products in the background.

To make sure our games are 
enjoyed responsibly, we are implementing a number of measures

Our mission is to grow
The National Lottery responsibly and champion its impact

For all participants*
*Everyone who comes into contact with The National Lottery

We make sure National Lottery games – and our brand and product marketing – don’t appeal to children and young people, and supports responsible play and gifting.

We use our reach to promote the message ‘Dream Big Play Small’ across The National Lottery website, on in-store media screens, on the reverse of Scratchcards and play slips, and advertisements.

We promote other sources of help and support on our stand-alone responsible play website.

We meet the highest standards of certifications that prove our commitment to Participant Protection – and we’re contributing £1.6 million annually to support the research, prevention and treatment of gambling-related harms in the UK.

A close-up of a display with various National Lottery scratch cards on offer, featuring prices ranging from £1 to £5, with various themes and prizes shown.

Coming soon

We’ll host a new conference focused on Participant Protection, specifically designed for the lottery sector.

We’ll expand our stand-alone website to become a comprehensive resource for responsible play education. This will include signposting to support services, including GambleAware, GamCare, GamStop and Gamban.

A person holds a National Lottery kiosk with an age verification label on it. The label highlights that lottery products are for individuals aged 18 and over.

For all National Lottery players

A close-up of a person holding a leaflet titled "A Quick Guide to Responsible Retailing," with colorful lottery balls in the background. The leaflet provides essential information for lottery retailers.

Our robust game design process ensures that the games we create are safe and secure, ensuring they don’t appeal to underage or vulnerable players. All new National Lottery games are firstly put through two independent industry-standard tools to assess their risk levels. They are then reviewed in development by a cross-functional, independent governance group.

For online players, we have rigorous age and identity verification processes, daily play limits, weekly deposit and spend limits, as well as reality check pop-ups, a budget calculator and a self-assessment tool.

We also introduced a new policy in October 2024 to limit in-store Scratchcard purchases to no more than 10 at a time. We’ve engaged with over 40,000 retailers to raise awareness and support for this change and are monitoring compliance through our Operation Guardian mystery shopper programme.

Retailers also have access to a feature on their National Lottery terminal, which allows them to print and discreetly give responsible play handouts to players by pressing the ‘Responsible Play’ button on their terminal. If a retailer is concerned about a customer’s playing habits or if a customer asks a retailer for support, the button allows retailers to subtly print a pink ticket – much like a Lotto, EuroMillions, or Set For Life ticket – with details of where support is available.

We introduced a QR code on in-store media screens for players to instantly access information on support services, as well as put in place enhanced retailer training to prevent underage and excessive play via a new digital National Lottery Retail Training Centre.

For potentially vulnerable and at-risk players

We offer a range of self-exclusion options – including from Instant Win Games – and short, long or permanent breaks from all games and marketing communications.

We have an escalating interventions programme for players who are identified in our system as potentially at-risk, featuring emails, pop-ups, phone calls and letters.

A webpage displaying information on responsible gambling. It includes options such as setting a reminder for breaks, tracking spending, and tools to manage play responsibly.
A person hands a lottery ticket to another person at a store checkout. The person receiving the ticket holds a completed lottery slip, while a box of Cadbury Milk Tray is visible in the background.

Coming soon

We’ll introduce new time-based limits for Instant Win Games – with reminders every 20 minutes and an automatic log-out after 60 minutes.

We’ll bring in targeted messages to players who show signs of potentially excessive play.

We’ll implement financial vulnerability assessments via Experian based on age, players identified at-risk by behavioural analytics, and for any player who deposits £150 within a 30-day period.

We’ll enforce new, lower maximum limits and restrictions to protect players aged 18-25.

We’ll ensure that players returning from a significant break will have restrictions on playing Instant Win Games.

We’ll implement a refreshed interventions programme that includes financial vulnerability as a key consideration.

Supporting every 

player, every step

Our ambition is to set the global industry standard for promoting participant interests, with a strategic focus on knowing and supporting players and those who come into contact with  The National Lottery.