WE'RE well ahead of you! That's the message from St Helens as the rest of the country awakens to the menace of under-age gambling.

National Lottery operators Camelot have been ordered to clamp down on under age ticket sales after research revealed that five per cent of children are compulsive gamblers.

But this latest information didn't come as a surprise to officers at St Helens Trading Standards, who have already implemented a scheme to tackle under-age gambling.

St Helens Council was one of the first local authorities in Britain to tackle the under age sales of lottery tickets and scratch cards following concerns raised by councillors and members of the public.

Councillor Richard Ward, chairman of housing and environmental services committee, said: "The council isn't anti-lottery, but it wants to protect vulnerable children from getting hooked on gambling."

Chief trading standards officer, Ken Wardale, said: "Locally retailers have a good record in preventing the sales of scratchcards to children.

"Trading standards officers will advise traders on their responsibilities during their normal inspection visits. We will continue to carry out surveys in line with council policy.

"The best advice for retailers is, if in doubt don't sell. Taking the chance could lead to removal of the lottery terminal and a court appearance. "Camelot, retailers and parents all have a role to play in the prevention of illegal sales."

But it's not just the council who are concerned.

The Reverend Christopher Byworth, vicar of St Helens told the Star: "I disapprove of gambling - full stop. The notion of gambling is that you give something to get something back which goes against everything the Christian church believes in.

"However, obviously, the thought of scratchcards and lottery tickets appeals to the young because they are so easy to do.

"If a parent came to me with a problem with their own child, I would advise that they try to keep the conversation going with their children rather than laying down the law as this is more likely to make them antagonistic."

Paul Johnson, a senior youth leader with the Christian Life Church in Atherton Street said: "I do a lot of work with local schools and I have encountered youngsters under 16 who have bought lottery tickets and scratchcards so it certainly goes on. If anyone were to come to me with a problem I would first of all have a chat with them about why they feel the need to gamble, whether it was for financial reasons or maybe because their friends were doing it aswell. If, after a couple of weeks I wasn't able to get through to them, I would probably then bring their parents into the discussion. "In addition, the Centre also has a HELP project for problems like this where people who are trained in dealing with this sort of problem would be able to give advice and support.

"The most important thing is to make sure the children know that they are not alone and can talk about their problem whenever they want to."

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