GambleAware has announced the appointment of a Chief Commissioning Officer, Chief Communications Officer and Chief Operations Officer to its senior team. The individuals were chosen for their extensive experience of working within the public health sector, including NHS England and Public Health England.

The new hires were made to meet the requirements and objectives laid out within GambleAware’s new five-year Organisational Strategy, including the commitment to applying a public health approach to addressing gambling harms.

Anna Hargrave will be joining GambleAware as the new Chief Commissioning Officer. Having worked in NHS commissioning for 13 years, she is a highly experienced health and care leader and brings to the role a wealth of knowledge and expertise of the intricacies of the system. Her hands-on experience of working collaboratively at a national level with government departments and industries will be highly beneficial in the expansion of the National Gambling Treatment Service.

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“I am deeply passionate about reducing health inequalities in the UK and minimising the impacts of gambling harm on people and their families is a key component of this. I am pleased to have been given the opportunity to share my skills of working within the health and care system with GambleAware and look forward to working with the charity and other public health agencies, local authorities and organisations to help reduce gambling harms,” Anna Hargrave said.

Alexia Clifford will be taking on the role of Chief Communications Officer at GambleAware. As Marketing Director at Public Health England (PHE), Alexia has led Government’s flagship public health campaigns across a wide range of priorities, including mental health, physical activity, healthy eating and smoking cessation. These campaigns are recognised as being amongst the very best in the industry. They have successfully changed behaviour at scale, through audience insight, behavioural science, sophisticated targeting and innovative digital techniques. Alexia will bring this public health experience to GambleAware as the charity seeks to increase awareness and understanding of gambling harms.

“I am thrilled to be joining GambleAware, and to play my part in delivering its vision of a society where people are safe from gambling harms. I look forward to bringing my skills and expertise to this crucial public health priority, and to leading communications and marketing programmes that make a demonstrable contribution to improving people’s lives,” Alexia Clifford said.

GambleAware has also hired a new Chief Operations Officer alongside other senior recruits, including a new Research, Information and Knowledge Director; Head of Programme and Project Management; Prevention and Evaluation leads; and a Fundraising & Engagement Manager. All the new hires are indicative of the step change GambleAware is making, by working to deliver an integrated and strategic plan to help prevent gambling harms in Great Britain.

“We are very pleased to welcome our new senior leaders, each of whom bring with them invaluable skills and knowledge in areas integral to the successful delivery of our new five-year organisational strategy. We are working hard to drive forward GambleAware’s new programme of work which demonstrates leadership in establishing, developing, and maintaining a co-ordinated network of services, including the expansion of the National Gambling Treatment Service,” Zoë Osmond, Chief Executive of GambleAware, said.

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