SARGF demands stronger school gambling safeguards after Pretoria preschool incident

The organisation says its school prevention programme has uncovered cases of learners accessing betting platforms through adults’ devices and accounts.

Key takeaways

• The SARGF urges stricter protection of minors following a World Sports Betting promotional activity inside a preschool classroom at Cornwall Hill College in Pretoria
• The Foundation said both the betting operator and the school had acknowledged the failure to protect children from gambling exposure.
• The SARGF reported cases of learners using adults’ mobile phones and betting accounts to participate in online gambling.
• The organisation wants schools to prohibit gambling promotions, sponsorships and prize draws on their premises.

South Africa.- The South African Responsible Gambling Foundation (SARGF) has called for stronger measures to prevent minors from being exposed to gambling after licensed betting operator World Sports Betting held a promotional activity inside a preschool classroom at Cornwall Hill College in Pretoria.

The appeal follows a video circulating on social media showing the betting operator conducting a commercial promotion inside the school. The SARGF said it had formally engaged World Sports Betting, the school’s management, the provincial gambling regulators responsible for the operator’s licence, the National Gambling Board (NGB) and the Department of Basic Education (DBE) about the incident.

According to the Foundation, both the operator and the school have acknowledged the failure to protect children from gambling exposure. However, the SARGF said the incident exposed wider gaps in efforts to shield children from gambling activities.

The SARGF said its Taking Risks Wisely: School Edition prevention programme had identified growing concerns about underage gambling in South African schools. It reported that during these school sessions, several learners admitted to participating in online betting using their parents’ or other adults’ mobile phones and betting accounts. The Foundation also reported that some teachers did not know that South African law prohibits anyone under the age of 18 from participating in gambling activities.

With November marking National Responsible Gambling Month, the SARGF urges parents, teachers, and school governing bodies to take steps to prevent children from accessing gambling platforms or becoming involved in betting activities. It advised parents and guardians to protect smartphones and computers with PINs or biometric locks and to avoid leaving children with access to betting applications or digital wallets.

The organisation also urged parents to check their banking and mobile money accounts for unauthorised small transactions, which could indicate that a child is using the money to fund online betting. It warned parents against involving children in gambling activities, such as asking them to select lottery numbers, scratch tickets, or press the spin button on digital betting games. It said these activities could make gambling appear to be a normal part of family life.

For schools, the Foundation wants governing bodies to introduce rules preventing gambling operators from holding promotional events, sponsorship activities, or prize draws on school premises. It also advised teachers to watch for signs that learners may be gambling. These include sudden changes in behaviour, excessive interest in sports betting odds and unexplained losses of lunch money or allowances.

The SARGF encourages schools to enrol teachers in its Educator Programme, which is accredited by the South African Council for Educators (SACE) and awards Continuing Professional Development (CPD) points. The programme teaches educators how to identify gambling-related problems among learners and respond to incidents in schools. The Foundation also offers a classroom-based life orientation programme that teaches learners about risk-taking behaviour and gambling-related harm.

The Foundation said it would continue to push for stricter regulatory enforcement to prevent commercial gambling activities from taking place in educational institutions.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

• What prompted the SARGF’s call for stronger school gambling safeguards? The appeal followed a video on social media showing World Sports Betting promotional activity inside a preschool classroom at Cornwall Hill College in Pretoria.
• What measures is the SARGF recommending for schools? The Foundation wants school governing bodies to prohibit gambling operators from conducting promotional activities, sponsorships, and prize draws on school premises. It also encourages teachers to learn how to identify signs of underage gambling.
• What training does the SARGF offer educators? The SARGF provides an Educator Programme accredited by the South African Council for Educators (SACE), which awards Continuing Professional Development points. The programme helps teachers identify and address gambling-related problems among learners.
• Are the SARGF’s school prevention programmes free? Yes. The Foundation provides its SACE-accredited Educator Programme and classroom-based Life Orientation modules at no cost to schools and educators.