Lee Willows

Lee Willows is a social entrepreneur who founded the charity Young Gamblers Education Trust (YGAM) in 2014 after experiencing a crippling gambling addiction himself. He co-founded YGAM with Anne and Keith Evans, both of whom had their own stories of addiction. YGAM grew into a well-known education charity delivering safer gambling training to young people and professionals.

Willows stepped down as CEO of YGAM in the summer of 2021 to avoid “Founder Syndrome” and to pursue an MBA, focusing his studies on leadership in the gaming sector and sustainability.

Following his departure from YGAM, he launched Community Care Gaming (CCG) as a new venture. CCG operates as a safer gambling and gaming research organisation, engaging with operators, regulators, and campaigners to reduce gambling harms. Willows is also a Virgin StartUp Mentor and regularly speaks at industry conferences such as ICE and the Safer Gambling Forum. He describes his mission as using lived experience for the greater good and advocates for collaborative approaches to harm reduction.