Presenter of the Year 2024 – the final 6!

We want to thank everyone who took part in our Presenter of the Year competition this year. We are truly astounded by the talented presenters we have here at Buzz and were blown away with everyone’s passion!

After counting all of our colleague votes here on Zingo, alongside our customer votes on buzzbingo.com, we’re super excited to reveal our 6 finalists who will be going through to our Grand Final which will be live streamed from the Live Bingo studio in Derby to all clubs on Sunday 15th September.

Celebrating our Recruitment Team 

We recently got our whole HR team together to discuss what we are doing as a team, and as part of the wider Buzz support team. It was a great opportunity to look forward, and also to reflect on our successes. Our Recruitment Managers Susie Sidlow and Alice Marshall were both recognised for their hard work across their roles.

Well done both of you, your hard work is so important and we are proud to have you on our team.

On a cold, very wet Saturday Afternoon on 13th July we took on the Race for Life Pretty Muddy at Town Moor Newcastle raising over £4k for Cancer Research

Massive thank you’s to Vicky Stavers, Kyle Kennedy,Kim McCarthy, Sam Hayward who joined me from Washington Club and Donna Shaw and Jon Doran from Sunderland Club who were all part of the Shake Your Balls Team and made a huge effort in their fundraising 🙌🙌🙌

An amazing effort all round from these remarkable people I am lucky to call my colleagues. Well done everyone 🏃‍♀️‍➡️🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️‍➡️🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️‍➡️🏃‍♂️

Apprenticeship Success

Today I got the news that I didn’t pass my Learning & Development Practitioner apprenticeship!!….infact I only went and got a Distinction (had to read it far too many times to make sure it was meant for me!!) I couldn’t be happier or shocked by this.

Academia never suited me but the challenge of not succeeding down a formal education route has always been an absolute bug bear for me. Always feeling like something was wrong for not hacking it! And feeling like it would hold me back!

As for apprenticeships…. My advice is, it isn’t for the faint hearted! It’s been tough, and as someone who loves learning new things. I’ve learnt an awful lot, not just from the apprenticeship itself (not that I realised it at the time!) but outside of it too! Time management and prioritisation certainly being one of those things! But to get to the end and pass like this… what a feeling and for anyone who is considering an apprenticeship come and have a chat, I promise I won’t hold back!

Emma Cooper, Learning & Development Designer

Mark’s 100 miles for Adoption UK

We’ve got some truly Remarkable People here at Buzz, and one of them is our Head of Retail Operations, Mark St-Claire. This Saturday, Mark tackled an incredible challenge—a 100-mile race to raise vital funds for Adoption UK.

The event, known as the Robin Hood 100, takes runners through the beautiful Sherwood Forest and surrounding villages. Participants must finish within 30 hours, but Mark has set an ambitious goal of completing the race in just 24 hours!

What do you love about your role/team?
I love making a positive impact on our customers – simple actions like adding a loss limit to someone’s account can protect them from serious financial difficulties. It’s great to work with people you connect with.

What does it take to be good in your role?
Decisiveness is essential in safer gambling, as risks vary widely between individuals. Resilience is also crucial, and you need to be able to manage difficult conversations in a positive way.

What does Safer Gambling mean to you?
Safer gambling means enjoying play within a regulated environment. Playing safely allows people to enjoy their hard-earned cash without spending over their means or risking harm. Using safer gambling tools adds an extra layer of protection to help people continually play safely.