Play our lottery

How does the Lift off Lotto work? When you join the Lift Off Lotto, you are entered every week into a draw with the chance of winning one of five guaranteed prizes. Your payments are taken by direct debit or cheque only – we do not accept credit or debit cards.

When are the draws made? The draw takes place every Friday – the only time this would change is if this lands on a bank holiday. If this occurs, the draw will simply take place on the next working day. Any implications of bank holidays are accounted for to ensure all entrants have the same opportunities to win.

What are the prizes? Our top prize is £1,000, and we have 4 runners up prizes of £200, £75, £50 and £25. We also run a Superdraw which provides players with a chance of winning £10,000.

Superdraw? From on the fourth Friday in September, December, March and June each year, the top prize will be £10,000 instead of £1,000. All runner-up prizes will remain the same. All active Lift Off Lotto players will be entered into this draw at no extra cost to the player.

Why is my payment not a round number if it is £1 per draw? Not every month has four Fridays, some have five. Therefore, the payment of £4.34 ensures you will not miss out on any draws.

When is my first entry into the draw? You will be eligible the week after your first payment comes in.

Can I round my payment up with a donation? We’re not currently accepting additional donations with our lottery but this will be available again in the near future.

Can I Gift Aid my payment to the lottery? You cannot gift aid your lottery payment as it is part of a lottery. However, if you have rounded up your payment then that additional amount can be gift aided. Simply click here to update your Gift Aid status.

How many entries can I have? We restrict entries to 20 per person to encourage responsible gambling.

Do the proceeds of the lottery go to NWAA? In 2023, the lottery passed 80.53% of lottery income back to the charity. This amount is after expenses such as the costs for us to recruit new players, administration costs (marketing, staff, etc) and lottery prizes.

How will I know if I am a winner? All results are posted on our website on the day of the draw. Alternatively, you can call us to find out. Players will be paid via postal cheque.

How do I cancel? If you wish to cancel your membership you can contact us via telephone, email, or in writing.

Are canvassers employed by FONWAA to sign people up for its Lift Off Lotto? We do use canvassers to sign up players. If you have any questions or concerns regarding a canvasser, please do contact our Supporter Engagement team on 0800 587 4570. If you’d like to know more about our canvassing activity, please click here.

What training do the canvassers receive? All our canvassers follow an induction process where they get to see some of the incredible work our crews do across the North West. This helps them to understand how important our cause is, and to be able to share that information with you. They also undergo Dementia Friends Training. They undergo strict training around Fundraising Regulator codes of practice, and training for identifying people who may be vulnerable.

Can they take a donation for the charity? Yes, they can, but only via cheque, our canvassers cannot take any cash or card payments.

Am I eligible to play in the lottery? You must be aged 18 and over (from the 2nd of January) and live in Great Britain to take part in our lottery. If someone who lives in your home is an employee of the charity, then, unfortunately, you cannot take part either.

What do I do if I think I may have an issue with gambling? Are you gambling more than you really want to? Please give us a call and we can provide support. Alternatively, learn more about self-exclusion and what this means by clicking here. If you feel you need to self-exclude yourself from the Lift Off Lotto, we would encourage you to extend your self-exclusion to any other gambling arrangements you may have.

Is there a complaints policy? Yes, should you have any complaints to do with the Lift Off Lotto, please view our complaints and disputes procedure here.

Are you running any telemarketing campaigns? We are currently conducting calls to help raise vital funds through our weekly lottery. The calls are giving cancelled players the opportunity to re-join and help us raise vital funds for the North West Air Ambulance Charity. We are contacting people who have not specifically opted-out of receiving a phone call and are working with an external telemarketing agency to help us do this. The telephone number agents are calling from is 0151 453 7532, and at the start of the call, they will always say they are calling on behalf of the North West Air Ambulance Lottery. If you miss a call, please do not be alarmed.​ ​

We are also currently running an online campaign if you have responded to an online ad and requested a call regarding our Lift off Lotto the number agents are calling from for this is 0151 453 4748.

If you have any concerns please call us on 0800 587 4570.

To enter, you can sign up online or contact our lottery team on 0330 123 0945. The Lift off Lotto is a subscription lottery and payments can be made by Direct Debit (preferred due to lower costs) or by cheque (made payable to North West Air Ambulance Charity). Payments can be made monthly, quarterly, six-monthly, or annually at a rate of £1 per week which is £4.34 per month per chance. Members can sign-up for more than one chance per week. Once you become a member, we will send you out your new member pack containing confirmation of your membership, your unique lucky number/s, and some further information about how lottery funding supports our lifesaving services. If you have any further questions, please contact us and we will be happy to help. Lottery subscriptions can be cancelled at any time.

The minimum age of entry to the Lottery changes from 16 years to 18 years on the 2^nd January 2024, and players must live in Great Britain to participate in our Lift Off Lotto. For more information on how our lotteries work, please read our Lift Off Lotto terms and conditions here. Our Lift Off lottery results are drawn every Friday using a random number generator to select winning numbers, allocating one prize per number drawn.

Chances of winning in our Lift Off Lotto: We have approximately 105,000 plays in each Lift Off Lotto Draw. Each play has an equal chance of winning one of the 5 cash prizes so 5 in 105,000 or 1 in 21,000.

The following information provides income to the Charity versus costs for lotteries operated and promoted by FONWAA for the period 01/01/2023 – 31/12/2023.

Lift Off Lotto

• How much was returned to the good causes and what good causes they’re supporting?
  • In 2023, FONWAA received £5,695,756 in ticket sales for its Lift Off Lotto of which £4,586,963 (80.53%) of this figure went straight back to the charity.
• How much was spent on prizes?
  • o £106,125 (1.86%) was spent on prizes for our Lift Off Lotto.
• How much was spent on expenses?
  • £1,002,668 (17.6%) was spent on expenses for our Lift Off Lotto.

Raffles

• How much was returned to the good causes and what good causes they’re supporting?
  • In 2023, FONWAA received £117,678 in ticket sales for its Raffles of which £34,753 (29.5%) of this figure went straight back to the charity. All profit from the lottery goes towards funding NWAA charity’s lifesaving work.
• How much was spent on prizes?
  • £18,825 (15.96%) was spent on prizes for our Raffles.
• How much was spent on expenses?
  • £64,095 (54.36%) was spent on expenses for our Raffles.

Friends of North West Air Ambulance Lottery adheres to the practice outlined in our social responsibility in gambling policy here and is regulated by The Gambling Commission www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk. From the 2nd January 2024 the minimum age of entry to the Lottery changes from 16 years to 18 years. If you signed up to the Lottery before the date of this change and are aged 16 or 17 your sign up is still valid but you may not purchase any additional entries (either sign up or single entries) until you are aged 18. Players must also be a resident in Great Britain to take part in any of our lottery activities. If you are concerned about the amount you are gambling please refer to our gambling responsibly information here or call our supporter engagement team on 0800 587 4570 As a member of the Lotteries Council, Friends of North West Air Ambulance Lottery makes an annual donation to GambleAware. If you feel you have a problem with any form of gambling, please read how we can help provide support and more information on self-exclusion and what this means by clicking here. Please click on the following link to access our self-exclusion procedure. A self-exclusion form is also available here. FONWAA aims to ensure that any issue you may have regarding the lottery and our raffle is dealt with promptly, efficiently, and in confidence. If you wish to make a complaint regarding our Lift Off Lotto or raffle please refer to our complaints and disputes procedure here.