COUNCIL bosses are set to invest £15,000 in marketing a lottery it set up for good causes after it raised just a fraction of the money it was anticipated to.

Essex County Council launched the scheme in November 2017 and has to date raised £111,000 for organisations across the county.

Ahead of the launch of the Essex Lottery bosses at County Hall predicted it would generate £600,000 for good causes in the first year rising to £1.2m by year three.

The council has now agreed to invest £15,000 in marketing the lottery to revive its flagging fortunes.

Figures suggest it makes an annual income of around £124,500 from 2,400 weekly ticket sales.

It has now revised its ambitions with a proposed income target of £170,000 from weekly ticket sales of 3,268, by offering better chances of winning more.

The current prize structure is based upon a jackpot of £25,000, which is won if someone correctly guesses all numbers drawn. In addition, there are nine guaranteed winners, selected randomly as a draw, with the prize based upon a percentage of weekly revenue.

A total of 20p from each £1 ticket goes to the prize, with 60p going towards funding good causes. The remaining 20p is used to administrate the lottery.

A report on the decision said: “The Essex Lottery was launched in November 2017 and to date has raised a total of £111,000 for good causes in Essex. This is an achievement in raising money for the public good, but it is considered that the Essex Lottery has the potential to achieve more. Revenue raised to date is below original expectations.

“Brand development, promotional and marketing activity was undertaken as part of the initial launch of the lottery.

“However, post launch this activity has not been sustained to maintain brand awareness, which has contributed to the reduced generation of revenue.

“Feedback from some of the good causes has been that the current prize fund structure is not as attractive to some players as it could be which also could be contributing towards the reduction in ticket sales.” and the generation of revenue.

“Essex County Council has been working with Gatherwell, the operator of the Essex Lottery operator to develop proposals to help build upon the achievements so far, with key areas being identified to support this being marketing resources, promotion and initiatives to help drive tickets sales.”