In the United Kingdom, The Senet Group responsible gambling standards body has announced that Sarah Hanratty (pictured) has been hired to fill the Chief Executive Officer post left vacant following the recent departure of George Kidd.

London-headquartered, The Senet Group, is an independent organization that works to improve standards in the British gambling industry and it revealed via an official Wednesday press release that Hanratty is due to take on her new role from August 6.

The Senet Group was established by prominent bookmaking firms William Hill, Paddy Power Betfair and Ladbrokes Coral Group in January of 2015 and is funded via contributions from its many members. The organization additionally helps the nation’s Gambling Commission regulator to make services fairer and safer while ensuring that messages promoting responsible gambling, which include its award-winning, When the Fun Stops, Stop campaign, are displayed prominently and frequently.

The group explained that Hanratty currently works as the Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Corporate Affairs Director for the Portman Group, which is the responsibility body for the British alcoholic drinks industry, where she has been in charge of all strategy, policy and communications duties. It detailed that she joined this non-profit organization from the National Lottery Commission in 2010 in order to serve as its Head of Communications and also has experience at the Cabinet Office.

Gillian Wilmot, Chairman for The Senet Group, declared that the British gambling industry is facing ‘an immense challenge to regain the public’s trust and confidence’ but that Hanratty will help it to improve this reputation by using her ‘wealth of experience in effecting change across the alcohol sector.’

For her part, Hanratty proclaimed that she is ‘delighted to be joining The Senet Group’ and hopes to be able to positively impact the organization in the same ways she constructively influenced the alcoholic drinks industry, ‘where member companies are recognized for their responsibility leadership.’

“I see many parallels with The Senet Group, whose partners and board have already achieved a great deal, not least through its stand-out responsible player messaging and public commitment to improve player safety,” read a statement from Hanratty. “I look forward to building on this strong foundation and the important work in the gambling sector done to date.”