The Health Lottery is to launch a second weekly draw to take place on Wednesdays.

The first mid-week ‘Win Wednesdays’ draw will take place on October 17. The prize breakdown will be the same as the traditional Saturday draw and retailers will be able to sell tickets from October 8.

Welcoming the news, Health Lottery retailer Ranjan Limbachia of Western Newsagents, Hove, East Sussex said a second draw would be a huge benefit to her business. “The Health Lottery does well in the store, especially when customers hear that money goes to health-related charities,” she said. “People just need to know more about it. A second draw would help bring more attention to it.”

Since its launch a year ago, the Health Lottery has given away over £46m in prizes and £23.9m to charities.

The society was recently the subject of a High Court battle between National Lottery operator Camelot and the Gambling Commission. Camelot believed the decision to grant 51 separate licences to the Health Lottery effectively made it a national lottery. Camelot’s appeal was turned down by the High Court.