A HARDWORKING carer has revealed how she has bagged the top prize on Set For Life from The National Lottery and now gets £10,000 a month for 30 years.
Shocked Joanne Jobson, 51, from Hartlepool, County Durham, has revealed she is going to book a world cruise and buy her own home after the huge win.
Joanne, who cares for children who have disabilities, said: “I’m so excited to be able to buy my own home and I have already started house hunting.
“I’ve been living with my mum trying to save for my own place but was still some way off from making that move happen – it’s amazing I can now make that dream a reality.
“I still can’t believe that I’ve won, it’s absolutely life-changing for me.”
Joanne was in utter disbelief when she woke following a night shift to a message informing her of her good fortune.
She was checking her phone when she spotted that she had a message from The National Lottery telling her to check her account.
She said: “I logged onto my account and couldn’t believe what I was reading, I had to re-read the message several times as I thought it was telling me what ‘I could win’, not what I had ‘actually won’!
“I jumped out of bed and went to tell my mum.
“I remember just saying to mum ‘I think I might have won a lot of money!’ and showing her my phone.
“Mum was convinced it was a scam, so I googled the winning Set For Life numbers for the same date to see if they matched – which of course they did.
“After checking and checking again, I called The National Lottery claim line.
“The lady on the phone confirmed that I was in fact a winner, but by this time it was pretty late on the Friday so I was told I would receive a call from a member of the Winner Services team on Monday.
“I needed to get to work and didn’t want to let my colleagues down so as if on autopilot, I got ready for my shift.”
When she was at work, Joanne couldn’t help but tell her team what had happened.
She continued: “As you can imagine, it ended up being quite a lively shift after that as everyone was so happy and excited for me.
“Even then, I was still reluctant to let myself believe that it was actually real.
“I came home on Saturday and was unable to sleep ahead of another night shift that evening.
“So by Sunday I was exhausted and I finally said to my mum that perhaps it was time to hand in my notice.”
Joanne, who comes from a very close family, waited until Monday after she had spoken to her Winners Advisor, to tell her two older sisters the good news.
She said: “I wanted to tell my sisters together but it was hard to speak to them at the same time so I ended up calling them separately.
“When I told them they both just cried – it was very emotional for us all. I think that was the moment when it finally sank in for me too that I really had won. I feel so lucky that this has happened – it’s just phenomenal.
“At 51 this win literally changes everything for me, I now have peace of mind knowing I’m financially secure until I’m 81!
“I’m going from working nights and saving hard to being able to buy things when I want and plan holidays I could only have dreamt of before.
I’ve been living with my mum trying to save for my own place but was still some way off from making that move happen – it’s amazing I can now make that dream a reality
Joanne Jobson
“I do like going on holiday to Spain, but now I’m looking forward to some more exotic destinations like Barbados and the Maldives – two places that have always been on my wish list.
“I may even go on a world cruise as there are so many incredible places I want to visit.
“I’m also excited to be able to treat my family later this year when my sisters and I are going to London to watch an Abba tribute show.
“This is a big trip for us that we’ve all been looking forward to for ages, but now I have the means to take our city break to another level and am going to book for us to take a helicopter ride to see the London skyline – it really will be an experience none of us will ever forget and the first of many brilliant adventures ahead I’m sure!”
Joanne, who has worked as a carer for 17 years, plays a variety of National Lottery games and only started playing Set For Life five months ago.
At 51 this win literally changes everything for me, I now have peace of mind knowing I’m financially secure until I’m 81!
Joanne Jobson
She said: “I have the National Lottery app but don’t play any specific game regularly, I just play when I fancy it.
“I started playing Set For Life five months ago and generally only play a Lucky Dip when I do.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I think when I played that I’d actually win – I didn’t think things like this happened to real people like me, but I’m proof they really do! ”
Joanne won in The National Lottery’s Set For Life draw on Thursday 22 February 2024 after matching the five main numbers and the Life Ball. Her winning numbers that night were: 16, 17, 19, 23, 38 and Life Ball 5.
‘Set For Life’ is an exciting draw-based annuity game from The National Lottery that offers a top prize of £10K a month for 30 years when the five main numbers and the Life Ball are matched.
Players can also win £10K a month for a whole year by matching the five main numbers.
