Give communities a greater say on Adult Gaming Centres, says new report

The outdated ‘Aim to Permit’ rule makes it harder for local authorities and the communities they represent to object to adult gaming centres (AGCs) and should be scrapped as part of reforms to reduce gambling harms and restore local control, according to a new report.

Brent Council, in partnership with the Social Market Foundation, has published High Streets at Stake, which explores the rapid spread of AGCs on Britain's high streets, and the damage they risk causing to some of the most disadvantaged communities.

Recent analysis from the Gambling Commission found a 7% increase in the number of AGCs between 2022 to 2024, with many opening in areas already facing significant social and economic challenges.

The report finds that this increase is likely to be the result of the liberalising ‘Aim to Permit’ principle, which makes it difficult for local authorities like Brent to refuse a licensing application. The findings also suggest that AGCs are often in direct contradiction with licensing objectives set out in the 2005 Gambling Act, posing risks of crime, anti-social behaviour and harm to vulnerable people, including those struggling with addiction.

To ensure that local voices are heard and communities have real influence over what appears on their high streets, the Social Market Foundation makes the following key recommendations:

1. The ‘Aim to Permit’ rule in the 2005 Gambling Act should be reviewed, with a view to its eventual removal from future legislation.
2. The long-standing cap on licence fees should be removed, with annual fees payable by premises to a local authority increased from the current rate of £1,000 to a new rate of £5,000 a year, to be reviewed year-on-year.
3. The Government should ensure that its proposed additional licensing powers for local authorities – namely, Cumulative Impact Assessments – are implemented with no further delay.
4. The Government should review the current system of premises licence classification, with a view to closing the loophole that allows adult gaming centres to open under Bingo licences.

Together, these reforms would ensure AGCs only open where communities genuinely want them – and protect those most at risk from gambling harm.

Councillor Mili Patel, Deputy Leader of Brent Council said: “Brent Council is proud to have sponsored this vital report. Along with a further 44 local authorities - and grounded in the lived experience of our own residents here in north-west London – we have called for a set of urgent reforms to put pride back into our ailing high streets, restore local democracy, and put communities, not corporations, back in control of their destiny.”

Dr James Noyes, Senior Fellow at the Social Market Foundation, said: “If the Government is serious about restoring pride to local communities, the role of the High Street is crucial – and that’s why it’s so concerning to see the proliferation of Adult Gaming Centres in some of Britain’s most deprived neighbourhoods.

“Our research has found that AGCs risk encouraging gambling amongst children and young people, as well as potentially encouraging crime, while acting against consumer interests – and yet, even if local communities object to them, local authorities are essentially powerless to prevent them opening.

“More widely, there is a clear paradox in having a Government that seeks to prevent gambling harm, all while aiming to permit a business model which creates that harm in the first place. Scrapping the Aim to Permit rule, among other measures, would ensure local communities are empowered to make a choice on the role that gambling plays in the make-up of their High Streets, and protect some of the most vulnerable in society from exploitation and harm.”