Appendix 3

Gambling Act 2005

Draft Statement of Licensing Principles



CONTENTS

Page

1Introduction4

2Declaration4

3The Borough of Stockton on Tees4

4Licensing Objectives5

5Licensing Authority Functions5

6Responsible Authorities6

7Interested Parties6

8Consultation7

9Exchange of Information7

10Enforcement7

11The Licensing Process8

12Premises Licences9

13Adult Gaming Centres14

14(Licensed) Family Entertainment Centres14

15Casinos15

16Bingo Premises15

17Betting Premises16

18Tracks16

19Travelling Fairs17

20Provisional Statements17

21Reviews18

22Unlicensed Family Entertainment Centres Gaming Machine Permits20

23(Alcohol) Licensed Premises Gaming Machine Permits20

24Prize Gaming Permits21

25Club Gaming and Club Machines Permits22

26Temporary Use Notices23

27Occasional Use Notices (Tracks)23

28Further Information24

Appendix A - Table of Delegation of Licensing Functions25

Appendix B - Map of Council Area27

Appendix C - List of Contacts28

Appendix D - Useful Links31

Appendix E - Consultees32

Gambling Act 2005

Statement of LICENSING Principles

Part A

1.Introduction

1.1Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council is the Licensing Authority under the Gambling Act 2005 and is responsible for granting premises licences in the Borough of Stockton-on-tees in respect of such premises as:-

  • Casino premises;
  • Bingo premises;
  • Betting premises, including tracks;
  • Adult Gaming Centres;
  • Family Entertainment Centres.

1.2Licensing authorities are required by the Gambling Act 2005 to publish a statement of the principles, which they propose to apply when exercising their functions. This statement must be published at least every three years. The statement must also be reviewed from “time to time” and any amended parts re-consulted upon. The statement must be then re-published.

1.3The formal Statement of Licensing Principles will come into effect on the 31st January 2010 and will be available on the Council’s website at

2.Declaration

2.1In producing this statement, this licensing authority declares that it has had regard to the licensing objectives of the Gambling Act 2005, the guidance issued by the Gambling Commission, and any responses from those consulted on the statement.

3.The Borough of Stockton-on-Tees

3.1The Borough of Stockton-on-Tees is one of five councils in the TeesValley district and covers an area of 20,400 hectares and is an area of contrasts – a mixture of busy town centres, urban residential areas and picturesque villages whilst maintaining a strong industrial presence. The population is around 187,000 living in approximately 75,000 households.

3.2The main urban areas are Stockton, Thornaby, Ingleby Barwick, Billingham and Yarm. These are shown on the map at Appendix B.

4.Licensing Objectives

4.1The Gambling Act 2005 requires that the Council carries out its various licensing functions with a view to promoting the following three licensing objectives:-

1.Preventing gambling from being a source of crime or disorder, being associated with crime or disorder or being used to support crime;

2.Ensuring that gambling is carried out in a fair and open way;

3.Protecting children and other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling.

4.2It should be noted that the Gambling Commission has stated: “The requirement in relation to children is explicitly to protect them from being harmed or exploited by gambling”.

4.3This licensing authority is aware that, as per Section 153, in making decisions about premises licences and temporary use notices it should aim to permit the use of premises for gambling in so far as it thinks it is:

  • in accordance with any relevant code of practice issued by the Gambling Commission
  • in accordance with any relevant guidance issued by the Gambling Commission
  • reasonably consistent with the licensing objectives and
  • in accordance with the authority’s statement of licensing principles
5.Licensing Authority Functions

5.1‘Gambling’ is defined in the Act as either gaming, betting, or taking part in a lottery.

  • gaming means playing a game of chance for a prize
  • betting means making or accepting a bet on the outcome of a race, competition, or any other event ; the likelihood of anything occurring or not occurring; or whether anything is true or not
  • A lottery is where persons are required to pay in order to take part in an arrangement, during the course of which one or more prizes are allocated by a process which relies wholly on chance

5.2Licensing Authorities are required under the Act to:

  • Be responsible for the licensing of premises where gambling activities are to take place by issuing Premises Licences
  • Issue Provisional Statements
  • Regulate members’ clubs and miners’ welfare institutes who wish to undertake certain gaming activities via issuing Club Gaming Permits and/or Club Machine Permits
  • Issue Club Machine Permits to Commercial Clubs
  • Grant permits for the use of certain lower stake gaming machines at unlicensed Family Entertainment Centres
  • Receive notifications from alcohol licensed premises (under the Licensing Act 2003) of the use of two or fewer gaming machines
  • Grant Licensed Premises Gaming Machine Permits for premises licensed to sell/supply alcohol for consumption on the licensed premises, under the Licensing Act 2003, where more than two machines are required
  • Register small society lotteries below prescribed thresholds
  • Issue Prize Gaming Permits
  • Receive and Endorse Temporary Use Notices
  • Receive Occasional Use Notices
  • Provide information to the Gambling Commission regarding details of licences issued (see section on ‘information exchange’)
  • Maintain registers of the permits and licences that are issued under these functions

5.3It should be noted that local licensing authorities will not be involved in licensing remote gambling at all. This will fall to the Gambling Commission via Operator Licences.

6.Responsible Authorities

6.1The licensing authority is required by regulations to state the principles it will apply in exercising its powers under Section 157(h) of the Act to designate, in writing, a body which is competent to advise the authority about the protection of children from harm. The principles are:

the need for the body to be responsible for an area covering the whole of the licensing authority’s area

the need for the body to be answerable to democratically elected persons, rather than any particular vested interest group etc

6.2In accordance with the Gambling Commission’s Guidance for local authorities this Council designates the Stockton on Tees Local Safeguarding Children Board for this purpose.

6.3The contact details of all the Responsible Bodies under the Gambling Act 2005 are available via the Council’s website at:

7.Interested Parties

7.1Interested parties can make representations about licence applications, or apply for a review of an existing licence. These parties are defined in the Gambling Act 2005 as follows:

7.2“For the purposes of this Part a person is an interested party in relation to an application for or in respect of a premises licence if, in the opinion of the licensing authority which issues the licence or to which the applications is made, the person-

(a)lives sufficiently close to the premises to be likely to be affected by the authorised activities,

(b)has business interests that might be affected by the authorised activities, or

(c)represents persons who satisfy paragraph (a) or (b)

7.3The licensing authority is required by regulations to state the principles it will apply in exercising its powers under the Gambling Act 2005 to determine whether a person is an interested party. The principles are:

7.4Each case will be decided upon its merits. This authority will not apply a rigid rule to its decision making. It will consider the examples of considerations provided in the Gambling Commission’s Guidance to local authorities. Note though that decisions on Premises Licences and temporary use notices must be “in accordance” with Gambling Commission Guidance (Section 153). It will also consider the Gambling Commission's Guidance that "has business interests" should be given the widest possible interpretation and include partnerships, charities, faith groups and medical practices.

7.5The Gambling Commission has recommended that the licensing authority states that interested parties include trade associations and trade unions, and residents’ and tenants’ associations. This authority will not however generally view these bodies as interested parties unless they have a member who can be classed as one under the terms of the Gambling Act 2005 e.g. lives sufficiently close to the premises to be likely to be affected by the activities being applied for.

7.6 Interested parties can be persons who are democratically elected such as councillors and MP’s. No specific evidence of being asked to represent an interested person will be required as long as the councillor / MP represents the ward likely to be affected. Likewise, parish councils likely to be affected, will be considered to be interested parties. Other than these however, this authority will generally require written evidence that a person/body (e.g. an advocate / relative) ‘represents’ someone who either lives sufficiently close to the premises to be likely to be affected by the authorised activities and/or has business interests that might be affected by the authorised activities. A letter from one of these persons, requesting the representation is sufficient.

7.7 If individuals wish to approach councillors to ask them to represent their views then care should be taken that the councillors are not part of the Licensing Committee dealing with the licence application. If there are any doubts then please contact the licensing department (see appendix for contact details).

8.Consultation

This Statement of Licensing Principles has been subject to formal consultation with:

  1. Cleveland police;
  2. Representatives of the holders of the various licences for premises within the Borough who will be affected by this Policy;
  3. Persons/bodies representing the interests of persons likely to be affected by this policy.

9.Exchange of Information

9.1In fulfilling its functions and obligations under the Gambling Act 2005 the Council will exchange relevant information with other regulatory bodies and will establish protocols in this respect. In exchanging such information, the Council will conform to the requirements of data protection and freedom of information legislation in accordance with the Council’s existing policies.

9.2The Council will also have regard to any Guidance issued by the Gambling Commission to Local Authorities on this matter when it is published, as well as any relevant regulations issued by the Secretary of State under the powers provided in the Gambling Act 2005.

9.3Details of those persons making representations will be made available to applicants to allow for negotiation and, in the event of a hearing being held, will form part of a public document. Anyone making representations or applying for the review of a premises licence will be informed that their details will be disclosed.

10.Enforcement

10.1Licensing authorities are required by regulation under the Gambling Act 2005 to state the principles to be applied by the authority in exercising the functions under Part 15 of the Act with respect to the inspection of premises; and the powers under section 346 of the Act to institute criminal proceedings in respect of the offences specified.

10.2This licensing authority’s principles are that:

It will be guided by the Gambling Commission’s Guidance for local authorities and will endeavour to be:

  • Proportionate: regulators should only intervene when necessary: remedies should be appropriate to the risk posed, and costs identified and minimised;
  • Accountable: regulators must be able to justify decisions, and be subject to public scrutiny;
  • Consistent: rules and standards must be joined up and implemented fairly;
  • Transparent: regulators should be open, and keep regulations simple and user friendly; and
  • Targeted: regulation should be focused on the problem, and minimise side effects

10.3As per the Gambling Commission’s Guidance for local authorities this licensing authority will endeavour to avoid duplication with other regulatory regimes so far as possible.

10.4This licensing authority will also, as recommended by the Gambling Commission’s Guidance for local authorities, adopt a risk-based inspection programme based on:

  • The licensing objectives
  • Relevant codes of practice
  • Guidance issued by the Gambling Commission, in particular at Part 36
  • The principles set out in this statement of licensing principles

10.5The main enforcement and compliance role for this licensing authority in terms of the Gambling Act 2005 will be to ensure compliance with the Premises Licences and other permissions which is authorises. The Gambling Commission will be the enforcement body for the Operator and Personal Licences. It is also worth noting that concerns about manufacture, supply or repair of gaming machines will not be dealt with by the licensing authority but will be notified to the Gambling Commission.

10.6This licensing authority will also keep itself informed of developments as regards the work of the Better Regulation Executive in its consideration of the regulatory functions of local authorities.

10.7Bearing in mind the principle of transparency, this licensing authority’s enforcement/compliance protocols/written agreements will be available upon request to the licensing department.

11.The Licensing Process

11.1The Council’s licensing functions under the Act will be carried out by the Licensing Committee, supported by a number of sub-committees and by officers acting under the delegated authority of the committee. Further details can be found in the table of delegation of licensing functions at Appendix A.

11.2Where there are no areas of contention it is considered that many of the functions will be largely administrative. In the interests of efficiency and effectiveness officers will for the most part, carry these out.

11.3Where there are relevant representations in respect of an application the matter will be determined by the Licensing Sub Committee, as will any application for the review of a licence.

11.4This Statement is not intended to override the right of any person to make an application under the Act, and to have that application considered on its merits. Equally, the Statement is not intended to undermine the right of any person to make representations about an application or to seek a review of a licence where provision has been made for them to do so.

PART B

PREMISES LICENCES

12. General Principles

12.1Premises Licences will be subject to the permissions/restrictions set-out in the Gambling Act 2005 and regulations, as well as specific mandatory and default conditions which will be detailed in regulations issued by the Secretary of State. Licensing authorities are able to exclude default conditions and also attach others, where it is believed to be appropriate.

12.2This licensing authority is aware that in making decisions about premises licences it should aim to permit the use of premises for gambling in so far as it thinks it is:

  • in accordance with any relevant code of practice issued by the Gambling Commission
  • in accordance with any relevant guidance issued by the Gambling Commission
  • reasonably consistent with the licensing objectives and
  • in accordance with the authority’s statement of licensing principles

12.3It is appreciated that as per the Gambling Commission’s Guidance for licensing authorities “moral objections to gambling are not a valid reason to reject applications for premises licences” (except as regards any ‘no casino resolution’ – see section on Casinos below – page 15) and also that unmet demand is not a criterion for a licensing authority.

12.4 Definition of “premises” – Premises is defined in the Act as “any place”. Section 152 therefore prevents more than one premises licence applying to any place. But a single building could be subject to more than one premises licence, provided they are for different parts of the building and the different parts of the building can be reasonably regarded as being different premises. This approach has been taken to allow large, multiple unit premises such as pleasure park, track or shopping mall to obtain discrete premise licences, where appropriate safeguards are in place. However, licensing authorities should pay particular attention if there are issues about sub-divisions of a single building or plot and should ensure that mandatory conditions relating to access between premises are observed.

12.5 The Gambling Commission states in the third edition of its Guidance to Licensing Authorities that “In most cases the expectation is that a single building/plot will be the subject of an application for a licence, for example, 32 High Street. But, that does not mean 32 High Street cannot be the subject of separate premises licences for the basement and ground floor, if they are configured acceptably. Whether different parts of a building can properly be regarded as being separate premises will depend on the circumstances. The location of the premises will clearly be an important consideration and the suitability of the division is likely to be a matter for discussion between the operator and the licensing officer. However, the Commission does not consider that areas of a building that are artificially or temporarily separated, for example by ropes or moveable partitions, can properly be regarded as different premises.”

12.6This licensing authority takes particular note of the Gambling Commission’s Guidance for local authorities which states that: licensing authorities should take particular care in considering applications for multiple licences for a building and those relating to a discrete part of a building used for other (non-gambling) purposes. In particular they should be aware of the following:

  • The third licensing objective seeks to protect children from being harmed by gambling. In practice that means not only preventing them from being in close proximity to gambling. Therefore premises should be configured so that children are not invited to participate in, have accidental access to or closely observe gambling where they are prohibited from participating.
  • Entrances to and exits from parts of a building covered by more one or more premises licences should be separate and identifiable so that separation of different premises is not compromised and people do not “drift” into a gambling area. In this context it should normally be possible to access the premises without going through another licensed premises or premises without a permit.
  • Customers should be able to participate in the activity named on the premise licence.

12.7The Guidance also gives a list of factors, which the licensing authority should be aware of, which may include:

  • Do the premises have a separate registration for business rates
  • Is the premises’ neighbouring premises owned by the same person or someone else?
  • Can each of the premises be accessed from the street or a public passageway?
  • Can the premises only be accessed from any other gambling premises?

This authority will consider these and other relevant factors (e.g. division walling would normally be expected to be full floor to ceiling height), in making its decision, depending on all the circumstances of the case.

12.8The Gambling Commissions relevant access provisions for each premise type are reproduced below: