Gambling premises licence

The Council is responsible for issuing premises licences for casinos, bingo halls, betting shops, adult gaming centres and family entertainment centres.

All forms must be submitted to the licensing service with the relevant fees and copies sent to responsible authorities.

• gambling application fees
• responsible authorities

Premises licence application

An application for a premises licence may only be made by persons (which includes companies or partnerships):

• who have the right to occupy the premises
• who have an operating licence which allows she or he to carry out the proposed activity, or have applied for an operating licence (the premises licence may only be issued once the operating licence has been issued) from the Gambling Commission

An applicant for a premises licence must be 18 or over.

Except in the case of a track, a premises licence may not authorise the use of premises for activities of more than one of the types listed above. A licence may not be issued in respect of premises if those premises already have a premises licence in effect.

• premises licence form
• premises licence form (vessel)
• public notice for a premises licence
• responsible authorities notice for a premises licence form A
• responsible authorities notice for a premises licence form B

Variation of a premises licence

A premises licence holder may apply to vary the licence. Variations could, for example, include adding, amending or removing a licensable activity, changing a default condition, changing certain conditions or changing another part of the licence such as the plan.

• variation of a premises licence form
• public notice for variation of a premises licence
• responsible authorities notice for variation of a premises licence form A
• responsible authorities notice for variation of a premises licence form B

Provisional statements

Section 204 of the Act provides for a person to make an application to us for a provisional statement in respect of premises that she or he:

• expects to be constructed
• expects to be altered
• expects to acquire a right to occupy

Unlike a premises licence application, a person can apply for a provisional statement without having an operating licence from the Gambling Commission or a right to occupy the premises.

As well as providing a level of assurance to the outcome of a subsequent premises licence application, a provisional statement also provides the holder with some protection against representations when they make an application for a premises licence in relation to the premises for which they hold a provisional statement.

• provisional statement form
• provisional statement form (vessel)
• public notice for a provisional statement
• responsible authorities notice for a provisional statement form A
• responsible authorities notice for a provisional statement form B

Transfer of a premises licence

The Gambling Act 2005 allows an individual or business to take over an existing premises licence from the current premises licence holder by applying for a transfer of the licence. The new premises licence holder should have an operating licence issued by the Gambling Commission.

• transfer of a premises licence form
• responsible authorities notice for a transfer of a premises licence form A
• responsible authorities notice for a transfer of a premises licence form B

Reinstatement of a premises licence

A premises licence may be reinstated where it lapses for one of the following reasons:

• the licensee dies or, in the case of a company, ceases to exist
• the licensee becomes incapable of carrying on their licensed activities due to mental or physical incapacity
• the licensee becomes bankrupt or, in the case of a company, goes into liquidation

Reinstatement allows another operator to take over a premises licence and continue operating a gambling business from the premises. Section 195 of the Act stipulates that for 6 months following a licence lapse a person may apply for the licence to be reinstated in their name.

• reinstatement of a premises licence form
• responsible authorities notice for the reinstatement of a premises licence form A
• responsible authorities notice for the reinstatement of a premises licence form B

Review of a premises licence

A responsible authority or an interested party may apply for a review of the premises licence. The Council can also initiate a review of a premises licence, without the need for representations to have a been made to us, if we suspect that the licence conditions are not being complied with or for other reasons where we believe a review is appropriate.

• review of a premises licence form
• public notice of a review of a premises licence