Monitoring under-age gambling in adult gaming centres

Press release

Date: 15 June 2010

The Gambling Commission (the Commission) undertakes a rolling programme of test purchases (in conjunction with local authorities where appropriate). The purpose of the programme is twofold. First to examine the operation of the controls in place to prevent under-age gambling*. Secondly, to encourage sector - and industry-wide improvement through such measures as self testing and the sharing of good practice.

The most recent series of visits have been conducted in adult gaming centres (AGCs). 
For this round of testing we have concentrated on organisations whose estate covers a number of local authority areas. The results are encouraging, but indicate that there is still scope for further improvement. 

Organisation** Number of AGCs visited Number of AGCs that prevented someone under-age from gambling
Talarius Ltd 57 41
NOL 37 24
Cashino Gaming Ltd 15 12


The Commission acknowledges the efforts that AGC operators have made to address the risk of under-age gambling. We will be providing the operators involved in this latest exercise with further details from individual test reports and meeting them to discuss the results. The Commission wishes to work with individual operators and the industry more widely to help them in their efforts to secure further improvements and monitor the effectiveness of their own controls. 

The Director of Regulation at the Commission, Nick Tofiluk, said “While these results are encouraging, young people under 18 are not permitted to gamble in adult gaming centres. So there must be no let up in the effort to improve. Test purchase exercises, by both the Commission and local authorities, will continue."

Ends

Notes to editors

  1. 1. The Gambling Commission (the Commission) regulates gambling in the public interest alongside its co-regulators local licensing authorities. It does so by keeping crime out of gambling, by ensuring that gambling is conducted fairly and openly, and by protecting children and vulnerable people from being harmed or exploited by gambling. The Commission also provides independent advice to government on gambling in Britain.
  2. 2. The Commission and local licensing authorities are responsible for licensing and regulating all gambling in Great Britain other than the National Lottery and spread betting, which are the responsibility of the National Lottery Commission and the Financial Services Authority (FSA) respectively.
  3. 3. Licensing authorities in Great Britain are co-regulators with the Commission under the Gambling Act 2005. They are responsible for the licensing of premises related to gambling.
  4. 4. The rolling programme of test purchase exercises is one feature of the Commission’s ongoing compliance activity. It currently covers online gambling, betting shops and AGCs and we work closely with licensing authorities to ensure compliance.
  5. 5. * The test purchase exercises use volunteers (with parental consent) under the age of 18 years as permitted under Section 64 of the Gambling Act 2005 to assess whether effective controls are in place to prevent those under 18 from gambling.  
  6. 6. ** Premises at one further operator (Shipley Leisure) were visited during the initial part of this exercise and all six of the premises tested prevented gambling by the young person. As this operator has reduced in size it was decided no further testing was required beyond the initial sample.  

Further information

  1. You can call John Travers on (0121) 230 6700, (07852) 124624 or email him via communications@gamblingcommission.gov.uk.