Guidance
Guidance to licensing authorities
The Gambling Commission's guidance for licensing authorities.
Contents
- Changes to the Guidance for Licensing Authorities
- Part 1: General guidance on the role and responsibilities of licensing authorities in gambling regulation
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- Introduction
- Partnership working between the Commission and licensing authorities – shared regulation
- Co-ordination and contact
- Primary legislation
- Statutory aim to permit gambling
- The licensing objectives
- Codes of practice
- Licensing authority discretion (s.153 of the Act)
- Local risk assessments
- Licensing authority policy statement
- Limits on licensing authority discretion
- Other powers
- Part 2: The licensing framework
- Part 3: The Gambling Commission
- Part 4: Licensing authorities
- Part 5: Principles to be applied by licensing authorities
- Part 6: Licensing authority policy statement
- Part 7: Premises licences
- Part 8: Responsible authorities and interested parties definitions
- Part 9: Premises licence conditions
- Part 10: Review of premises licence by licensing authority
- Part 11: Provisional statements
- Part 12: Rights of appeal and judicial review
- Part 13: Information exchange
- Part 14: Temporary use notices
- Part 15: Occasional use notices
- Part 16: Gaming machines
- Part 17: Casinos
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- Casino premises
- Casino games
- Protection of children and young persons
- The process for issuing casino premises licences
- Resolutions not to issue casino licences
- Converted casinos (with preserved rights under Schedule 18 of the Act)
- Casino premises licence conditions
- Mandatory conditions – small casino premises licences
- Mandatory conditions – converted casino premises licences
- Default conditions attaching to all casino premises licences
- Self-exclusion
- Part 18: Bingo
- Part 19: Betting premises
- Part 20: Tracks
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- Definition of a track
- Track premises licences – differences from other premises licences
- Betting on tracks
- Licences and other permissions for the provision of betting facilities
- Betting on event and non-event days
- Social responsibility considerations for tracks
- Gaming machines
- Self-service betting terminals (SSBTs)
- Applications
- Licence conditions and requirements
- Part 21: Adult gaming centres
- Part 22: Licensed family entertainment centres
- Part 23: Introduction to permits
- Part 24: Unlicensed family entertainment centres
- Part 25: Clubs
- Part 26: Premises licensed to sell alcohol
- Part 27: Prize gaming and prize gaming permits
- Part 28: Non-commercial and private gaming, betting and lotteries
- Part 29: Poker
- Part 30: Travelling fairs
- Part 31: Crown immunity and excluded premises
- Part 32: Territorial application of the Gambling Act 2005
- Part 33: Door supervision
- Part 34: Small society lotteries
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- Small society lotteries
- The status of lotteries under the Act
- Licensing authority guidance
- Social responsibility
- External lottery managers’ licence status
- Lottery tickets
- Prizes
- Specific offences in relation to lotteries
- Application and registration process for small society lotteries
- Administration and returns
- Part 35: Chain gift schemes
- Part 36: Compliance and enforcement matters
- Appendix A: Summary of machine provisions by premises
- Appendix B: Summary of gaming machine categories and entitlements
- Appendix C: Summary of gaming entitlements for clubs and alcohol-licensed premises
- Appendix D: Summary of offences under the Gambling Act 2005
- Appendix E: Summary of statutory application forms and notices
- Appendix F: Inspection powers
- Appendix G: Licensing authority delegations
- Appendix H: Poker games and prizes
- Appendix I: Glossary of terms
7 - Casino premises licence conditions
17.33. Part 9 of this guidance discusses the mandatory and default conditions that attach to premises licences.
Mandatory conditions – all casino premises licences
17.34. Access to premises is regulated to add additional safeguards for both the public and industry. The principal entrance to the casino should be from a street. A street is defined as including any bridge, road, lane, footway, subway, square, court, alley or passage (including passages through enclosed premises such as shopping centres), whether it is a thoroughfare or not.
17.35. No customer must be able to enter the casino from any other premises holding a casino, bingo, adult gaming centre (AGC), family entertainment centre (FEC) or betting premises licence, or from premises where a FEC, club gaming and club machine, or licensed premises gaming machine permit, has effect.
17.36. There should be no access to a casino from premises wholly or mainly used by children and young persons.
17.37. No other gambling equipment may be situated within two metres of any ordinary gaming table. For the purposes of these conditions an ordinary gaming table means one which is not wholly or partially automated.
17.38. A maximum of 40 separate player positions may be made available for use in relation to wholly automated gaming tables at any time.
17.39. All casinos must display the rules of each type of casino game that can be played on the premises in a prominent place within both the table gaming area and other gambling areas to which customers have unrestricted access. Licensees may do this either by displaying clear and legible signs or by making available to customers leaflets or other written material setting out the rules.
17.40. ATMs must be positioned so that customers must cease to gamble at tables or gaming machines in order to use them.
Mandatory conditions – large casino premises licences
17.41. A notice shall be displayed at all entrances to the casino stating that no person under the age of 18 will be admitted.
17.42. Large casinos must provide a minimum table gaming area of 1000m2. In determining the floor area of the table gaming area, any number of separate areas within the casino may be taken into account. However, no area counting towards the minimum table gaming area may comprise less than 12.5 percent of the total minimum table gaming area. No gambling shall be permitted in the table gaming area of the premises other than gambling by way of table gaming.
17.43. Large casinos must offer a non-gambling area of a minimum of 500m2. These areas must be readily available to customers (for example, offices, kitchen areas, employee areas will not count). They may include but should not consist exclusively of lavatories and lobby areas. The area must also include recreational facilities for casino customers that are available for use when the casino is open; where there is more than one area each area must contain recreational facilities. No gambling facilities may be offered in the non-gambling areas. In England and Wales, the non-gambling area may consist of one or more areas within the casino.
17.44. Clear and accessible information about the terms on which a bet may be placed should be displayed in a prominent position on the premises.
17.45. Any admission charges, the charges for playing bingo games and the rules of bingo must be displayed in a prominent position on the premises. Rules can be displayed on a sign, by making available leaflets or other written materials containing the rules, or running an audio-visual guide to the rules prior to any bingo game being commenced.
17.46. No more than 40 separate betting positions may be made available for use if betting is provided by means of terminals rather than an over the counter service.
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Mandatory conditions – small casino premises licences
Last updated: 14 September 2023
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