You Said, We Did

Find out the results of the consultations.

Westminster Licensing Polices

Learn more about the impact of this engagement!

We asked:

The council, acting as the Licensing Authority under the Gambling Act 2005 (the Act), is responsible for reviewing and deciding on land-based gambling premises within the city. Under the Act we are required to publish a statement of the principles for gambling that we propose to apply when exercising our functions under the Act. This is commonly referred to as the gambling policy. The policy builds on the requirements for gambling operators to fully assess the associated risk of their gambling operation, which includes the premises, the gambling activity and its location on the licensing objectives under the Act.

Westminster City Council has commenced a consultation process in accordance with section 349 of the Gambling Act 2005 (the Act) regarding our proposals for the Statement of Principles for Gambling (gambling policy). We are proposing to re-adopt the existing gambling policy without any revisions. The current gambling policy was originally adopted by the Council on Thursday 10th November 2022 and came into effect on Monday 12th December 2022. Through our consultation, we wanted to know whether Westminster’s stakeholders support our plan to re-adopt the existing policy with no new adjustments.

You said:

Majority of respondents expressed clear support for our proposal to re-adopt the existing gambling policy, and many appreciated the thorough and transparent communication surrounding this consultation. In addition to this endorsement, we also received comments highlighting broader concerns about the potential impacts of gambling on local communities.

We did:

Following the majority of responses, the Council has re-adopted the previous gambling policy, which will take effect on 31st January 2025. The Council continues to refer to the Local Area Profile for gambling risks when addressing concerns about the impact of gambling activities. This profile identifies areas where individuals may have a higher risk of gambling-related harm. It is used by both new and existing operators to inform their risk assessments and consider possible effects on the local area.