4.1 ‘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

4.2 The Act provides for three categories of licences, which are:

• operating licences
• personal licences, and
• premises licences

4.3 The Council will be responsible for issuing Premises Licences and the Commission for issuing Operating and Personal Licences. Licensing remote gambling falls to the Commission, via an Operator’s Licence. (Contact details for the Commission are provided in section 16 of the Gambling Policy).

4.4 The main function of the Council under the Act is to:

• licence premises for gambling activities
• grant permits for gambling and gaming machines in clubs
• regulate gaming and gaming machines in alcohol licensed premises
• grant permits to family entertainment centres for the use of certain lower stake gaming machines
• grant permits for prize gaming
• consider notices given for the temporary use of premises for gaming
• consider occasional use notices for betting at tracks
• register small societies lotteries

4.5 Premises Licences granted by the Council may authorise the provision of facilities on:

• casino premises
• bingo premises
• betting premises, including tracks
• adult gaming centres, and
• family entertainment centres

4.6 Except in the case of tracks, Premises Licences may only be issued to people with a relevant Operating Licence granted by the Commission. Premises Licences are transferable to someone else holding a valid Operating Licence. The Council may attach conditions to Premises Licences (section 10).

4.7 Other forms of authorisation issued by the Council may include authorising the temporary use of premises, occasional use notices, five different sorts of permit for unlicensed family entertainment centres, prize gaming, gaming machines on alcohol- licensed premises, club gaming and club gaming machines.

4.8 Application forms and information on application fees is available via the Council’s website, or by contacting the Licensing Partnership (section 16).