Council wants to hear what you think about gambling and street trading

Swindon Borough Council is seeking people’s opinions on its gambling and street trading policies. Two public consultations have been launched with the aim of ensuring best practice is followed at all times.

Swindon Borough Council’s current street trading policy has been in place since 2014 and is due to be renewed by the Licensing Committee.

The Council has powers to manage street trading by designating streets as consent streets, licence streets or, alternatively, prohibited streets.

The consultation is asking for people’s opinions on the current restrictions on street markets and their locations, as well as the designation of streets across the town.

A new policy on restricting the sale of food from vendors near schools is also being considered.

Kathryn Ashton, Swindon Borough Council’s Licensing Manager, said: “In Swindon, requests for themed markets or food festivals are becoming increasingly popular. They can bring benefits to the town such as creating a more vibrant economy and offering people more choice.

“The Licensing Authority, in conjunction with inSwindon, aims to encourage and deliver quality markets, but it is becoming apparent that the current policy is unnecessarily restrictive in respect of frequency, type and duration of markets.”

Also under review is the Council’s Statement of Principles regarding gambling policies.

The draft revised policy includes a new section recognising the links between public health and gambling, as well as containing more detailed information on how the Council will regulate gambling in clubs and alcohol-licensed premises.

All gambling operators now have to do local area risk assessments to check if their gambling venues pose a risk to the Council’s licensing objectives.

For more information, and to comment on the proposals, visit the consultation page on www.swindon.gov.uk/info/20019/consultations_and_surveys.

Both surveys will close on Friday, 19 October 2018 at 5pm.