Supplier News
UK – Local councils given training to spot illegal slots
By Phil - 17 April 2014
Training on how to identify and manage the siting of illegal gaming machines is being provided to local councils across the country by Westminster City Training in partnership with the Gambling Commission’s Local Authority Liaison Unit (LALU).
Many of the courses are being held in casino premises, which will provide participants with first-hand experience of a live gambling environment after the training has been completed. The first course at Bristol’s Grosvenor Casino was fully booked, as are a number of the other sessions.
It follows the success of seven workshops held around the country last year which were attended by almost 400 council and police officers and demonstrated a need by local councils for practical training on how to effectively identify and take action relating to illegal gaming machines.
Rob Burkitt of the Commission’s LALU team said: “We are delighted to have partnered with Westminster City Training to develop and deliver this course around the country, and we are also grateful to the Rank Group and Aspers for the use of their casinos at many of the venues. Issues around suspected illegal gaming machines are one of the main compliance referrals we make to licensing authorities. With the fast moving nature of technical advances in gaming machines, these workshops are a great opportunity for police and council officers to find out what they need to look for when dealing with illegal gaming machines.”
Supplying gaming machines or making them available to the public without the appropriate licence or permission is a criminal offence. LALU regularly supports councils and police forces across the country on joint operations to remove illegal gaming machines.
Steve Harrison, Westminster City Council’s Operational Director of Premises Management said: “The licensing, deployment and policing of gaming machines present real challenges and the fact that that our first workshop course in Bristol sold out speaks volumes about the need for quality training. I believe that Westminster City Council’s team offers the best training available. Crucially, our officers come to the classroom with years of on-the-ground experience and we share the Gambling Commission’s ambition for best practice to be shared across the country.”
