A study commissioned by the Responsible Gambling Fund (RGF) – a UK charity set up in June 2009 to distribute funds for gambling research, education and treatment - finds that the areas with the highest density of gambling machines are found in some of the poorest areas in Great Britain. The research for ‘Machines Research Study 1: Mapping the social and economic characteristics of high density gambling machine locations’ was undertaken by independent research organisations NatCen and Geofutures Ltd and the authors are Heather Wardle (for NatCen), and Ruth Keily, Mark Thurstain-Goodwin and Gaynor Astbury (for Geofutures Ltd).
A series of maps build up a picture of the location of gambling venues in England, Scotland and Wales; the number of machines the venues hold; and the social and economic characteristics of the surrounding neighbourhoods. The report also reveals that although areas of socio-economic deprivation are where many areas with the highest machine density are found, the overall pattern of distribution is more complex. For example, some wealthier towns, coastal locations, and New Towns are also high density machine zones.
This is the first research of its kind in Great Britain and it fills that gap by compiling information about gambling machines from a range of sources. It gives policy-makers a good basis to try to find answers to some of the questions beyond the scope of this research.
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For example, whether a higher density of gambling machines in an area means that people living nearby will gamble more or what other factors are driving machines tending to cluster in particular areas.
Recently bookmakers’ shops have been perceived as increasing in a number in town centres, especially where other retailers have ceased trading and left premises vacant, a feature of the wider recent economic downturn. In some areas local opposition has sought to preserve the trading character of the high street and to voice concerns over lower-income and vulnerable groups having increased access to gambling opportunities overall, not exclusively machine-based.
An important component of better understanding local market forces relates to economic diversity. Some High Density Machine Zones (HDMZs) may exist purely because the leisure and recreation offer within an area is thin and is competing with other towns and centres. The study concludes that further research could provide valuable insight for policy makers. “For example, why are Crawley, Luton and Stevenage such gambling machine hotspots? Why Tamworth and not Burton upon Trent? Are there other similarities between the seaside towns, with HDMZs and those without?” (E-11.21.11)
Machines Research 1 can be found at http://www.rgfund.org.uk/images/stories/111118_Final_Report_Machines1_RGFapproved.pdf
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