There are “too many gambling shops” in Barking and Dagenham, residents have said, with one saying you “can’t go 100 metres” in Barking without coming across one.
The council is preparing to bring in tougher policies governing gambling premises licenses, after a consultation revealed a “significant level of concern” about the number of betting shops across the borough.
One resident told the consultation that gambling stores were “everywhere you go in Barking”, arguing that shops were being placed there because it is one of London’s poorest areas. Another complained that there were “to[o] many gambling shops in the borough open all hours”.
