Bedford Council has approved a licensing application submitted by Future Leisure Ltd for a new AGC on the town’s Silver Street, subject to conditions.
The authority’s licensing sub-committee voted in favour of the submission after reportedly being “reminded” of the Aim to Permit rule.
“Speaking on behalf of the applicant, licensing consultant Andrew Woods said the business had extensive experience operating adult gaming centres and had strengthened its proposals following consultation responses,” reported Bedford Today.
“Woods said the company had voluntarily offered a package of conditions, including Challenge 25 age checks, CCTV, incident logging, a controlled entry system and a commitment to have two staff on duty at all times.”
Future Leisure’s head of compliance Anna Zietkiewicz also addressed the committee on the company’s existing training measures, including the recognition of behavioural changes in players.
“Support services are offered, but if the customer is getting worse we do give them a ban,” she said.
Claims raised by local residents and Bedford Police about the deprivation, homelessness, and anti-social behaviour a 24-hour AGC could cause were also dismissed by Woods, who highlighted a lack of evidence for the objections.
“None of the concerns or beliefs that have been expressed in the representations occur at any of our shops.”
Originally published on Coinslot on June 15, 2026. Republished with permission.