A card shop in the centre of Swindon’s main shopping district will close and, in its place, will be a new betting shop.
The Card Factory in The Parade is set to close after bookmaker William Hill was given permission by Swindon Borough Council to use the unit next to pharmacy Superdrug.
The application for the change of use was supported by the landlord of the unit which said there had been very little interest from other retailers in taking it.
The Card Factory chain has another shop in Swindon at the Orbital Retail Park.
Although councils do try to restrict the number of bookmakers and betting shops, the report of the planning officers who recommended granting permissions said: “Betting shops provide footfall throughout the day and can thus provide a great deal of activity to an area.
"Clearly, based on the marketing information and the letter from the retail agent, there has been no interest in maintaining the retail use.
"As such the proposal will undoubtedly create an active frontage and additional footfall.”
William Hill has also been given permission to install satellite dishes for feeds of sports events, air conditioning and to install signage at the unit.
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