OXFORD City Council planning officers have said they don’t have the power to stop a betting shop from opening in Rose Hill.

There had been local objections to the scheme, with a senior city councillors and Oxford East MP Andrew Smith raising concerns.

Coral has submitted three planning applications to the city council to convert 4 Courtland Road – previously occupied by the Oxford Bed Company but now an empty shop – into a bookmakers. One is for change of use, the second is for an extension and the third is for the signs, which need advertising consent. The parade, which has a number of empty shops, already has a Ladbrokes.

Mr Smith, who was contacted by a number of worried constituents, said: “There are concerns that a betting shop will escalate crime in the area, cause difficulties to vulnerable members of the Rose Hill community, and add to the Ladbrokes in the parade of shops in Rose Hill.”

City councillor for Rose Hill Ed Turner, who is also the deputy leader of the city council, expressed his doubts about the proposals and “called in” the scheme, which means it will be decided by the east area planning committee tomorrow instead of by planning officers.

He said: “We called it in because there was a lot of local concern. Some local people felt that, with another betting shop already on the parade, this would be an over-concentration.

“I’ve also heard the view expressed that a betting shop is better than an empty shop. There are a range of views in the area.”

But applications can only be considered against national and local planning policy, meaning the Coral proposals could not be rejected based on the community’s concerns.

In a report to the committee, planning officer Kerrie Gaughan said there was nothing the city council could do to deny Coral planning permission. She said: “There have been a number of objections to the proposed change of use to a ‘betting shop’ and the lack of need for one in the area.

“These concerns shared by a number of people, have been considered and noted, as has the concern about the impact such a use will have on the local community and vulnerable people.

“Officers understand the depth of worry which has been expressed in the objectors correspondences, and have taken these comments on board, and where appropriate have applied conditions, conditions which restrict opening hours, restrict the hours when the signs can be illuminated, and levels of luminance.

“However the application for the change of use needs to be assessed and considered in line with national and local planning policies.”

Coral spokesman David Stephens said: “We open betting shops where we believe there is a commercial demand for their services, as is the case here.

“Coral prides itself on its socially responsible behaviour, and while the overwhelming majority of those who gamble do so safely and with control, for the tiny percentage who develop a problem, there is help available for them.”

The east area planning committee will meet at 6pm in the Town Hall tomorrow.

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