Vape shops, betting shops and adult gaming centres cluster in very different places. The GeoDS team analyses retail centre and points-of-interest data to show which councils would likely be using the new powers proposed by the UK government to stop new premises from opening on their high streets
On 11 August, Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced plans to give local councils new powers to refuse new vape shops, betting shops and adult gaming centres from opening on their high streets. The proposed measures include:
Across Great Britain: Scrapping the “aim to permit” rule in the Gambling Act 2005, which requires councils to allow a premises licence where an application meets licensing objectives. This goes further than the April 2026 change, which let councils consider the density of existing gambling outlets in an area.
In England: Reclassifying vape shops (which currently fall under the same broad use class as shops and cafés) to require these businesses to apply for permission to open, and tightening the definition of a vape shop to prevent businesses describing themselves as convenience stores to circumvent the rules. Planning permission will also be required for adult gaming centres.
A fast-tracked six-week consultation is proposed to run first, with implementation targeted for early 2027.
Powers of this kind are prospective and govern what opens next rather than what is already trading. But where the existing retail stock has already settled is the best available guide for which council might end up using these proposed powers the most, and how often.
Data and methods
We use the Geographic Data Service’s (GeoDS) Retail Centre Boundaries, combined with the Gambling Commission’s premises licence register and Foursquare points of interest data, to analyse retail concentration across Great Britain.
The figures are represented as an index, not counts. The index shows the share of a high street’s premises given over to a type of shop (vape shops, betting shops, adult gaming centres, and all three combined) relative to the the Great Britain (GB) average for the same type, which equals to 100. Therefore, a score of 400 is four times the national average. This enables comparisons between high streets that vary enormously in size. Four bookmakers in a parade of 40 shops is a very different high street from a town centre with six among 600 shops, and using counts would rank the latter higher than the former.
The national shares are small and differ by an order of magnitude. Adult gaming centres are the rarest at 0.16% of premises; betting shops the most common at 0.71%. A high index for gaming centres is therefore easier to reach than a high index for bookmakers.
Further information about interpreting and accessing the data are provided at the end of this data story.
British high streets with the greatest concentration of vape shops, betting shops and adult gaming centres
The top 10 most concentrated high
streets in Britain
Index of each shop type’s share of a retail centre’s
premises (100=Great Britain average).
By vape shops
Bury New Rd, Strangeways
2,239
Manchester
Cowgate, Kirkintilloch
1,034
East Dunbartonshire
Heanor
946
Amber Valley
Woodhouse Park
927
Manchester
Laughton Rd, Dinnington
814
Rotherham
Chorley Old Rd, Victory
700
Bolton
High St, Blackwood
635
Caerphilly
Poplar
612
Tower Hamlets
Whitby Rd, Ellesmere Port
589
Cheshire West and Chester
High St, Leven
580
Fife
100
By betting shops
Bedworth
647
Nuneaton and Bedworth
Edgware Rd, The Hyde
641
Barnet
High St, Swanley
478
Sevenoaks
High Rd, Goodmayes
455
Redbridge
Holderness Rd, Mile House
437
City of Kingston upon Hull
Prescot Rd, Old Swan
431
Liverpool
Salford Shopping Centre
427
Salford
Harehills Lane, Harehills
421
Leeds
Heathway, Dagenham
415
Barking and Dagenham
Shettleston Rd, Shettleston
410
Glasgow City
100
By adult gaming centres
North Rd, Durham
2,088
County Durham
Hunstanton
1,740
King’s Lynn and West Norfolk
Southwark Park Rd, Bermondsey
1,678
Southwark
High St, Mablethorpe
1,659
East Lindsey
Lumley Rd, Skegness
1,388
East Lindsey
Paignton
1,316
Torbay
Portsmouth City Centre
1,301
Portsmouth
High St, Brompton
1,236
Medway
Bognor Regis
1,182
Arun
Church St, Eccles
1,182
Salford
100
By all three combined
Woodhouse Park
634
Manchester
Bury New Rd, Strangeways
574
Manchester
Edgware Rd, The Hyde
545
Barnet
Bedworth
471
Nuneaton and Bedworth
Cowgate, Kirkintilloch
464
East Dunbartonshire
Salford Shopping Centre
454
Salford
Front St, Stanley
431
County Durham
Station Rd, Ashington
415
Northumberland
Main St, Coatbridge
393
North Lanarkshire
Poplar
393
Tower Hamlets
100
DATA: GeoDS Retail Centre Boundaries,
Gambling Commission premises licence
register. • NOTES: Each chart is scaled
to its own leader. Retail centres with
fewer than 50 units are excluded. Data
are as of July 2026.
The top 10 most concentrated high streets in Britain, by vape shops,
betting shops, adult gaming centres and all three combined
Index of each shop type’s share of a retail centre’s premises (100=Great Britain average).
Bury New Rd, Strangeways
Bedworth
2,239
647
Manchester
Nuneaton and Bedworth
Cowgate, Kirkintilloch
Edgware Rd, The Hyde
1,034
641
East Dunbartonshire
Barnet
Heanor
High St, Swanley
946
478
Amber Valley
Sevenoaks
Woodhouse Park
High Rd, Goodmayes
927
455
Manchester
Redbridge
Laughton Rd, Dinnington
Holderness Rd, Mile House
814
437
Rotherham
City of Kingston upon Hull
Chorley Old Rd, Victory
Prescot Rd, Old Swan
700
431
Bolton
Liverpool
High St, Blackwood
Salford Shopping Centre
635
427
Caerphilly
Salford
Poplar
Harehills Lane, Harehills
612
421
Tower Hamlets
Leeds
Whitby Rd, Ellesmere Port
Heathway, Dagenham
589
415
Cheshire West and Chester
Barking and Dagenham
High St, Leven
Shettleston Rd, Shettleston
580
410
Fife
Glasgow City
100
100
North Rd, Durham
Woodhouse Park
2,088
634
County Durham
Manchester
Hunstanton
Bury New Rd, Strangeways
1,740
574
King’s Lynn and West Norfolk
Manchester
Southwark Park Rd, Bermondsey
Edgware Rd, The Hyde
1,678
545
Southwark
Barnet
High St, Mablethorpe
Bedworth
1,659
471
East Lindsey
Nuneaton and Bedworth
Lumley Rd, Skegness
Cowgate, Kirkintilloch
1,388
464
East Lindsey
East Dunbartonshire
Paignton
Salford Shopping Centre
1,316
454
Torbay
Salford
Portsmouth City Centre
Front St, Stanley
1,301
431
Portsmouth
County Durham
High St, Brompton
Station Rd, Ashington
1,236
415
Medway
Northumberland
Bognor Regis
Main St, Coatbridge
1,182
393
Arun
North Lanarkshire
Church St, Eccles
Poplar
1,182
393
Salford
Tower Hamlets
100
100
DATA: GeoDS Retail Centre Boundaries, Gambling Commission premises licence register.
NOTES: Each chart is scaled to its own leader. Retail centres with fewer than 50 units are
excluded. Data are as of July 2026.
Bury New Road in Strangeways, Manchester, indexes over 22 times the GB average concentration for vape shops. North Road in Durham reaches a similar rate for adult gaming centres. The betting shop list tops out far lower, at nearly 6.5 times the GB average, in Bedworth.
The data reflect different geographies for each of the three shop types:
- Betting shops are near-universal on British high streets, and evenly spread. Only 18% of ranked high streets have none at all, and the median centre indexes at 97, almost exactly the national average. The busiest 10th of them holds 30% of all bookmakers.
- Adult gaming centres are far less common, and heavily clustered. Nearly 69% of ranked high streets have none; the median centre indexes at zero. But one in ten sits above 400, and the busiest 10th holds 59% of all the gaming centres. Six of the 10 most concentrated are seaside: Hunstanton, Mablethorpe, Skegness, Paignton, Bognor Regis and Portsmouth.
- Vape shops sit between the two, absent from 46% of high streets and above 300 in 7% of them.
Another pattern that emerges from the combined ranking relates to the size of high streets. Eight of the 10 most concentrated high streets are local centres such as neighbourhood parades. Top of the list, at six times the GB average, is the small shopping precinct of Woodhouse Park in Wythenshawe, Manchester. Meanwhile, regional centres index at 58 nationally and large shopping centres at 34. This indicates that these clusters form where the rent is cheap and the footfall is residential, not where the shopping is.
Which local councils might make the most use of these new powers?
The top 10 local authorities with the most concentrated retail, by
vape shops, betting shops, adult gaming centres and all three combined
Index across all retail centres in each local authority (100=Great Britain average).
282
307
Lichfield
North Lanarkshire
279
285
Bolsover
West Dunbartonshire
274
282
Castle Point
Barking and Dagenham
256
240
East Dunbartonshire
Boston
242
233
Harlow
Enfield
Halton
240
233
Nuneaton and Bedworth
234
226
Neath Port Talbot
Brent
227
224
South Kesteven
South Lanarkshire
Wyre
224
221
Sunderland
222
217
Pendle
Great Yarmouth
100
100
897
277
East Lindsey
Halton
895
263
Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth
Halton
751
259
North Lanarkshire
612
252
North East Lincolnshire
West Dunbartonshire
532
236
Boston
Boston
Torbay
516
229
Nuneaton and Bedworth
487
218
Hartlepool
Sunderland
Swale
457
203
Barking and Dagenham
King’s Lynn and
West Norfolk
412
195
North East Lincolnshire
389
195
West Dunbartonshire
Sandwell
100
100
DATA: GeoDS Retail Centre Boundaries, Foursquare points of interest, Gambling
Commission premises licence register. • NOTES: Each chart is scaled to its own leader.
Data are as of July 2026.
The top 10 local authorities with the
most concentrated retail
Index across all retail centres in each local authority
(100=Great Britain average).
By vape shops
282
Lichfield
279
Bolsover
274
Castle Point
256
East Dunbartonshire
242
Harlow
Halton
240
234
Neath Port Talbot
227
South Kesteven
Wyre
224
222
Pendle
100
By betting shops
307
North Lanarkshire
285
West Dunbartonshire
282
Barking and Dagenham
240
Boston
233
Enfield
233
Nuneaton and Bedworth
226
Brent
224
South Lanarkshire
221
Sunderland
217
Great Yarmouth
100
By adult gaming centres
897
East Lindsey
895
Great Yarmouth
Halton
751
612
North East Lincolnshire
532
Boston
Torbay
516
487
Hartlepool
Swale
457
King’s Lynn and
West Norfolk
412
389
West Dunbartonshire
100
By all three combined
277
Halton
263
Great Yarmouth
259
North Lanarkshire
252
West Dunbartonshire
236
Boston
229
Nuneaton and Bedworth
218
Sunderland
203
Barking and Dagenham
195
North East Lincolnshire
195
Sandwell
100
DATA: GeoDS Retail Centre Boundaries,
Foursquare points of interest, Gambling
Commission premises licence register.
NOTES: Each chart is scaled to its
own leader. Data as of July 2026.
Halton has the highest combined index in Britain at 277, followed by Great Yarmouth at 263 and North Lanarkshire at 259.
There is little overlap in the vape, betting and gaming shop indices. No local authority appears in the top 10 for all three shop types, and only four — Halton, Great Yarmouth, Boston and West Dunbartonshire — appear on more than one. Halton reaches top place in the combined ranking without appearing among the top 10 by betting shop; it gets there on gaming centres (751) and vape shops (240). North Lanarkshire, in third position on the combined ranking, leads on betting shops (307) yet does not appear among the adult gaming or vape shop top 10s.
This may be a practical point for the consultation. The proposed reforms to gambling licensing and planning law are not three levers pulled by the same councils. East Lindsey, Great Yarmouth and Torbay would be exercising powers over adult gaming centres. The London boroughs of Barking and Dagenham, Enfield and Brent would be exercising powers over betting shops. Lichfield, Bolsover and Castle Point would be exercising powers over vape shops. Very few would do all three.
It is also worth noting where the reforms would reach. Planning is devolved, so a new use class is a matter for England, but five of the top 10 local authorities by vape and betting shops are Scottish or Welsh (including North Lanarkshire in first place by betting shops, and East Dunbartonshire in fourth by vape shops).
Regionally, the pattern is not the familiar north–south one:
London’s high streets come out below the national average on all three shop types, despite Barking and Dagenham, Enfield and Brent all sitting in the betting shop top 10. The variation that matters is within regions, not between them. The North East’s gaming centre index of 249 is the clearest regional signal in the table.
Case study: Greater Manchester
The announcement came from a prime minister who was mayor of Greater Manchester until this summer, making the combined authority worth looking at in more detail.
Retail concentration in Greater Manchester, by borough
Index against Great Britain average (100)
By vape
shops
By betting
shops
By adult gaming
centres
By all three
combined
Greater Manchester
96
83
133
104
Salford
116
154
186
148
Rochdale
93
165
139
139
Bury
214
103
144
137
Oldham
136
108
159
122
Tameside
90
170
159
120
Bolton
93
83
165
110
Wigan
93
87
118
108
Stockport
82
66
98
150
Manchester
79
33
86
129
Trafford
49
74
37
63
100
100
100
100
DATA: GeoDS Retail Centre Boundaries, Foursquare points of interest, Gambling
Commission premises licence register. • NOTES: All four charts share one scale.
Data are as of July 2026.
Retail concentration in Greater
Manchester, by borough
Index against Great Britain average (100)
By vape shops
Greater Manchester
133
Salford
116
Rochdale
165
Bury
214
Oldham
136
Tameside
170
Bolton
165
Wigan
93
Stockport
150
Manchester
129
Trafford
49
100
By betting shops
Greater Manchester
96
Salford
154
Rochdale
139
Bury
103
Oldham
108
Tameside
90
Bolton
93
Wigan
118
Stockport
82
Manchester
79
Trafford
74
100
By adult gaming centres
Greater Manchester
83
Salford
186
Rochdale
93
Bury
144
Oldham
159
Tameside
159
Bolton
83
Wigan
87
Stockport
66
Manchester
33
Trafford
37
100
By all three combined
Greater Manchester
104
Salford
148
Rochdale
139
Bury
137
Oldham
122
Tameside
120
Bolton
110
Wigan
108
Stockport
98
Manchester
86
Trafford
63
100
DATA: GeoDS Retail Centre Boundaries,
Foursquare points of interest, Gambling
Commission premises licence register.
NOTES: All four charts share one scale.
Data as of July 2026.
As a whole, Greater Manchester scores 104 on the combined index, which is slightly higher than the national average. At 133, it surpasses the average for vape shops; however, it ranks below average on betting shops (96) and adult gaming centres (83).
There is variation inside the combined authority rather than between it and the rest of Britain. The combined index runs from Salford at 148 down to Trafford at 63, which is a range wider than the one between any two English regions.
Three boroughs — Salford, Bury and Oldham — are above the national average on all four measures. Bury has the highest vape index ranking within the combined authority, and Salford leads on both gambling measures. The city of Manchester, meanwhile, sits at 86 on the combined index.
Mapping Greater Manchester’s high streets
Visualised as maps, with retail concentration displayed at the individual centre level relative to the national average, the data reveal why borough averages understate what a resident of a particular neighbourhood might see. The darker areas tend to be small retail centres scattered across boroughs with otherwise unremarkable overall index scores.
Greater Manchester’s most concentrated retail centres
Greater Manchester’s most concentrated retail centres
Index of all three shop types (vape, betting, adult gaming) combined.
Woodhouse Park
634
Manchester
Bury New Road, Strangeways
574
Manchester
Salford Shopping Centre
454
Salford
Chorley Old Road, Victory
299
Bolton
Middleton
281
Rochdale
Church Street, Eccles
269
Salford
Castle Street, Edgeley
264
Stockport
Radcliffe
254
Bury
Bury Town Centre
242
Bury
Leigh
217
Wigan
100=GB average
DATA: GeoDS Retail Centre Boundaries, Foursquare points of interest, Gambling
Commission premises licence register. Data are as of July 2026.
Greater Manchester’s most concentrated
retail centres
Index of all three shop types (vape, betting, adult
gaming) combined.
Woodhouse Park
634
Manchester
Bury New Rd, Strangeways
574
Manchester
Salford Shopping Centre
454
Salford
Chorley Old Rd, Victory
299
Bolton
Middleton
281
Rochdale
Church St, Eccles
269
Salford
Castle St, Edgeley
264
Stockport
Radcliffe
254
Bury
Bury Town Centre
242
Bury
Leigh
217
Wigan
100=GB average
DATA: GeoDS Retail Centre Boundaries, Foursquare
points of interest, Gambling Commission premises
licence register. Data are as of July 2026.
On the combined index, Woodhouse Park in Wythenshawe ranks at 634 and Bury New Road at 574; both are in the city of Manchester, which has an overall combined rank of 86. Chorley Old Road in Bolton reaches 299, whereas the overall borough ranks at 110. A power exercised at the borough level may therefore be aimed at averages that mask concentrations at the individual centre level.
Considerations when interpreting the data
The index measures retail concentrations, not harms. The index shows where a type of premises takes a larger or small share of a high street’s frontage, relative to the national average. It does not identify problem gambling, illicit tobacco sales or underage sales.
The vape shop figures are uncertain. Betting shops and gaming centres come from the Gambling Commission’s licence register and are effectively complete. Vape are counted from Foursquare’s vape, smoke and tobacco categories as they have no official register. Vape shops filed under a generic retail label may not have been identified in the dataset, and may therefore be undercounted.
The data show a snapshot in time, not trends. The analysis is of the retail stock as it stood in July 2026, and therefore index rankings should not be interpreted as these shop types’ concentrations either growing or shrinking. The Betting and Gaming Council has claimed that betting shop numbers have fallen by more than a third since 2019. A centre with a high betting shop index score may, therefore, also have seen a decrease in absolute terms in recent years.
Access the data
All data used in this data story are openly available from the Geographic Data Service’s Data Catalogue:
