Former New Addington Slots Venue Could Become a Cake Box

^{The former Royal Casino Slots unit at 51 Central Parade in New Addington, Croydon, could become a Cake Box under plans before the council. (Photo: Mike Faherty / Wikimedia Commons)}

A former adult gaming centre in New Addington could be turned into a cake shop, under a planning application that would hand one of Croydon's shuttered gambling venues to a national dessert franchise.

The unit at 51 Central Parade traded as Royal Casino Slots and was licensed as an adult gaming centre, offering slot and fruit machines rather than table games. It has stood empty for more than nine months, and a change-of-use application has now been submitted to Croydon Council to convert it into a Cake Box store.

From Slots to Sweet Treats

The proposed shop would sell egg-free celebration cakes, individual desserts and other sweet treats. According to the application, no baking would take place on the premises: the products would be made elsewhere and delivered ready for sale, with the former kitchen area used for storage, refrigeration and drinks preparation.

Internally, the unit would gain refrigerated display cabinets, a cold room and a new counter, along with new lighting and ceiling finishes. Cake Box branding and signage would be added to the shopfront, while the existing entrance and windows would remain unchanged and the flats above unaffected.

The application states the site is easily reached on foot, by bike, bus and Tramlink, with no significant increase in parking expected, and argues the change would bring an empty shop back into use and create local jobs. Croydon Council is expected to decide the application by 16 September.

A Wider High-Street Shift

Marketing material for the ground-floor unit describes it as a Class E commercial space of roughly 106 square metres in the centre of New Addington, a busy retail and residential parade with a tram stop nearby. The premises has been advertised to let since Royal Casino Slots vacated, underlining how quickly some smaller gambling units are cycling out of use.

The New Addington proposal lands as gambling venues on Britain's high streets face renewed scrutiny. Adult gaming centres have expanded in recent years even as betting shops have retreated from the high street, making the format a focus for councils and campaigners.

The site's shift from gaming machines to cakes reflects a wider churn on local parades, where former gambling units are increasingly being repurposed as adult gaming centres attract fresh planning attention.

Central government has also weighed in. Ministers this month set out plans to require new adult gaming centres in England to obtain planning permission and to scrap the "aim to permit" rule that has limited councils' ability to refuse gambling premises. Officials estimate there are around 1,450 adult gaming centres across the UK, with more than half in the poorest 20% of neighbourhoods.

The New Addington unit points the other way, with a gambling operator making way for a food-to-go retailer. Cake Box, a franchise chain specialising in fresh cream and egg-free cakes, has expanded across UK high streets in recent years, often taking on smaller vacant retail units of the kind left behind on parades such as Central Parade.

Records held by the Gambling Commission's public register confirm the Central Parade unit was licensed as an adult gaming centre. Whether it becomes a Cake Box now rests with Croydon Council's planning officers, who will weigh the change against local planning policy before the September deadline.