Bingo hall boss: Our number could be up Campaign to save venues from pandemic fallout
A Stirling bingo hall is among others across Scotland warning the game could be a thing of the past unless more support is made available.
Carlton Bingo at Allanpark has operated in the city centre since the mid 1970s.
Mike Watret, who runs the Stirling venue, said this week 45 employees are dependent on the club - but that it is also a lifeline for many of its customers, with 8400 people visiting in the year up to March 2020, and an average 120,000 visits a year. “Many customers, particularly female, see this as a safe place to visit and meet friends on a regular basis,” said Mike.
“Many hospitality venues have been permitted to open for longer than bingo during the Covid 19 pandemic. Carlton Stirling has been permitted to operate between August 24 and October 9, at which point we were told we had to close for two weeks under emergency restrictions - but we have not been permitted to re-open since.
“Our Bingo Association has a campaign underway involving employees and customers of all Scottish bingo halls to help save the future of the sector by asking the Scottish Government to ‘level the playing field’ and release discretionary funding to bingo in the same way that they have done for cinema, theatres, nightclubs and other hospitality venues.
“We certainly do not begrudge any help these other sectors receive – everyone knows they need it - but bingo has tried to access help like these