Dudley Council has rejected plans submitted by Pots of Gold Amusements to convert a greengrocer in Stourbridge into a 24-hour AGC.

The proposal had promised the Mega Slots Casino would represent an investment of £300,000 and create four jobs, but planners objected to its location and design.

“The introduction of an Adult Gaming Centre within the Stourbridge Town Centre Core Area would conflict with the intended function and vitality of the centre,” said the report.

“In design terms, the proposed alterations to the shopfront would result in a poor quality and unsympathetic intervention that fails to preserve or enhance the character and appearance of the host building and its setting within an Area of High Historic Townscape Value, causing harm to local distinctiveness.”

The report added that replacing the “essential retail service” with an AGC would “reduce access to everyday goods and would negatively impact the character and practicality of the high street.”