Apply to hire a court or tribunal venue

Overview

You can apply to hire many court and tribunal venues throughout England, Scotland, and Wales for a variety of events, such as:

• filming and photography
• training
• education programmes
• private parties
• exhibitions
• charity events

You can usually hire a venue outside normal working hours. Some venues offer their facilities at other times, provided certain conditions are met.

If you plan to hold an event, filming or photography outside of business hours, you may need to pay an additional security fee.

Before you apply

We require 16 weeks’ notice for the hire of our venues.

To apply, you must be willing to:

• obtain and later provide proof of public liability insurance and employers’ liability insurance, if applicable
• pay a non-refundable deposit of £40
• make a preliminary visit to the venue
• agree to all terms and conditions – we will send you more details after you apply

All requests are subject to approval and will only be granted where there is no risk to the reputation of HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS).

Hire requests may be refused if they present concerns relating to health and safety, fire safety or security.

Requests may also be refused if the court cannot accommodate the hire due to listed hearings, staff availability, short notice or high demand at a particular site.

Occasionally, requests are rejected if they involve duplicating work already available, such as photographing areas where suitable public images already exist.

How to apply

Download and complete the appropriate form:

Email the completed form along with to hmctsvenuehire@justice.gov.uk.

Do not contact any court or tribunal offices directly for hire or filming enquiries.

After you apply

If your application is provisionally approved, we will send you an agreement setting out the details of the provisional booking. This will include the terms and conditions relating to your mandatory preliminary visit to the venue.

We use standard contracts for all filming and events. We will send you copies of the contracts to review and sign.

If you wish to see contractual documentation before you apply, you can request template copies from hmctsvenuehire@justice.gov.uk.

You’ll need to provide your public liability insurance cover before the hire date.

You can find further information about the hiring arrangements, fees and what happens next in the forms and the information we will send you after you apply.