Positions available at the following locations:
- Central Criminal Court, EC4M 7EH
- Harrow Crown Court, HA1 4TU
- Southwark Crown Court, SE1 2HU
- Inner London Crown Court, SE1 6AZ
- Isleworth Crown Court, TW7 5LP
- Snaresbrook Crown Court, E11 1QW
- Wood Green Crown Court, N22 5LF
- Woolwich Crown Court, SE28 0EY
- Croydon Crown Court, CR9 5AB
Proud to Serve. Proud to keep justice going.
Our Crown Court Clerks are essential to ensure Crown Court hearings run smoothly. They have the self-assurance to speak in court, communicate confidently with the Judge and all participants and the skill to produce accurate and timely Court documents. Our Crown Court Clerk training programme provides a structured yet flexible approach to building the skills required to perform this vital role. This position includes line management responsibility.
About us
HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) is responsible for the administration of criminal, civil and family Courts and Tribunals in England and Wales as well as the reserved unified tribunals across the United Kingdom. Our roles support our service users and colleagues within HMCTS, w people and businesses access potentially life-changing justice. We’re looking for individuals who are committed to public service and making a difference in people’s lives to deliver justice.
About your role
This is a unique position at the heart of justice. It requires high emotional resilience, along with the ability to understand and be sensitive to many, sometimes difficult, issues and take a non-judgemental approach to our service users.
You’ll be an active listener, confident communicator; able to speak publicly in court, with the self-assurance to confidently liaise with the Judge, the defence, prosecution, media, members of the public and more, regarding complex and sensitive matters in a calm and professional manner.
A real team player, working with the clerking team, you’ll ensure the smooth running of all the Crown Courts sitting daily, able to intervene in Court when required and maximise judicial sitting time. With experience in producing exact and time critical documentation, your ability to focus will be key in taking verdicts, conducting arraignments, producing Court orders and recording hearing outcomes accurately and efficiently.
You’ll recognise the importance of the team’s overall wellbeing and meet objectives by setting clear direction and measuring through team and individual meetings.
Resilient, keen to learn and able to multi-task, you’ll be familiar with working within process and have the IT skills to adapt to new systems and technologies as we’re constantly investing in digital solutions to improve the way we deliver the justice people deserve in today’s world.
Please refer to the job description attachment to understand more about this key leadership position. We also have more information on our website about the role Crown court clerks - HM Courts & Tribunals service
Your skills and experience
- Able to speak publicly and within a Court room environment.
- Excellent communication skills. Able to establish and maintain trusted relationships with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders.
- Able to manage difficult and challenging situations and resolve problems swiftly and professionally.
- Confident in analysing data to make informed decisions to improve and maintain performance.
- Able to lead and develop others to have the skills, confidence and experience to thrive in their role.
- Strong organisational skills to prioritise, plan, allocate and manage work to deliver outstanding service.
- Able to use IT and learn new systems.
Your development
Our HMCTS Leadership Development offer will build your confidence and capability as a leader. From bite-sized learning and interactive workshops to deeper insights through our Accountability & Decision-Making framework, we’ll equip you to lead with impact, inspire your teams, and drive performance across the organisation.
If you are interested in developing your career in a role with real purpose, apply today.
About our benefits
We reward our people for their hard work and commitment. We have a number of family friendly and flexible working polices that will help you achieve a healthy work-life balance. In addition, we offer a range of employee benefits which include generous annual leave, a highly competitive contributory pension scheme, childcare benefits, season ticket and bicycle loans.
Further details
New recruits to the Civil Service joining MoJ are expected to join at the band minimum.
These operational roles are customer facing, requiring successful applicants to be office based to provide HMCTS services to the public.
Standard full time working hours are 37 hours per week Monday – Friday. HMCTS welcomes part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns, w they meet the demands of the role and business needs and are agreed prior to appointment. All applications for part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns will be considered in accordance with the MoJ’s Flexible Working policy
Location requirements
In addition to being assigned to your primary court location, candidates may be required to cover other Crown Courts across London within a reasonable commuting distance.
Court dress
A collar and tabs with either a jacket or gown will be provided to all Court Clerks. Standard professional attire and dark shoes should be worn when attending the judiciary whether in court or chambers. A wig must be worn when clerking for a High Court Judge or working at the Central Criminal Court.
Training
The Ministry of Justice is committed to staff development and offers an extensive range of training and development opportunities.
Your training may take place at an alternative location to your base location. Advance notice and planning will be given. Additional travel costs such as mileage and train travel apply when travelling to alternative Courts. Travel will be on a rota basis once fully trained.
Counter Terrorist Check (CTC) Clearance Requirement
Please note applicants requesting/allocated to the below listed sites will be required to undertake enhanced vetting checks to CTC Level Clearance.
- Central Criminal Court, EC4M 7EH
- Woolwich Crown Court, SE28 0EY
Eligibility for CTC level vetting requires to have had permanent residence in the UK for the last 3 years and applicants must not have lived/worked overseas during that time Please do not select these as your preferred locations if you do not meet these requirements.
Skilled Worker Visa
This role is not eligible for new Skilled Worker visas in accordance with the current immigration rules.
From 22 July 2025, the Government introduced changes to the Skilled Worker visa route. The department cannot consider sponsoring you for this role unless you have held a Skilled Worker visa prior to the 22 July 2025 changes. If you have held a Skilled Worker visa continuously, please raise this during your vetting checks and eligibility will be assessed in accordance with the immigration rules and transitional provisions in place.
If you are applying for this role and you have not held a Skilled Worker visa prior to the 22 July 2025 changes, you will need to consider your options for obtaining and/or maintaining your right to work in the UK in light of these changes. Successful applicants must ensure they have and maintain the legal right to live and work in the Civil Service and in the United Kingdom.
The Department will continue to comply with UK Immigration Rules applied in the UK and Civil Service. You can read more about Skilled Worker visas and the eligibility criteria .
