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Court usher

Court ushers make sure everyone involved in a case attends court and knows what to do.

Annual Salary

£18,000 to £24,500

Average UK salary in 2022 was £33,200
(source Office for National Statistics)

Working hours

36 to 37 a week

You could work: evenings; occasionally

0.3%
Future employment

There will be 0.3% more Court usher jobs in 2027.

Day to day tasks

In this role you could:

  • prepare the courtroom
  • greet people entering court
  • check that witnesses, defendants and lawyers are present
  • call defendants and witnesses into court
  • label evidence and pass it to the judge and jury
  • input data to the computer system, handle post, filing and photocopying

Sworn ushers

If you work as a sworn usher in a crown court, you'll also:

  • stop unauthorised people from talking to the jury
  • take the jury to and from the courtroom
  • be on duty outside the jury room
  • take messages between the jury and the judge
  • organise hotels if people on the jury need to stay overnight

Working environment

You may need to wear smart business clothes.

You could work in a court or in an office.

You can get into this job through:

  • a college course
  • an apprenticeship
  • applying directly
College

You could do a Level 1 Certificate in Business Administration or a Level 2 Certificate in Principles of Business Administration.

This would give you some of the knowledge and skills you would need for this job.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 2 or fewer GCSEs at grades 3 to 1 (D to G), or equivalent, for a level 1 course
  • 2 or more GCSEs at grades 9 to 3 (A* to D), or equivalent, for a level 2 course
For more information
Apprenticeship

You could do a:

  • public service operational delivery officer advanced apprenticeship
  • customer service practitioner intermediate apprenticeship
  • customer service specialist advanced apprenticeship
  • business administrator advanced apprenticeship

These apprenticeships will give you some of the customer service and business admin skills you need to do the job.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • some GCSEs, usually including English and maths, or equivalent, for an intermediate apprenticeship
  • 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths, for an advanced apprenticeship
For more information
Direct application

You could apply directly for jobs. You'll usually need at least 2 GCSEs including English at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C).

You may find it easy to get a job as a court usher if you have experience in a similar job like customer service or office administration. Employers will also look at your personal qualities and life experience.

Requirements and restrictions

You'll need to:

More information

Further information

You can find out more about careers in the courts and tribunals service from the Ministry of Justice.

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With experience, you could be in charge of a team of ushers or become a court administrative officer.

You may also be able to work in central or local government.

Skills required and how your skills match up

What skills are required?

You'll need:

  • administration skills
  • to be thorough and pay attention to detail
  • the ability to work well with others
  • the ability to accept criticism and work well under pressure
  • customer service skills
  • legal knowledge including court procedures and government regulations
  • patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
  • excellent verbal communication skills
  • active listening skills
  • to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently
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