Plan Your Visit

Building and Registry Opening Times

The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council building

The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is open to the public, parties and media.

The building opening hours are Monday to Friday, 9.00am – 5.00pm (last entry at 4.30pm) and is closed on weekends and bank holidays.

All hearings are available to watch live and on-demand via our websites.

JCPC judgments that are handed down in the Court will be live streamed via the JCPC website. Judgments will be announced one week in advance.

Closures

How to get here

Our address is: The Supreme Court, Parliament Square, London SW1P 3BD

The closest underground station is Westminster.

The station is served by three underground lines:

District line – green
Circle line – yellow
Jubilee line – silver

There are two mainline railway stations located close to the Supreme Court and JCPC.

London Victoria (just over 1km)
London Charing Cross (just over 1km)

The Court is also accessible via bus. The closest bus stop is Stop P, which is located on Parliament Square outside of Westminster and served by the 11, 148 and the 211 bus routes. There other nearby bus stops which are served by the 12, 24, 26, 88, 159 and 452 routes.

What to expect when you visit

The Court is open Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays), and everyone is welcome.

The Court has three courtrooms set over three floors accessed by an ornate stairway. Two of the courtrooms are usually occupied by the UK Supreme Court (UKSC) and the third by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC). Each courtroom has its own unique character. Two courtrooms are traditional in their style and layout, but one courtroom has a much more modern feel. One consistent feature is that the Justices do not sit on a raised platform or dais; they are on the same level as everyone else in the courtroom.

Inside the courtrooms and around the building you will be able to see some of the Court’s historic art collection on display. If you would like more information on what you might find, please see here. In addition, and at various times during the year, the Court may have additional and pop-up exhibitions. Currently on show outside Courtroom 1 is an exhibition celebrating some of the most significant cases heard by the Court in its first 15 years; a milestone celebrated in 2024.

On the lower ground floor, we have a permanent exhibition which sets out some of the Court’s history and gives information about its role and legal and constitutional position. Visitors can see a set of ceremonial robes, a grand judicial ‘letters patent’ and a large exemplification of Magna Carta in modern English.

Visitors are also warmly welcomed at the Court’s café, which serves a range of hot and cold drinks, sandwiches, cakes and pastries, and also to browse the UKSC and JCPC gift shop.

Access

Plan a visit to the Court with access needs.

Sittings in on hearing

All visitors to the Court are welcome to sit in on a hearing if one is taking place, so long as there aren’t specific reasons that visitors may not attend.

The list of upcoming cases is available on the Court’s website here.

As well as noticing that the Justices are sitting on the same level as everyone else in the courtroom, you may notice a few other things. The Justices sit as a panel and the number sitting may vary depending on each case. You may also notice that there is no witness or jury box. A trip to our exhibition area may help you give you discover the reasons for that.

You will also note that each courtroom has been set up to enable live broadcasting of the court proceedings. The UKSC has been specifically exempted from the statutory prohibitions on broadcasting and photography which apply in England and Wales and Northern Ireland. There is no such prohibition in Scotland. Live broadcasting of UKSC and JCPC hearings can be found on the homepage of our websites when the Court is sitting and footage from previous cases is available on the relevant case page.

As a visitor to the Court, you are permitted to take photos in the public areas and in the exhibition area, but you are not permitted to take any photos or recordings in the courtroom while a hearing is taking place. You will see during your visit that each courtroom has a Supreme Court Security Officer present and if photos are taken, you will politely be asked to delete them before leaving the building.

You may text or use other forms of text-based communication (for example use X) from a courtroom when it is hearing a case. You are politely asked to make sure that any device you are using is on silent and what you are doing does not disrupt the hearing.

You are not permitted to use a mobile device to make or receive calls. If any telephone or other device rings in court the person may be asked to leave by the Supreme Court Security Officer.

On some occasions, no form of communication is permitted from the courtroom. You will be notified before you enter the courtroom by the Supreme Court Security Officer that such restrictions are in place. The exceptions include but are not restricted to the following:

1. Where reporting restrictions have been put in place by the court, those must be observed by everyone present in the court. Under these circumstances, the use of live text-based communications which makes information about proceedings public will not be permitted.     
2. In a case involving a child, where anonymity is of the essence, text-based communications will be permitted, but any breach of the anonymity will be treated as a contempt of court.     
3. In rare cases, the UKSC may order that a judgment should not be reported in order not to influence other proceedings taking place in the lower court. In such instances, no live text-based communication about the outcome will be permitted.

Exhibitions and Events

Discover the Court's exhibition.

Security Information

You must pass through security every time you enter the UKSC building. We advise that all visitors allow extra time to go through security. You may have to queue at busy times, typically between 9:30 and 10:30 and between 13:45 and 14:15.

Your bags and pockets will be checked as they would be at an airport.

Details of what to expect can be found below:

If you are wearing a head covering for religious or cultural reasons, such as a turban, hijab, skullcap, etc you will not be asked to remove it. Instead, it will be checked with a handheld scanner.

Security staff will ask you to remove any head covering that they reasonably believe is not a commonly identified religious head covering.

Items you are not allowed to take in

You cannot bring guns, firearms, knives, or other weapons into the building. Any individual trying to bring a weapon into the UKSC will be reported to the police. You also cannot bring in items that could be considered a weapon such as:

• Blades – such as scissors, penknives, and razors
• Other sharp items such as knitting needles and darts
• Glass – including bottles
• Metal cutlery
• Syringes (unless you have a prescription)
• Toy guns and other things that look like guns
• Tool – such as screwdrivers, hammers, and nails
• Ropes and chains
• Alcohol
• Liquids that are not drinks or prescription medicine
• Crash helmets

Any items confiscated by Security will be kept for up to 30 days. When the item is confiscated from you the security officer will provide you with a numbered ticket.

Any weapons that are removed from you will not be returned and will be handed over to the police.

Lost property policy

The Supreme Court accepts no responsibility for private property whilst on the premises, including accepting any liability should lost property be returned for any reason to someone who is not its owner - eg if someone makes a false representation to the Court of ownership of property.

Property that is left on the premises will be kept for a period of three months, after which it will be disposed of.

In order for property to be reclaimed, a detailed description of the item(s) and/or proof of ID (identity), and date that the item was left will be required.

While every effort will be made to identify the possible owner of lost property (which is likely to involve searching of the item) and then make contact with them, the Court will not return the property to that person unless they provide the details set out in the previous paragraph.

The Supreme Court will not mail/courier or insure during transit any reclaimed found property back to the presumed owner unless they send the appropriate fees to cover packing and postage, and any insurance during transit stipulated by the claimant.

All items sent at owner's risk.

Note that the Court will NOT automatically arrange insurance during transit. The Court will only arrange insurance during transit if it is specifically requested in writing at the time of reclaiming found property - and then the Court will only arrange the insurance that is made available as "standard" by the carrier chosen by the Court (so the Court will not be liable for the suitability of the insurance), and for the value stated in writing by the person claiming the property. 

Contact details

Enquiries regarding lost property may be made to the security control room:

Telephone: 020 7960 1999 - line open 24/7

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