Bolton Crown Court Listings: Daily Lists, Courtrooms and Visiting

Bolton Crown Court Listings: Reading a Blackhorse Street Entry

Each line on the Bolton list is one hearing in one courtroom. It gives the courtroom number, a start time if one is set, the case reference, the type of hearing and the Building line. Most entries also say who is prosecuting and which judge is sitting, by title.

Start with the courtroom. Bolton's Crown Court lists use plain numbers, Court 1 to Court 5 in the lists stored for this page. Next, check the time and the hearing type. A sentence hearing at 10am and a mention at 10.30am in the same room mean a queue, not two fixed appointments.

Match the reference first, because names are masked here.

Two styles of case reference appear side by side on Bolton's lists. Some are a single letter followed by eight digits. Others are eleven characters long and start with 06. Your solicitor's letter or the court's notice will carry one of these, and the list uses the same reference.

To look up a reference without scrolling, use the site's case reference search. It checks every list the site holds, so a case moved to another court still shows up. For a full walk through the columns, see the Crown Daily List explained.

A few Bolton entries name the judge as the Honorary Recorder of Bolton, a title the list uses for one of the judges. The courtroom number is what matters on the day.

When Does Tomorrow's Bolton List Appear?

The next day's list for Bolton has appeared in the middle of the afternoon. The list for 15 October 2026 was last updated by HMCTS at 3.33pm the day before, and the list for 16 October at 4.06pm on 15 October. Some lists elsewhere in the search results say Bolton's list arrives after 5pm. The timestamps HMCTS published do not bear that out.

Each list can still change after it first appears. HMCTS can update it again in the evening or early the next morning when a trial ends early or a judge is unavailable. Check once in the afternoon, then again before you leave home. If tomorrow's list is not up by mid-afternoon, look again later; a list not yet published does not mean there is no hearing.

On the day itself, XHIBIT is the faster signal. The Ministry of Justice's XHIBIT page for Bolton shows a Daily Court Status from 10am. It updates as each courtroom starts, adjourns or finishes a case. It shows names in full, so treat what you see there with care.

CourtServe also lists Bolton, but its Crown Court lists sit behind a login meant for lawyers and the press. For the general publishing pattern across courts, see when court lists are published.

What Do Bolton's Daily Lists Usually Contain?

Sentencing work leads Bolton's lists, followed by trial preparation and trials. The figures below come from the 219 hearings on the eight Crown Daily Lists the site stored between 6 and 15 October 2026. They show the shape of a typical week. They do not predict any one day.

Hearing Types in October 2026

Read together, sentences and committals for sentence made up about three in ten entries. That matters if you are going as family or as an observer. A sentence hearing can be short, but it may be listed behind several others in the same room.

Prosecutors and Reporting Restrictions

The Crown Prosecution Service was named as prosecutor on 170 entries. Another 43 named an "Other Prosecutor", a label HMCTS uses when the prosecutor is not the CPS, and 6 named no prosecutor. Bail applications at Bolton were among the entries with that label.

Reporting restrictions are common here. In the same period, 45 of the 219 entries carried a flag saying restrictions may apply. On this page those entries show no name at all. The journalists' guide explains what such a flag means before anything is published.

A listed hearing is a plan, not a result. It says nothing about guilt.

Courtrooms and Start Times at Bolton

Court 5 carried the largest share of Bolton's hearings in the stored lists, but the split changes from day to day. Between 6 and 15 October 2026, Court 5 had 98 of the 219 entries. Courts 1 to 4 each had between 26 and 30.

The Bolton Stadium entries were on 8 and 9 October only; the section below explains them.

Courtroom allocations can change on the morning. If your room differs from the one on your letter, ask at the front desk which is current. The guide to finding your courtroom covers the signs and screens inside a court building.

The Court 5 Short-Hearing List

On 15 October 2026, Court 5 had 13 of the day's 23 hearings, and most of them were listed at 10.30am. That is how a list of mentions and reviews usually works. Everyone is told to be there at the start. The judge then works through the list in whatever order suits the lawyers who have arrived.

If you are in Court 5, expect to wait. Tell the usher your name and case when you arrive, then stay within earshot of the door. Ask your solicitor roughly when your case is likely to be reached.

Untimed Entries and "Not Before" Times

Most Bolton hearings are fixed in the 10 o'clock hour. In the October period, 160 of the 194 timed entries started between 10am and 10.59am. Smaller groups were set in the 9am, 11am, noon and 2pm hours, such as the block of sentences at 12.15pm in Court 4 on 16 October.

Another 25 entries had no time at all. Part-heard trials and review hearings often appear like this, because they follow on from the room's earlier business. A "not before" time, such as not before 10.15am, means the case will not start earlier than that, though it may start much later.

Bolton Stadium on the List: Check the Building Line

On some days a Bolton courtroom is listed in a different building, so read the Building line before you set off. On 8 and 9 October 2026, the list placed eight hearings in "Court 1, Bolton Stadium". All other entries in the period were in the building listed simply as Bolton.

The stadium has served the court before. In March 2021, GOV.UK announced that the University of Bolton Stadium would become a Nightingale court. It held two courtrooms beneath the Nat Lofthouse Stand (East) and the West Stand. The aim was to free space at Bolton Crown Court for more jury trials.

Later, the GOV.UK guidance that once listed Nightingale venues was withdrawn. That page now redirects to Find a Court, and Find a Court does not list a stadium courtroom for Bolton. So the label on the list is the only current signal this page can point to.

Treat the Building line as the instruction.

If your entry says Bolton Stadium, do not assume Blackhorse Street. Ring the court on the number shown further down this page, quote your case reference, and ask where to report. Your solicitor or the Witness Service can also confirm the venue. The map and parking details on this page cover Blackhorse Street only.

Crown Court or Magistrates' Court at The Law Courts?

Both courts sit in one building, so the court named on your letter decides which list you check. Find a Court gives Bolton Crown Court and Bolton Magistrates' Court the same address, The Law Courts, Blackhorse Street, Bolton BL1 1SU.

Some pages in the search results still say the magistrates' court is on Le Mans Crescent. Find a Court lists it at Blackhorse Street. Others describe a working County Court or Family Court in the building. Find a Court now shows that court as out of service.

Almost every Crown Court case at Bolton starts in a magistrates' court, often the one in the same building. A committal for sentence, for example, comes from magistrates who decided their own sentencing powers were not enough. The case then appears on the Crown Court list under a new hearing type.

How Do You Get to Blackhorse Street, and Where Can You Park?

There is no parking at the court, so plan a car park or public transport before the day. The Find a Court page for Bolton Crown Court states that the building has no parking facilities. It names four public car parks in the town centre instead.

One family-law firm's page says there is a car park within the court grounds. Find a Court says otherwise. Spaces near the court are in demand on weekday mornings, when lawyers, jurors, witnesses and magistrates' court users all arrive before 10am.

Charges and opening hours at each car park change, so check them with the operator before you go. If you are a juror, keep your receipts; see the jury section below.

By train, Bolton station is linked to Bolton Interchange, the bus station, by a skylink, according to National Rail's station information. From either, the court is in the town centre. Use the map below for the route rather than any fixed walking time.

Directions from your location: Google Maps · Apple Maps

If you need a ramp, a lift or a hearing enhancement system, Find a Court lists what the building offers. Contact the court before the day so staff can arrange it.

Arriving at The Law Courts: Security, Floors and Waiting Areas

Everyone entering is searched, so allow extra time before your listed hearing. Find a Court says all users and their bags go through a security arch. Tell the officer before you walk through if you have a pacemaker.

Inside, Find a Court says the public waiting areas are on the first and third floors, outside the courtrooms. The Crown Court interview rooms, where lawyers speak to clients, are on the same two floors. Witnesses have a separate Witness Service suite instead of the public areas.

Expect a queue at the arch on a Monday or the first day of a trial. Jurors, witnesses and magistrates' court users arrive at much the same time. The security checks guide lists items usually refused at court entrances.

Opening hours, phone numbers and the enquiry email are below. They come straight from Find a Court and the site updates them when HMCTS changes them.

A warning from Find a Court applies to Bolton as to every court. Scammers copy HMCTS phone numbers and emails and may demand money, sometimes claiming to be enforcement officers. Do not pay anyone who contacts you out of the blue. Ring the court on the number above to check.

Summoned for Jury Service at Bolton?

Your summons letter is the document to follow, because it gives the date, the time to arrive and the court to attend. GOV.UK says you must reply within seven days. Jury service usually lasts up to 10 working days, and jurors are usually at court from 10am to 5.30pm, Monday to Friday.

First-time jurors often say on forums that the first days involved a lot of waiting. Trials start when the lawyers and judge are ready, and a panel of jurors is called for each one. If the trial you sit on is short, you may be put on another.

What to bring and wear, according to GOV.UK's jury service guide:

1. Bring your summons or confirmation letter and photo identification on day one.
2. Wear what you find comfortable; jeans and a T-shirt are fine, beachwear is not.
3. Bring your phone if you like; it can be used in the jury assembly area, but not in the deliberation room.
4. Use the lockers or secure storage the court provides for personal items.
5. Keep receipts for travel; mileage can be claimed, and GOV.UK says to check whether the court will pay for parking.

Lunch arrangements, the jurors' entrance and the jury assembly area are explained by court staff on your first morning. Forum posts about other courts are not a reliable guide to Bolton's set-up. The jury manager is.

Jurors at Bolton do not need to watch the list. It can still help to see the day's shape. In the October lists, only one or two rooms a day had a trial starting, which is why some jurors spend a whole morning in the assembly area.

Witnesses, Defendants and Families at the Bolton Court

Each group has a different first stop inside the building. A witness reports to the Witness Service or the usher, a defendant to the courtroom usher and their solicitor, and family to the public waiting area.

Witnesses. Bolton has a separate Witness Service suite, according to Find a Court, away from the public waiting areas. The Witness Service gives free support to witnesses for both sides.

A Section 28 hearing on the list is a pre-recorded cross-examination. Court 4 had one at 9.30am on 16 October 2026.

Find a Court also lists video conferencing in courtrooms, by prior arrangement. Ask the witness care officer whether you can give evidence that way. The witness guide and the victims' guide cover the rest.

Defendants. If you are on bail, arrive well before the time on your letter and find your solicitor. Bolton's Court 5 list can hold a dozen cases at the same time, so a long wait is likely.

If you are in custody, Find a Court notes prison-to-court video links, and your hearing may take place by video. The defendants' guide explains each stage.

Family members. Relatives can usually sit in the public gallery, unless the judge has ordered otherwise. Watch the list in the days before, because a sentence date can move. The family members' guide covers what you can bring and how to support someone.

None of this is legal advice. If you are unsure what a hearing means for you, ask your solicitor, the court or the Witness Service.

Can You Watch a Case or Find a Bolton Sentencing Result?

You can usually watch, but you will not find results on the list. Most Crown Court hearings at Bolton are open to the public. Some are not, including many involving children, and a judge can clear the gallery for part of a case.

The public gallery guide explains how to behave in court, what you can write down and why phones must be off. Reporting restrictions limit what anyone may publish afterwards. They apply to family members posting online as much as to journalists.

Sentencing results are a frequent search for Bolton, but HMCTS lists do not carry outcomes. The list shows that a sentence hearing was planned. XHIBIT shows when a hearing finished, not what the judge decided. For an outcome, the usual sources are the hearing itself, the solicitors in the case, or local press reports.

Some tracker websites publish "sentences" alongside Bolton's list.

Treat them carefully. A listed hearing can be adjourned on the morning, and a sentence can later be changed on appeal.

Why Is a Bolton Case Missing From the List?

A missing case is not, on its own, a sign that the hearing is off. At Bolton, the usual reasons are:

1. Reporting restrictions. The entry is there but masked, so a name search will not find it. Search by case reference instead.
2. A different day. The case has been moved to a later list, or put on the warned list to be called at short notice.
3. A different building or court. It is listed at Bolton Stadium, at the magistrates' court in the same building, or at another Crown Court centre.
4. Timing. Tomorrow's list has not been published yet. At Bolton it has tended to arrive in the middle of the afternoon.
5. Youth cases. Hearings involving young defendants are not shown on this site at all.

If you are due to attend and cannot find the hearing, contact the court or your solicitor. Never stay away because a case is missing from a public list. The guide to missing cases covers the less common reasons. If an entry concerns you and you want it taken down, use the removal request form.

Other Courts Near Bolton

Check the court name on your letter before you travel.

If it names a different court, Greater Manchester's other Crown Court centres are in Manchester city centre. Bolton Magistrates' Court shares this building. The courts below are the closest on this site.

• Bolton Magistrates' Court: Same building on Blackhorse Street, separate lists
• Manchester Crown Court (Crown Square): Greater Manchester's main Crown Court centre
• Manchester Crown Court (Minshull Street): Second Crown Court building in Manchester city centre
• Bolton Magistrates' Court, BL1 1SU (next door)
• Bolton Social Security and Child Support Tribunal, BL1 2HB (0.7 km away)

Bolton Crown Court Questions Answered

People searching for Bolton's lists tend to ask the same handful of questions about the building, the timing and what the entries mean. The answers below draw on Find a Court, GOV.UK and the lists the site has stored.

For anything about your own case, ask your solicitor or the court.