Court usher

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

• 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
• to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently

You can get into this job through:

• a college course
• an apprenticeship
• applying directly

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.