A LANDMARK Hereford building is set to become a temporary crown court two years after the ceiling collapsed on the county's crown court at the Shirehall.

Jury trials have not been held in Hereford since June 2020, when timbers and plaster collapsed in court room one at the grade II* listed 19th century building in St Peter's Square.

Crown court trials have been held in Worcester since, with some crown court sentencing hearings taking place at Hereford's magistrates court in Bath Street.

In a heritage impact statement, architects Austin Lord Smith said Her Majesty's Court and Tribunal Service will be occupying Churchill House on a temporary lease from summer 2022 and will operate the building as a court while repairs are carried out at the Shirehall.

The lease is expected to be for a minimum of 18 months, the statement said.

HMCTS is asking Herefordshire Council's planning department for permission to make changes to the building ahead of occupying it.

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Internal changes will be needed to provide fire protection measures and security measures, the application said, with a proposal to remove the majority of the building's historic internal doors and replace them with contemporary doors for the duration of the lease.

The existing doors will be kept in safe storage and returned to their original positions at the end of the lease, the statement said.

A new plasterboard and stud partition will also be required to house an IT server.

The plans said court activities will be held in the 1970s extension to the rear of the listed building and the coach house will be used as a jury room, with a temporary awning needing to be installed to cover the existing footpath between the buildings during poor weather.

The landmark house, in Hereford's Churchill Gardens on Aylestone Hill, was built in 1860 and was operated as a museum for several decades before becoming a training centre.

It has been unused and empty since May 2021.