The Slowest and Quickest Courts for Small Claims
Median weeks from issuing a claim to the first small claims hearing, April to June 2026, for the 107 hearing centres that held at least 20 small claims hearings. England and Wales: 41.0 weeks.
Longest waits
| Hearing centre | Median weeks | Year earlier | Hearings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brighton | 61.7 | 60.9 | 137 |
| Watford | 58.9 | 55.9 | 42 |
| Horsham | 57.3 | 61.0 | 36 |
| Peterborough | 55.7 | 36.0 | 38 |
| Uxbridge | 53.0 | 54.4 | 295 |
| Luton | 52.1 | 36.1 | 152 |
| Hertford | 50.2 | 55.6 | 61 |
| Clerkenwell & Shoreditch | 49.6 | 44.9 | 485 |
| Worthing | 49.6 | 44.9 | 48 |
| Maidstone | 49.1 | 69.0 | 64 |
Shortest waits
| Hearing centre | Median weeks | Year earlier | Hearings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mold | 26.9 | 27.4 | 20 |
| Caernarfon | 27.8 | 37.0 | 23 |
| Stafford | 28.0 | 28.0 | 32 |
| Doncaster | 28.4 | 29.6 | 58 |
| Barnstaple | 28.7 | 31.0 | 24 |
The Slowest and Quickest Courts for Trials
Median weeks from issue to the first trial on the fast track, intermediate track or multi-track (reported together), April to June 2026, for the 72 hearing centres that held at least 10 trials. England and Wales: 55.9 weeks.
Longest waits
| Hearing centre | Median weeks | Year earlier | Trials |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maidstone | 85.5 | 62.3 | 20 |
| Willesden | 81.3 | 83.3 | 14 |
| Hastings | 80.3 | 45.4 | 43 |
| Slough | 79.9 | 69.1 | 20 |
| Leeds | 78.9 | 73.9 | 40 |
| Wigan | 78.5 | 59.0 | 15 |
| Wrexham | 78.0 | 54.9 | 17 |
| Luton | 77.7 | 81.6 | 38 |
| Reading | 76.6 | 69.1 | 18 |
| Croydon | 75.2 | 100.8 | 66 |
Shortest waits
| Hearing centre | Median weeks | Year earlier | Trials |
|---|---|---|---|
| Swansea | 34.0 | 46.9 | 12 |
| Rhyl | 36.7 | 57.6 | 21 |
| Truro | 40.3 | 51.5 | 14 |
| Romford | 40.3 | 62.4 | 36 |
| Barnsley | 40.3 | 52.3 | 13 |
Every Hearing Centre
All 133 hearing centres in the release, A to Z. The change is on the same quarter a year earlier (April to June 2025); a plus sign means a longer wait. Figures marked * rest on fewer than 20 small claims hearings or 10 trials, so treat them with care.
| Hearing centre | Small claims: median weeks | Change | Trials: median weeks | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| England and Wales | 41.0 | +0.7 | 55.9 | −6.1 |
| Aberystwyth | 23.6* | −0.6 | 30.6* | +0.3 |
| Aldershot & Farnham | 31.1 | −15.0 | 45.6* | −19.3 |
| Barnsley | 32.7 | −2.5 | 40.3 | −12.0 |
| Barnstaple | 28.7 | −2.3 | 60.9* | +17.8 |
| Barrow-in-Furness | 40.1* | +5.9 | 121.6* | +71.0 |
| Basildon | 35.3 | −11.7 | 39.0* | −35.3 |
| Basingstoke | 29.5 | −6.6 | 50.2 | −11.2 |
| Bath | 33.9 | +5.0 | 47.0 | −9.0 |
| Bedford | 45.1 | +7.0 | 49.1 | −14.6 |
| Birkenhead | 47.7 | +17.0 | 50.6* | −12.3 |
| Birmingham | 38.9 | +9.3 | 50.4 | −4.6 |
| Blackpool | 38.3* | +13.3 | 74.6 | +20.6 |
| Blackwood | 48.3 | +21.2 | 45.6* | −4.8 |
| Bodmin | 31.2* | +5.1 | 36.9* | −1.4 |
| Boston | 44.1 | −11.3 | – | – |
| Bournemouth and Poole | 32.0 | −6.4 | 49.4 | −3.2 |
| Bradford | 31.8 | +5.5 | 41.0 | −5.6 |
| Brentford | 44.0 | −10.6 | 62.3 | −3.8 |
| Brighton | 61.7 | +0.8 | 77.9* | −21.1 |
| Bristol | 42.9 | −1.1 | 66.3 | −15.0 |
| Bromley | 60.7* | +1.3 | 68.4 | −15.6 |
| Burnley | 32.6 | +6.7 | 46.0 | −8.4 |
| Bury St. Edmunds | 45.1 | −26.5 | 53.6* | −29.6 |
| Caernarfon | 27.8 | −9.2 | 85.7* | +57.2 |
| Cambridge | 40.6 | +6.5 | 77.5* | +4.9 |
| Canterbury | 43.3 | −11.0 | 70.1 | −10.8 |
| Cardiff | 37.1 | +7.5 | 64.1 | +10.5 |
| Carlisle | 54.4* | +21.5 | 92.0* | +44.9 |
| Central London | 45.1 | +4.0 | 67.8 | +2.3 |
| Chelmsford | 48.1 | −16.3 | 74.0 | −25.0 |
| Chester | 34.0 | +3.6 | 54.6* | +0.9 |
| Chesterfield | 35.7 | −5.9 | – | – |
| Clerkenwell & Shoreditch | 49.6 | +4.7 | 59.1 | −5.2 |
| Coventry | 34.5 | +7.9 | 61.4 | +13.4 |
| Crewe | 37.1 | −3.5 | 49.0 | −14.6 |
| Croydon | 47.1 | −32.0 | 75.2 | −25.6 |
| Darlington | 42.1 | +13.4 | – | – |
| Dartford | 47.9 | −23.0 | 63.7 | −59.6 |
| Derby | 34.8 | −4.3 | 53.6 | +10.6 |
| Doncaster | 28.4 | −1.2 | 53.6 | −14.3 |
| Dudley | 34.9 | +6.5 | 86.3* | +33.4 |
| Durham | 29.9 | +1.9 | – | – |
| Edmonton | 37.6 | −16.0 | 59.0 | −37.9 |
| Exeter | 33.7 | +4.3 | 58.0 | −3.9 |
| Gateshead | 34.9 | +6.4 | 70.0* | +33.1 |
| Gloucester and Cheltenham | 29.9 | −1.5 | 51.8 | −1.5 |
| Great Grimsby | 38.4 | +14.1 | 41.6 | −5.8 |
| Guildford | 48.1 | −2.6 | 68.6* | −7.1 |
| Harrogate | 37.7* | −0.2 | 45.7* | +11.0 |
| Hastings | 43.0 | −3.1 | 80.3 | +34.9 |
| Haverfordwest | 40.9* | +14.8 | 77.1* | +34.0 |
| Hereford | 29.5* | −8.4 | 88.7* | +43.8 |
| Hertford | 50.2 | −5.4 | 58.9* | −17.6 |
| High Wycombe | 36.4 | +5.3 | – | – |
| Horsham | 57.3 | −3.7 | – | – |
| Huddersfield | 29.7 | −3.9 | 52.4 | −3.7 |
| Ipswich | 47.4 | +0.5 | 53.1* | −5.2 |
| Kingston-upon-Hull | 36.6 | +8.7 | 46.9 | −18.5 |
| Lancaster | 29.3* | −4.4 | 64.4* | +2.3 |
| Leeds | 37.0 | +0.1 | 78.9 | +5.0 |
| Leicester | 32.6 | −14.8 | 48.1 | −5.9 |
| Lewes | 78.4* | +30.8 | – | – |
| Lincoln | 36.0 | +1.0 | 46.9 | −35.7 |
| Liverpool | 42.1 | +14.4 | 41.3 | −9.9 |
| Llanelli | 37.7* | +11.6 | 56.0* | −12.1 |
| Luton | 52.1 | +16.0 | 77.7 | −3.9 |
| Maidstone | 49.1 | −19.9 | 85.5 | +23.2 |
| Manchester | 35.1 | +0.7 | 52.4 | −0.3 |
| Mansfield | 39.7 | +7.4 | – | – |
| Mayor's and City of London Court | 47.3* | +14.3 | 103.4* | – |
| Medway | 48.1 | −35.8 | 68.3 | −23.1 |
| Merthyr Tydfil | 31.9* | +2.6 | 50.1* | −9.0 |
| Middlesbrough | 29.9 | +1.7 | 46.0 | −12.4 |
| Milton Keynes | 43.4 | – | 96.1* | +29.4 |
| Mold | 26.9 | −0.5 | 116.4* | +20.2 |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | 37.8 | +8.7 | 53.0 | −3.3 |
| Newport (Gwent) | 39.1 | +12.7 | 39.6* | −1.8 |
| Newport (Isle of Wight) | 52.1* | +3.8 | 59.5* | +12.7 |
| North Shields | 31.0 | +2.3 | 65.6* | +13.8 |
| Northampton | 45.1 | +11.3 | 62.7 | +12.8 |
| Norwich | 47.1 | −3.5 | 68.4 | +3.6 |
| Nottingham | 32.4 | +4.3 | 48.7 | −0.7 |
| Nuneaton | 38.0 | +4.7 | 47.0 | −29.3 |
| Oxford | 42.1 | −1.2 | 73.9 | −15.6 |
| Peterborough | 55.7 | +19.7 | 81.0* | +6.1 |
| Plymouth | 32.6 | −1.1 | 56.9 | −15.8 |
| Pontypridd | 28.3* | +1.7 | 54.9* | +0.4 |
| Port Talbot Justice Centre | 42.4* | +12.8 | 53.1* | +17.0 |
| Portsmouth | 34.1 | −20.5 | 48.6 | +10.3 |
| Preston | 32.8 | +0.9 | 61.6 | −6.6 |
| Reading | 42.1 | −2.5 | 76.6 | +7.5 |
| Rhyl | 29.4 | −8.3 | 36.7 | −20.9 |
| Romford | 44.0 | −17.1 | 40.3 | −22.1 |
| Salisbury | 42.9* | +15.0 | 65.9 | +20.9 |
| Scarborough | 52.4* | +24.5 | 54.0* | +10.1 |
| Sheffield | 29.6 | +2.6 | 55.3 | −12.6 |
| Skipton | 32.3* | +7.0 | 51.8* | −4.3 |
| Slough | 47.4 | +12.4 | 79.9 | +10.8 |
| South Shields | 34.9* | +3.6 | – | – |
| Southampton | 35.9 | +0.3 | 55.2 | +10.9 |
| Southend | 41.1 | +5.4 | 58.1 | −16.5 |
| St. Helens | 35.7 | +5.8 | 40.4 | +2.8 |
| Stafford | 28.0 | no change | – | – |
| Staines | 50.7* | +9.7 | 44.1* | −31.8 |
| Stockport | 38.6 | −0.8 | 52.7 | −9.2 |
| Stoke on Trent | 30.0 | +6.9 | 46.3 | −2.7 |
| Sunderland | 29.9 | +3.3 | – | – |
| Swansea | 37.4 | +12.0 | 34.0 | −12.9 |
| Swindon | 47.1 | +11.2 | 62.1 | −1.6 |
| Taunton | 41.9 | +0.9 | 67.0* | – |
| Telford | 31.9 | +2.2 | 68.1* | −19.3 |
| Thanet | 48.1 | +18.4 | 48.4 | −45.7 |
| Torquay & Newton Abbot | 41.6 | +12.9 | 41.3* | −5.1 |
| Truro | 35.4 | +3.2 | 40.3 | −11.2 |
| Uxbridge | 53.0 | −1.4 | 61.4 | −3.4 |
| Wakefield | 35.1 | +8.0 | 44.9* | −5.5 |
| Walsall | 37.0 | +2.6 | 50.1 | +8.7 |
| Wandsworth | 43.9 | −16.8 | 49.4 | −43.6 |
| Warwick | 31.1 | +1.1 | 41.7* | −25.7 |
| Watford | 58.9 | +3.0 | 72.1 | −11.4 |
| Welshpool | 26.6* | −54.7 | – | – |
| West Cumbria | 34.4* | −0.5 | – | – |
| Weston-super-Mare | 34.9 | −7.8 | 70.2* | – |
| Weymouth | 38.1* | −3.9 | 53.3* | −51.6 |
| Wigan | 42.6 | +4.0 | 78.5 | +19.5 |
| Willesden | 45.9 | −27.1 | 81.3 | −2.0 |
| Winchester | 39.0 | −0.6 | 63.9* | −28.1 |
| Wolverhampton | 35.0 | +8.1 | 81.9* | +30.2 |
| Worcester | 33.7 | +4.7 | 61.1 | +3.7 |
| Worthing | 49.6 | +4.7 | 65.1 | +4.8 |
| Wrexham | 38.3 | +8.7 | 78.0 | +23.1 |
| Yeovil | 35.1* | −7.6 | 47.0* | −28.3 |
| York | 40.6 | +7.9 | 49.4* | −3.3 |
Download the table as CSV, with the means, the number of hearings and trials, and the trial figures split into issue to allocation and allocation to trial.
What the Figures Measure
- Each figure is the median (or mean) number of weeks between the claim being issued and the first small claims hearing or trial, for the cases that reached that hearing in the quarter. It looks back at cases heard; it is not a forecast for a claim issued today.
- The clock starts when the claim is issued, usually centrally, before the case moves to the hearing centre, so each figure includes the defence, directions and any mediation stage.
- Claims that settle, are withdrawn or resolve at mediation are not counted, and case mix differs from court to court.
- The latest quarter is provisional and is revised once, at the next release. Centres with few hearings can move a lot from one quarter to the next.
- Fast track, intermediate track and multi-track trials are reported together, and there is no official figure for the time to a first case management conference.
- Averages can’t be combined across courts or quarters, so this page doesn’t give regional or yearly averages of its own.
Why Waiting Times Matter for Costs
The time between issue and trial shapes the work on a file and when costs are recovered: directions, budgets, offers and interest all run on that timetable. Knowing the usual wait at your hearing centre helps when planning a timetable or explaining one to a client.
Related Tools and Guides
- Courts and hourly rate bands for firms in other cities
- Fast track timetable calculator
- Civil court fees calculator
- Every free costs tool and guide
Sources
- Ministry of Justice, Civil Justice Statistics Quarterly: April to June 2026, published 3 September 2026: court-level files timeliness_csv.csv and workload_csv.csv in the release’s CSV data, and the guide to the statistics.
- Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Licence terms. The rankings, thresholds and comments are DMD Costs’ own presentation, not official statistics.