Update on Preston’s £10m courthouse conversion as plans in for more courts

Eric Wright Construction is making headway on turning the grade two-listed Amounderness House into offices, having installed a mezzanine deck. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Justice is looking to convert offices in the nearby Marshall House into a series of hearing courts.

Preston City Council is behind the £10m Amounderness House conversion project, which will see the former police station turned magistrate’s court transformed into 26 offices, four studios, 14,700 sq ft of coworking space, and a series of dedicated meeting and event spaces.

The office complex, when it completes in summer 2027, will be operated by Preston-based company Wrkspace.

Maple Grove Developments is assisting the city council on the scheme.

The project will see the original prison cells and cell doors retained, as well as a series of other historical features. A three-storey extension will be built to house the main entrance as well as the reception area.

You can learn more about the project by searching 06/2023/0888 on Preston City Council’s planning portal.

As one former courthouse becomes offices, the Ministry of Justice is looking to convert a series of offices into a courthouse.

The MoJ’s proposals would change the ground, first, and third floors of the nine-storey Marshall House off Ring Way into 7,800 sq ft of law courts.

Cushman & Wakefield is working for the MoJ on the application, which looks to turn the ground floor of Marshall House into a large waiting room area, with four hearing courts to be built across the first and third floors, alongside judicial rooms, lobby spaces, and secure corridors.

You can learn more about the project by searching reference 06/2026/0754 on Preston City Council’s planning portal.