Watford Borough Council Film and photography permissions

Productions filmed in Watford include:

• The Friday Night Project
• Eastenders
• Holby City
• You Are What You Eat
• The House of Tiny Tearaways
• Chucklevision
• Footballers Wives
• Judge John Deed
• Little Britain

Watford Borough Council is keen to promote the town as a good location in which to film and will provide help and assistance as required.

For information, advice and permission to film, please contact the Communications Office on tel: 01923 278380 or use the email address at the bottom of the page.

Fees

Charges are made for filming where it takes place on council property (e.g. parks and premises).  Charges are as follows:

Exceptions are made for student productions.  Please contact the Communications Office for further details on charges.

Parking

Some streets have no parking restrictions for ordinary vehicles but many streets in and around the town centre have various resident and match day parking restrictions.

The Parking Service can arrange for dispensations and suspension of yellow lines and pay & display machines.  Registration details of all vehicles will be required, and on completion of the vehicle registration form, parking waivers will be issued.

A minimum of one weeks notice for parking arrangements. If you have a large number of vehicles we advise a letter drop to local businesses and residents stating the times and dates of filming so that they are aware of the situation.

Additional charges in respect of parking dispensations, waivers and officer time will be invoiced separately from the basic filming charge.

Please contact the Parking Service on tel: 01923 230848 for more information.

Filming on the public highway

Filming on the public highway will normally be limited to no later than 11pm (10pm on Sundays) in residential areas.  Any filming beyond this time will require special arrangements and must have the full agreement of the police, Hertfordshire Highways and the Communications Office.

The police will need to have a presence:

• to ensure there is no traffic obstruction
• when there will be actors in emergency services uniform
• if there are scenes of a criminal nature (e.g. drug use, fights, fake robberies, use of firearms etc.)

Advance notice must be given to local residents and businesses via a letter drop so that they are made aware of the situation.

Please contact Andy Smith at Hertfordshire Highways on tel: 01923 257031 or mobile 07979 208354 and PC Terry Buck at Watford Police on tel: 01923 472326 or mobile 07980 657931 for further information.

Public Liability

Filming cannot take place until we have received a copy of your Public Liability Insurance which should be for a minimum of £5million.

Rubbish

The premises must be left in a neat and tidy condition and free from litter to the satisfaction of the council.  It is an offence to leave commercial waste in a public litter bin.  A charge will be made if litter is left on location.

Screen East

Screen East is the screen agency dedicated to developing, supporting and promoting the film industry in Hertfordshire and surrounding counties. 

Further information on the services Screen East provides can be found on their website, a link to which can be found in the External Links panel to the right of this page.