The courtroom where the Tolpuddle Martyrs were tried shut to visitors at 1pm on 8 October. Its accounts show three years of spending over income.
Shire Hall Historic Courthouse Museum in Dorchester has closed. The charity that ran it announced the final week of trading on its own website, and the museum shut to the public at 1pm on Thursday 8 October. Its café closed the day before.
The notice reads: “With regret, we must announce that this will be the final week of trading.” The trust thanked “everyone who has been involved and who has supported the Shire Hall over the years.” It gave no reason and has published nothing about what happens next.
Shire Hall on High West Street is where the six Tolpuddle Martyrs were tried in 1834. It was Dorset’s courthouse from 1797 until 1955, according to the museum’s history page.
Three years of spending more than it took in
The museum was run by the Shire Hall (Dorchester) Trust, a charitable incorporated organisation, number 1163252. Its filings with the Charity Commission, collected by Find that Charity, show income falling every year since 2021 and spending running ahead of it for three years.
| Year to 31 March | Income | Spending | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | £406,024 | £353,707 | £52,317 surplus |
| 2023 | £363,552 | £411,414 | £47,862 shortfall |
| 2024 | £291,923 | £413,121 | £121,198 shortfall |
| 2025 | £227,772 | £376,226 | £148,454 shortfall |
Across those last three years the trust spent £317,514 more than it took in. Income in 2025 was 44% lower than in 2022. The 2025 return lists four trustees and 32 volunteers.
The best year on record was the one in which the museum opened. In the year to 31 March 2019, income was £667,088.
The council grant that stopped
Dorset Council pays yearly revenue grants to arts and heritage groups. Its awards page lists Shire Hall Historic Courthouse Museum with £10,000 under the agreements that ran from April 2021 to March 2024.
The museum is not on the list of 28 organisations funded from April 2024 to March 2027. Neighbours that are include Dorset County Museum (£50,000 a year), Bridport Museum Trust (£40,000) and The Keep Military Museum in Dorchester (£5,000).
The trust’s government grant income was £24,236 in the year to March 2024 and £17,784 in the year to March 2025, according to the Charity Commission data.
Who owns the building
The building belongs to Dorset Council. The trust’s Charity Commission entry says it holds a 25-year lease from the council on the Grade I listed building.
The restoration that created the museum was paid for with a £1.5m Heritage Lottery Fund grant, match-funded by West Dorset District Council, the predecessor of Dorset Council. That council page was still inviting visitors on 11 October.
There is one more commitment on the building. When the TUC handed the courtroom back to the council in 1968, the deed carried a covenant to keep it “open for public inspection at all reasonable hours in the day-time on weekdays”, the museum’s history page records. Neither the trust nor the council has said how that will be met now.
What it means for you
- The museum and café are closed. Do not travel to visit. The trust’s site still lists upcoming events, including the monthly Neurodivergent Dorchester Network meetings. Check with the trust before going to any of them.
- Booked a school visit, a tour or a venue hire? Contact the trust at info@shirehalldorset.org, the address its site gives for enquiries.
- Annual tickets and Museum Friends: the trust has published nothing about refunds. Ask the trust directly.
For more in the county town, see our Dorset planning news and what’s on in Dorset.
We will update this story when the trust or Dorset Council says what happens to the building and the collection.
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