Planning Your Shoot

Blackpool Film Office have in-house services at hand to provide help, support and advice for road closures, traffic management, health & safety, and water safety.

Apply for a filming permit

Blackpool Film Office cover outdoor spaces in the resort, including the promenade, beaches, residential streets and the town centre. All filming requests within this scope will need to complete an Outdoor Filming Application Form. A Blackpool-specific risk assessment along with a copy of your public liability form should also be provided. All documents should be sent to filming@visitblackpool.com. If you are looking to film in an area outside of this remit, please get in touch and one of the team will be able to assist with your query. 

Download application form

Please note that film costs will be discussed on application. Prices are competitive with other film offices and start from £100+vat.

Lead times

Standard filming requests

For low-impact filming with minimal crew, applications require a minimum of seven working days to process. If your shoot is more complex and requires road closures, please refer to the below timescales.

Blackpool Highway Services - Road Closures, Stop & Start

If you apply for a filming permit, we will automatically notify Highway Services if necessary to do so on your behalf. Productions must apply for a road closure at least 40 days prior to its scheduled filming date at a cost of £1,500 +vat. The submission of a traffic management plan does not guarantee approval.

You can find out more information on road closures here. Road closure applications relating to filming or photography should be sent to filming@visitblackpool.com. 

Blackpool Beach Patrol

If your production requires filming on the beach, we will automatically notify the year-round Beach Patrol team on your behalf. As Blackpool is a tidal resort, we can work with you to ensure your filming activities are carried out safely during low tide.

Should you need any further assistance or you wish to hire out equipment or lifeguards for your filming activity, you can contact the Beach Patrol team on: 01253 626141.

Blackpool Police

We will automatically notify our designated contact for Blackpool Police if necessary during the application process.  If you need to contact Blackpool Police for any filming related permits such as police livery, vehicles or weapons use, we ask that you apply for a Permit first and we will seek consent on your behalf.

Traffic Management Companies

We will be happy to work with your chosen Traffic Management company. However, we have listed a local company below should you wish to use them.

Road Safety Services: Formed in 1983, Road Safety Services (RSS) specialise in the supply and implementation of road and pedestrian safety equipment. Their traffic management service is well known for providing the best possible safety and legislation compliance and instils the greatest of confidence with local authorities and emergency services. Find out more.

Parking in Blackpool

When filming in Blackpool, there are two options for parking. Firstly, if your filming activity is short in duration and your production only has one or two vehicles, we advise using the Pay and Display option in one of the many Council-owned, short stay car parks around the town. View a list of car parks.

Alternatively, you may wish to apply for a parking dispensation if your filming activity exceeds more than a couple of hours or you have a number of vehicles. The parking dispensation is £15 per vehicle and will expire after three days. Please speak with the Blackpool Film Office if you need to suspend a row of bays or you require full or partial use of a Council-owned car park.   

Apply for a parking dispensation

Drone Filming

Over recent years, Blackpool Film Office has seen a sharp uplift in aerial filming since drones have become more affordable and accessible. There are now various permissions and considerations in order to operate a drone safely.

The process for applying for permission to take off/land a drone of council land is as follows:

1. Familiarise yourself with the Civil Aviation Authority Drone Code and seek permission for Specific Category flights. You must ensure you are aware of the aircraft legislation and procedures in regards to aerial filming in Blackpool.

2. Submit a filming application to Blackpool Film Office at filming@visitblackpool.com and provide the following documents:

• A copy of your public liability insurance certificate
• A detailed site plan pinpointing your take-off and landing points, cordoned areas and proposed flight path
• A full risk assessment
• A copy of the drone pilot’s CAA licence

3. Log your flight with Air Traffic Control (ATC). ATC need to be notified if you are flying your drone south of Central Pier (towards Blackpool Pleasure Beach). You are not required to notify ATC if the aerial filming is before this boundary (North of Central Pier).

4. Blackpool Film Office will review your application and supported documents, and will be in touch in due course.

Acting and extra agencies

We hold a close relationship with Scream Management who offer a diverse pool of talent, excellent communication skills, and a strong track record of providing a reliable and professional service for productions.

Whether it's for a small independent film or a large-scale TV series, Scream can work with you to ensure that they understand your vision and can help you achieve your goals for the project. Offering a look book with an extensive list of local Blackpool talent, they are always open to working with productions.

Find out more

Student Filming

Blackpool Film Office supports student filming and any activity will be free of charge. We do ask, however, that students follow the same protocol as commercial productions.

A completed Outdoor Filming Application Form, a Blackpool-specific risk assessment and a copy of your institution’s public liability insurance is required for all student filming. All documents should be sent to filming@visitblackpool.com.

Accommodation

From a next-generation luxury hotel with a sumptuous sea view to a cosy, comfortable guesthouse, Blackpool offers an extraordinary choice to suit every production’s budget. Here at Blackpool Film Office, we can offer recommendations and secure special rates for big and small productions alike.

Just browsing? Take a look at our accommodation page where you will find a wide range of establishments. All our property advertised is accredited by the AA, VisitEngland or the Blackpool Approved scheme, meaning that all the listings featured have been independently assessed against a set criteria to ensure high quality standards.

Approximate distances and drive times: