Commercial Opportunities
The Port of Dover is a popular location for various events and film shoots, due to its iconic status and fantastic location overlooking the famous White Cliffs and English Channel.
As Europe’s busiest ferry port and one of the UK’s busiest cruise ports, the Port of Dover is an exciting and iconic location for film and location shoots.
Filming and photography at the Port is classed as either commercial or corporate social responsibility (CSR).
Operators, retail partners, stakeholders and officialcontractors wishing to film or photograph for project, internal, audit or proof of posting purposes must contact Corporate Affairs before filming on Port property.
A location fee and potentially staff costs will apply for commercial filming and photography.
Commercial drone filming from Port of Dover property, including Dover Beach, is prohibited without written prior permission from Dover Harbour Board. All commercial requests are considered on a case by case basis and the supply of CAA permission, pilot accreditation, flight plan, risk assessment and public liability insurance (no less than £5 million). Public drones are not permitted on any Port of Dover property.
With the White Cliffs iconic status, Port of Dover’s award-winning seafront promenade and Dover Harbour’s fantastic geographical position, the Port can prove to be a fantastic location to stage events.
Dover’s award-winning seafront and historic harbour are a prime location for major local events and celebrations.
In approving any event, the Port of Dover needs to be satisfied that any risk to the general public, the safety of navigation, or other port users has been effectively mitigated. The Port of Dover will also require evidence that the event organiser has consulted with, and has met the requirements of, the Police, the MCA (Coastguard), the RNLI, local emergency services, and local authority where appropriate.
Also, if applicable, the event should be conducted in accordance with the guidance provided by, and with the approval of, the national bodies representing the types, or classes of any craft participating in the event. Any requirement for additional harbour authority resources – whether additional navigational marks, craft to patrol, control or escort the event, or any emergency or SAR response resources – would normally be at the expense of the request organiser. The same would normally apply to any public safety or emergency provision considered by the police or other emergency services.
Being a live operational location, filming and events at the Port can provide operational and security challenges, which means that while we aim to be as accommodating as possible sometimes we are unable to facilitate your request for these reasons.
All filming and photography requests are considered on a case by case basis and require an official permit. Generally, a request must be made at least FIVE working days prior to the date you wish to film or take photographs. Events may require more considerable notice, depending on the scale and location of the event. Risk assessment templates and information on how to complete them can be found at www.hse.gov.uk.
Formal approval to such requests can then be made subject to a proper risk assessment conducted by organiser and valid public liability insurance. Where a request occurs regularly, the scope of subsequent risk assessments may be adjusted accordingly.
All requests for filming or recreational events should be made to the Corporate Affairs team: Contact Tel: +44 (0) 1304 240 400 Ext. 4410 or Email: communications@doverport.co.uk
