Hundreds of outstanding cases as Bournemouth Crown Court

Charities fear delays at courts across England and Wales could stop people reporting crime in future, while legal bodies fear they could even impact the outcome of a trial.

Ministry of Justice data shows there were 614 outstanding cases at Bournemouth Crown Court at the end of March - a rise of 32 per cent on the 464 at the same time last year.

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They included 132 cases relating to alleged violent attacks and 56 for sex offences.

Across England and Wales, 59,500 cases were waiting to be dealt with by crown courts at the end of March, an increase of 45 per cent on the previous year.

The Ministry of Justice said the long delays were brought on by the impact of Covid-19 which led to a limited operation at criminal courts, particularly last year.

However, the Law Society of England and Wales, which represents solicitors, said the pandemic has only compounded decades of underfunding and court closures.

President Stephanie Boyce said the case delays made a "courts crisis" even worse and had the potential to impact not just victims' lives, but also the outcomes of cases.

She added: “Let’s not forget victims, waiting years for justice, and sometimes giving up on the system, which is a heavy blow for justice in this country.

“Memories fade, meaning witnesses cannot give such strong evidence, which may make the difference between conviction and acquittal."

Charity Victim Support said the longer waits had a damaging impact on victims, particularly those suffering trauma from serious offences.

Rachel Almeida, assistant director, said: "Long delays undermine confidence in the criminal justice system and can deter victims and survivors from engaging in future.

"All possible steps must be taken to address the court backlog and reduce these long waits for trial.”

At Bournemouth Crown Court, 951 cases were concluded between April 2020 and March 2021, a fall from 1,177 the year before.

Leader of the Western Circuit, Kate Brunner QC said: "The court system has been underfunded for years, and Covid has made all the problems even worse.

"There was already a backlog of cases before the pandemic because the government was not funding sufficient ’sitting days’, and courtrooms were lying unused in order to save money.

"The backlog is even worse now, although the judges, court staff and lawyers have worked so hard across the South West during the pandemic to keep things going, sometimes taking personal risks by travelling to court during lockdown.

"The government has released some funding now for the courts, and things are slowly improving, but the waiting times for some witnesses and defendants is terrible. I really hope that this is a turning point, and that our court service will be properly looked after from now on."

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said since April 2021, the backlog of outstanding cases at crown courts had started to fall, although the latest figures were unavailable at individual court level.

They said: "Dedicated staff and professionals kept justice moving during the pandemic and thanks to their efforts we are seeing positive results – outstanding cases in the crown court are beginning to drop.

“Major challenges remain which is why we are investing hundreds of millions to further increase capacity, deliver swifter justice and support victims.”