Issue 388  8th March 2025

Ministers have pledged to increase the number of days funded for judges hearing criminal cases in an attempt to cut unprecedented backlogs and delays in Crown Courts in England and Wales. The Ministry of Justice's announcement follows two highly critical reports which found victims of crime were being failed. Victims Commissioner Baroness Newlove said some victims were so traumatised by delays they had resorted to drugs, alcohol and self-harm.

The funding boosts the total number of sitting days for judges to 110,000 in the new financial year, up from 108,000. But the justice secretary has admitted it is still not enough to handle the record backlog in the courts. There are currently 73,000 unresolved prosecutions, and this number is expected to rise said Shabana Mahmood. Suspects being charged with new offences are regularly told there might not be a trial until 2027, and some courts are already looking for diary space in 2028.

The delays - which have been caused by a combination of cuts to courts, the pandemic and then a barristers' strike over pay - have also led to a record 17,000 defendants being held on remand, taking up one-fifth of spaces in the crisis-ridden jails. Last November, Baroness Sue Carr, the Lady Chief Justice, told Parliament there needed to be more days given to judges and she had enough judges available to sit for 113,000 days a year in court. She said a cap on sitting days had a "drastic effect", with her local leaders having to reschedule cases and cancel work given to part-time judges, who are critical to clearing the backlog. A review into how to speed up the criminal courts is ongoing. Mahmood on Wednesday said the increase to the new level in sitting days was "unprecedented", but said it would still not be enough to fix the problem...

Almost half (48%) of victims of alleged crimes with a trial date listed had it changed at least once, according to a new survey by the victims' commissioner. Of those, 26% had the date changed four or more times. The number of completed Crown court cases where the trial was rescheduled more than three times on the day of the trial has quadrupled from 20 in 2019/20 to 87 in 2023/24...

The report, titled Justice delayed: The impact of the Crown court backlog on victims, victim services and the criminal justice system, said of the 70 victims who had experienced a trial date change, 36% had not received an explanation as to why it had happened. It said ‘in some instances’ victims reported that delays and adjournments ‘further traumatised them’. The report continued: ‘Our findings also show how the Crown court delays have a detrimental impact on the wider justice system, as they reduce the quality of victims’ evidence, risk supportive witnesses dropping out and, in some cases, lead victims to withdraw from the criminal justice process entirely. Many victims were left with such little faith and trust in the criminal justice system that they would be unwilling to report future crimes...

The Council has published a significantly revised version of the Imposition of community and custodial sentences guideline. The Imposition guideline sets out the guidance that magistrates and judges must follow when imposing community orders and custodial sentences, including deciding whether a custodial sentence can be suspended. It has been developed through public consultation and comes into effect on 1 April 2025.

The aim of the revised guideline is to make sure the courts have the most comprehensive information available about the circumstances of the offender and the offence, and the range of possible sentencing options, so that they can impose a tailored sentence that is the most suitable and appropriate for the offender and offence before them.

The revised guideline places greater emphasis than before on the critical role of pre-sentence reports (PSRs) in sentencing decisions and provides more information on the function and scope of the requirements courts can attach to community orders and suspended sentence orders. It also includes an entirely new section that considers the purposes and effectiveness of sentencing and includes new evidence the courts should consider when sentencing young adults, female offenders, mothers with dependent children, and pregnant and post-natal offenders.

Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood has told the Sentencing Council she will review its powers and "legislate, if necessary", following a row over its new guidance on sending people to jail. The changes, which are due to come into force in England and Wales next month, would make the ethnicity or faith of an offender a bigger factor when deciding whether to jail them. Ministers do not have the power to overturn the guidance, but in a letter Mahmood urged the council's chairman to reconsider "as soon as possible". Conservative shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick said the new rules were "anti-white" and "anti-Christian" and amounted to "two-tier justice". In a post on social media,, external he said that if the government did not act he would challenge the rules in court.

The Sentencing Council said the guidance would ensure courts had the "most comprehensive information available" to hand out an appropriate sentence and could address disadvantages faced within the criminal justice system. Official figures, external show that offenders from ethnic minorities consistently get longer sentences than white offenders for indictable offences. The analysis produced by the Ministry of Justice said the difference could be "attributed to a range of factors including the varying offence mix across ethnic groups". It added that lower average custodial sentences for white defendants may be a result of "a higher percentage of guilty plea rates for this ethnic group, resulting in shorter custodial sentences"...

The new sentencing guidance puts a greater emphasis on the need for pre-sentence reports for judges. Pre-sentence reports give judges details on the offender's background, motives and personal life before sentencing - then recommend a punishment and what would work best for rehabilitation. But over recent years their use has decreased. Magistrates and judges will be advised to get a pre-sentence report before handing out punishment for someone of an ethnic or faith minority - alongside other groups such as young adults, abuse survivors and pregnant women. These factors are not an exhaustive list, the council said. A pre-sentence report can still be necessary if an individual does not fall into one of these cohorts...

Foreign national offenders (FNOs) will be deported quicker thanks to a new £5 million government investment in prisons across England and Wales. The money will fund the deployment of specialist frontline staff to 80 jails with one clear mission – speeding up the removal of prisoners who have no right to be in this country. The new crack squad will also support the Home Office to identify and manage those going through the immigration process, ensuring cases are progressed as quickly as possible.

FNOs make up around 12 percent of the total prison population and deporting them sooner will help save taxpayers’ millions while easing the capacity crisis inherited by the new government. The move is expected to further bolster efforts which have seen 23 per cent more FNOs removed since July 2024 compared to the same period in 2023...

All postmasters who have had their convictions overturned, whether by a court or legislation last year, will now have their conviction claims administered by the government, completely taking them out of the hands of the Post Office – fulfilling a key request from those impacted by the scandal.

After a three-month transitional period, the Department for Business and Trade’s Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme (HCRS) will broaden its scope to take on responsibility for redress for postmasters who have had their convictions overturned by the Courts. These are currently dealt with by the Post Office through their Overturned Convictions scheme. This is something that postmasters, campaigners, and Parliamentarians, including the Business and Trade Select Committee, have all called for...

Ministers have acted immediately to end the practice of placing girls in young offender institutions following recommendations from Susannah Hancock’s independent review into the placement and care of girls in youth custody. The review published today highlights the complex mental and physical health issues these girls often face, with self-harm at a concerning level. It comes as recent figures show girls are involved in more than half the self-harm incidents across the youth estate in England and Wales, despite accounting for less than two percent of the children in custody.

The intervention will ensure girls are always placed in settings more suited to their needs such as Secure Schools or Secure Children’s Homes. The decision was informed by feedback from hardworking staff and the vulnerable children in their care. The review found that despite tireless efforts of staff involved in their care, YOIs cannot offer the therapeutic, trauma-informed support these girls need...