CPS Wiltshire
Annual Report 2002-2003
Introduction by the Chief Crown Prosecutor
If there is one certainty in the Criminal Justice System it is that the process of change is constant. As an organisation at the centre of the Criminal Justice System, the Crown Prosecution Service is at the forefront of implementing these changes to law, procedure and practice. This report explains what we have achieved in 2002-03 and puts these changes into context.
In the last year we have seen the introduction of "Speaking Up For Justice" which provides special measures to make it easier for vulnerable and intimidated witnesses (including the young and victims of sexual crime) to give their evidence in court. One of the main examples of these special measures is the use of video evidence for the witness's evidence-in-chief and cross-examination by CCTV link to the courtroom. We have already conducted several successful prosecutions using special measures, which have been welcomed by witnesses as making the ordeal of giving evidence considerably less traumatic for them.
We have also seen the enactment of the Proceeds of Crime Act. Working closely with the police we will invite the courts to confiscate assets which criminals hold and which can be shown to be the proceeds of crime. There has been a considerable amount of training and joint planning with the Police to prepare for this legislation. We are confident that this legislation will bring home the message that crime does not pay.
One of the major events of the last year was our inspection by Her Majesty's CPS Inspectorate. This independent body looked at every aspect of our casework, advocacy management, inter-agency working and community engagement. I am delighted to be able to report that the Inspectorate were very pleased with what they found, and subsequently CPS Wiltshire was placed first in a table of the 42 CPS Areas for casework performance.
The Inspectorate made a number of recommendations on how to make a good prosecution service even better, and we are working on these so that we continue to improve the high quality service that we provide to the people of Wiltshire.
We have continued to improve the service we provide to victims of crime. In September 2002 we opened a new room in our headquarters to provide both the privacy and comfort necessary to allow meetings to take place with victims of crime and their relatives.
As in previous years I am pleased to be able to report that we continue to work closely with our partners in the Wiltshire Constabulary, Probation Service, Magistrates' and Crown Court, the Prison Service and the Youth Offending Teams. We are moving into a new era in which Local Criminal Justice Boards containing the Heads of all of these organisations take responsibility for the quality of the Criminal Justice System in Wiltshire, and a multi-agency Service Delivery Group will support this Board. The CPS will play a full role in both groups.
We have also worked closely with other groups such as Victim Support and the Racial Equality Councils to ensure that our service meets the needs of our community.
Any organisation is only as good as the people who work within it. We are fortunate in having a team of lawyers, caseworkers and administrators who, in my view, are second to none in the Crown Prosecution Service nationally. We have a blend of experience and new staff and all consistently give of their best. Many have gained new qualifications or promotion over the last year, and all have faced the challenge of keeping up to date with changes whilst still dealing with our casework.
Last May my team of managers developed an Area Vision, which has now been adopted by our staff. Our vision is:
The purpose of CPS Wiltshire is to provide the local community with a high quality prosecution service, playing a central part in the local Criminal Justice System. We will treat all people fairly, professionally and respectfully.
I trust that anyone living or working in Wiltshire would find our vision to be worthwhile, and more importantly that we can live up to it in the way we discharge our duties on a daily basis.
I hope that you find this report interesting and informative.
Nick Hawkins
Chief Crown Prosecutor
About CPS Wiltshire
Professional
CPS Wiltshire has been at the forefront of initiatives to make best use of Designated Caseworkers (lay presenters) in magistrates' courts and Higher Court Advocates (CPS lawyers) in the Crown Court, and we continue to train our staff to fulfil these roles. We continue to develop our IT systems to support our prosecutions and a number of our staff have played a role in developing a new national case management system, that will be deployed in Wiltshire in April 2003.
Our managers are trained to support and monitor the professional standards of our staff and those members of the independent Bar that we instruct, and we have undertaken joint training with our barrister colleagues on the Western Circuit on a number of occasions. All of these steps are designed to maintain our professionalism.
Performance
CPS Wiltshire has prosecuted every type of case from murder to minor motoring offences. All are treated equally seriously. No one is above the law, and this year we have successfully prosecuted a magistrate from another county for a firearms offence when he shot his neighbour's dog, and a serving police officer from a neighbouring force who inflicted grievous bodily harm on his wife.
We have continued to play our part in the fight against drugs, with notable successes including two operations in Devizes and Calne, which alone resulted in over 25 convictions and 17 custodial sentences. To ensure that we can handle all types of case we have trained a number of our lawyers as specialists. This has recently proved invaluable, as we have prosecuted a number of cases involving the making and distribution of pornographic images over the Internet. All of these examples illustrate how we strive to remain one of the highest performing CPS Areas.
People
In the past year we have recruited a number of new lawyers and administrators to join our experienced team, and have continued to help develop the careers of many existing staff. Some of our staff have been promoted or gained new qualifications, whilst others have taken on new responsibilities or completed training opportunities such as the Prince's Trust scheme. Many have taken part in national working groups, which design training, develop policy or implement initiatives across the country, and it is a tribute to CPS Wiltshire that their views and expertise are eagerly sought.
We have provided work experience to a number of school children and students, and taken a number of individuals to court with us to shadow our work. We have sought every opportunity to gain an understanding of the hopes and fears of minority communities. People are our most important asset in CPS Wiltshire and we continue to value each individual member of staff for their contribution.
Partnership
Our staff come into daily contact with our partners in the police, courts, probation and Youth Offending Teams, as well as dealing professionally with barristers and solicitors representing defendants. This has enabled us to bring cases to justice speedily but consistent with a defendant's right to a fair trial. We have spent the last few months refining our plans to "Narrow the Justice Gap" by bringing more offences to justice.
We carry out much joint monitoring of performance with our partners, and no initiative is introduced by any one agency without consulting all others. A good example of this is the new pre-trial review regime in the magistrates' courts, developed jointly between the CPS and the court staff, which is helping to reduce the number of ineffective trials. This in turn is to the benefit to victims, witnesses and defendants and allows the agencies to make best use of their resources.
Public confidence
We continue to seek opportunities to engage with the community we serve. On an individual basis this will involve supporting victims and witnesses, or dealing with enquiries from members of the public or Members of Parliament.
On a community level this can involve anything from talks to schools and other community groups to attending events involving sections of the community.
Three of our colleagues recently attended the Swindon Disability Coalition event. The photos below show this, and also the opening of our new victim and witness room, which was formally opened in September by Julia Drown MP, in the company of James Gray MP. Above all the fact that we live in the community we serve highlights the need for us to maintain the confidence of the public.
Performance in Magistrates' Courts and the Crown Court
Performance Overview
There has been an increase in the number of cases we have dealt with in the magistrates' courts and the Crown Court this year.
The CPS aims to contribute to the reduction both of crime and the fear of crime and to increase public confidence in the criminal justice system by fair and independent review of cases and by firm, fair and effective prosecution at Court.
The CPS remains committed to dealing with prosecution cases in a timely and efficient manner in partnership with other agencies. Part of our performance is measured by the proportion of cases where national time guidelines are met for key processes. In Wiltshire CPS we have -
- Met the guidelines for sending committal papers to the defence. We have continued to exceed the national target of 80% and exceeded our Area target of 88%. This speeds up the process for transferring more serious cases to the crown court.
- Met the guidelines for delivery of briefs to Counsel for part of the year. The national target is 84% our Area target is 89%. Our performance over the whole year was 80%.
- Met the guidelines for replying to complaints in 100% of cases, against an Area target of 95%, national target of 95 %. We have exceeded our Area target and the national target.
- We did meet the guidelines for replying to MPs correspondence in all cases.
- Our performance in relation to dealing with PYOs has consistently improved and has exceeded the Government national target of 71 days.
The CPS is also committed to ensuring that charges proceeded with are appropriate to the evidence and the seriousness of the offending by the consistent, fair and independent review of cases in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors. Performance is measured by the proportion of cases that fail in court, which are due to failures in the review process.
This is a relatively new CPS target requiring regular checks on the reasons for cases being dismissed on a submission in court of no case to answer or resulting from a non-jury acquittal. The Area Management Team analyse the reports to ensure that lessons are learnt across the Area so that we improve the way in which we handle casework.
We are conscious that in delivering national performance targets we are reliant on the experience and commitment of our staff. We have carried out a considerable amount of local training on a number of issues to support improvement in relation to performance against targets.
We are now working towards Narrowing the Justice Gap, Improving Public Confidence and Value for Money.
Performance in the Magistrates' Courts
All prosecutions start in the magistrates' courts. These include offences ranging from minor motoring matters to assaults and theft. Usually the more serious cases proceed to the Crown Court.
Caseload
The chart shows as received the number of defendants whose cases the Area received from the police and the number of defendants whose cases were finalised between April 1 2001-31 March 2002 and in the previous year. Our caseload depends on the number of cases the police send to us. Several factors affect this, such as the level of arrest and the number of people the police caution.
Completed Cases
Case Categories
This shows the different types of work dealt with in the Area. They are:
- Summary - cases which can only be tried in the magistrates' courts.
- Indictable/Either Way - Indictable only offences (such as robbery) must be tried in the Crown Court, but either way offences (such as theft) may be tried in either the magistrates' courts or in the Crown Court.
- Advice - cases in which the police ask for our advice about whether proceedings should be started.
- Other Proceedings - non-criminal matters, such as forfeiture under the Obscene Publications Acts.
Case Results
This shows the disposal of those cases which were heard in the magistrates' court, not including those which were discontinued or committed to the Crown Court.
Performance in the Crown Court
Some cases can only be tried in the Crown Court. Other cases go to the Crown Court either because the defendant chooses to be tried there or because the magistrates decide they are serious enough to need Crown Court trial. If a defendent pleads not guilty, the case will be tried before a judge and jury.
Caseload
The chart shows as received the number of defendants who came before the Crown Court and the number whose case was dealt with there.
Case Categories
- Committed for trial - Indictable only and some either way cases are sent from the magistrates' courts for trial to the Crown Court. Since January 2001, indictable only offences have been sent to the Crown Court under section 51, Crime and Disorder Act 1998 which, in most cases, means that committal proceedings are not held.
- Appeals - Defendants may appeal to the Crown Court against the conviction and/or sentence that they received in the magistrates' court.
- Committed for sentence - Some defendants tried and convicted in the magistrates' courts are committed for sentence to the Crown Court because the magistrates decide that greater punishment is required than they have the power to impose.
Completed Cases
Case Results
Source of Committals
Acquittals
About the Crown Prosecution Service
The Head of the Crown Prosecution Service is the Director of Public Prosecutions (the Director), currently Sir David Calvert-Smith QC. The Director is superintended by the Attorney General who is accountable to Parliament for the Service. The Chief Executive is Richard Foster. The Chief Executive has responsibility for finance, human resources, performance management, IT and business and administrative processes, thus allowing the Director to concentrate on prosecution and legal processes.
The Service is organised into 42 geographical Areas aligned to police force boundaries, each headed by a Chief Crown Prosecutor (CCP ) - London Area covers both City of London and Metropolitan Police Forces. Each CCP is responsible for the delivery of a high quality prosecution service to his/her local community. The CCPs are supported by Area Business Managers.
The Code for Crown Prosecutors
The CPS prosecutes all cases in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors. The Code is of fundamental importance to the core business of the CPS as it provides guidance to prosecutors on the general principles to be applied in all prosecution decisions, and acts as a public statement of policy allowing everyone to see and understand the basis upon which these decisions are made.
A revised Code for Crown Prosecutors was published in 2000 in order to reflect important developments in legislation, criminal procedure and the CPS' own structure. As part of that revision process, an extensive programme of public consultation was carried out and almost every aspect of the Code commented upon. New features of the Code include a reference to our position and obligations under the Human Rights Act 1998, clarification of the relationship between victims and public interest and a paragraph on youths to reflect new procedures for reprimands and final warnings.
An improved service
The Criminal Justice Bill, which is going through Parliament during 2003, will in the future give the CPS, rather than the police, the responsibility for determining the charge in all but routine cases. Results from pilots show that big improvements in quality have come about through early involvement of the CPS in investigations.
CPS Areas have been working in partnership with police forces to establish joint and co-located criminal justice units to reduce duplication and delay in bringing cases to court. More than 100 such units are planned throughout England and Wales.
They are also establishing Trials Units (TUs) to deal with the preparation and presentation of the more serious cases at Crown Court. Most TUs will be located in CPS premises, but some are planned for Crown Court centres.
The CPS, and its criminal justice partners, are working together to help realise the Government's pledge to halve the time it takes to deal with persistent young offenders in youth courts and in Crown Court.
The CPS continues to take forward initiatives to speed up justice proposed by Martin Narey in his Review of Delay in the Criminal Justice System.
These include increasing the number of designated caseworkers - specially trained CPS staff, who are not lawyers, review and present in the magistrates' courts a limited range of cases involving straightforward guilty pleas.
We also continue to increase the number of Higher Court Advocates (HCAs). They are CPS lawyers who, having undertaken the Service's internal training, are able to exercise full rights of audience as HCAs, principally in the Crown Court.
Speaking up for Justice
The Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 2000 provides for a number of special measures for vulnerable or intimidated witnesses, including the use of screens round the witness box, clearing the public gallery in sex offences and intimidation cases, assistance with communication, video recorded evidence-in-chief and cross-examination, the use of intermediaries, live TV links and the removal of wigs and gowns.
These measures are being implemented in phases, but all will be in place before the end of 2003-04.
About the CPS
The Facts
The CPS is responsible for prosecuting people in England and Wales charged by the police with a criminal offence.
Nationally we prosecute more than 1.4 million cases every year and our annual planned expenditure for 2002-03 is around 441 million. The CPS has been given additional funds from the criminal justice reserve to fund initiatives such as the "Premium Service" being introduced as part of the Government's plan to tackle robbery/street crime in 10 "hot spot" areas, and to improve the way we deal with victims and witnesses.
The CPS employs around 7,500 staff and has an Equal Opportunities Policy. Parts of the Service have achieved the Investor in People standard while others are pursuing accreditation.
The CPS Equality and Diversity Unit (EDU) was set up in October 1999. The Unit's remit is to turn the CPS Equality Statement into a reality. The aim is to ensure that the CPS does not discriminate in either its employment practice or its prosecutions.
All staff take part in diversity training and the EDU holds regular national and regional seminars and conferences on a whole range of diversity issues.
It also runs a "Dignity at Work" campaign to ensure, through raised awareness, that all staff are treated with dignity at work and valued in their difference. As a Service, the CPS has already achieved its 2005 targets for employment of minority ethnic staff.
The CPS continues to develop new electronic information and media. It has an intranet service which gives staff better access to information, improved internal communications and allows the CPS to manage its information and knowledge better.
The CPS' internet website is at http://www.cps.gov.uk and is available in English and Welsh. It provides a considerable amount of information about our business, staff and structures.
Where we fit in the criminal justice system
The Law Officers: The Attorney General is assisted by the Solicitor General. The Attorney General has final responsibility for enforcing criminal law and superintends the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The police: Police forces investigate crime and arrest or detain suspected offenders.
The Lord Chancellor's Department: The Lord Chancellor is head of the judiciary and responsible for the administration of the court system in England and Wales. This includes the magistrates' courts.
The Court Service: Responsible for the High Court and administration of the Crown Court and County Courts in England and Wales.
The Home Office: Responsible for matters relating to law and order.
The Prison Service: The Service is responsible for keeping in custody people on remand awaiting trial and those sentenced to imprisonment by the courts.
The National Probation Service: The Service provides courts with advice and information on offenders to help sentencing decisions and implements community orders made by the courts.
There are other prosecuting authorities. They include: the Department of Trade and Industry; the Serious Fraud Office; HM Customs and Excise; the Health and Safety Executive; the Department of Social Security; the Inland Revenue; the Department of Food and Rural Affairs; the Intervention Board; the Bank of England; the Army; the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy prosecuting authorities; the Maritime and Coastguard Agency; and the Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority.
Leaflets and publications
The CPS publishes a range of leaflets and publications about its work that are available free of charge to members of the public. Leaflets currently available include: a description of the work of the CPS (Introduction); the people who work for the Service (People); information about careers with the CPS (Careers); the Code for Crown Prosecutors (the Code) - and an abbreviated version of the Code (Prosecutions); the CPS policy on dealing with Domestic Violence and advice for vulnerable witnesses attending court (Witnesses); and a leaflet on how to make a complaint (Complaints). Most publications are available in alternative formats and in other languages.
For more information, contact the CPS Communications Branch, 50 Ludgate Hill, London EC4M 7E; telephone: 020 7796 8442.
Dealing with complaints
Our comprehensive complaints procedure is set out in a leaflet available from Area offices, CPS Communications Branch and on our website: www.cps.gov.uk/contact/index.html
CPS Wiltshire
Fox Talbot House
Bellinger Close
Malmesbury Road
Chippenham
Wilts SN15 1BN
Telephone: 01249 766100
Fax: 01249 766101
