Alison Saunders, Chief Crown Prosecutor for London

Alison SaundersA barrister who has prosecuted some of the country's most infamous criminals Alison Saunders joined the CPS in 1986, the year it was formed.

She was appointed London's Chief Crown Prosecutor after heading the CPS Organised Crime Division which deals with the most serious offences, including human trafficking, immigration, drugs-running, counterfeiting and money laundering, and confiscation of criminals' assets.

Alison spent her early CPS career prosecuting in what was known as CPS London South, working mainly in Sidcup, Croydon and Kingston.

In 1991 she moved to the CPS Policy Directorate where she developed an expertise in issues involving child victims and witnesses. She helped set up a training video on child victims and witnesses for judges.

Appointed Branch Crown Prosecutor for Wood Green in 1997, she was promoted to Assistant Chief Crown Prosecutor.

Her role in the prosecution of 'Railway Rapist' David Mulcahy - convicted of a spate of sex attacks and murders during the 1980s - was highlighted in a TV documentary in 2001.

That year Alison became Chief Crown Prosecutor Sussex, where she oversaw the successful prosecution of Roy Whiting for the abduction and murder of eight-year-old Sarah Payne.

In 2003 she served as Deputy Legal Advisor to the Attorney General before rejoining the CPS two years later as Head of the Organised Crime Division.

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Chief Viewpoint

CPS London moves forward

Londons Chief Crown Prosecutor, Alison Saunders, on how the Crown Prosecution Service in London are improving the service they provide.

Did you know that 134,389 people were successfully prosecuted in London in 2009? Thats a lot of people who have broken the law and have been brought to justice by the Crown Prosecution Service to face the consequences of their actions.

Crime affects everyone in a local community and I know that it is a big concern for so many of you. My teams across London are working with the police, the courts and our other criminal justice partners to provide the best service we can.

However, you may have seen some coverage lately about CPS London following on from an Inspection into the work we do. The report highlighted a number of areas we need to improve and we are already putting in place plans to do just that.

The report confirmed what we had already found, that our casework performance must improve. We need to get cases prepared on time so that when we get to court everything is ready for the hearing to proceed. To do that we are moving more staff from central roles out to the front line, we are recruiting more lawyers and we are training more staff to do the preparation work needed for cases coming to court.

We want to do more to help you if you have to attend court as a victim or a witness to a crime. If appropriate we can apply to the court for special measures, such as screens around the witness box so you cant be seen. Making those applications is a priority task for us.

The most serious crimes, such as murders, are dealt with by our Complex Casework Unit which is based in Central London. This unit has been rated good by the Inspectorate and the work being done to deal with the most serious offenders is what we want to replicate in every single borough.

These are not just words and responses to the Inspection. These are actions which are actually being put in place right now to ensure that we deliver the sort of service that the people of London deserve. We expect to see results soon and we hope you will too.