Summary of Performance and Achievements
Aim
The CPS works in partnership with the police, courts, Home Office, MoJ and other agencies throughout the Criminal Justice System (CJS) to reduce crime, the fear of crime, and its social and economic cost; to dispense justice fairly and efficiently and to promote confidence in the rule of law.
The CPS's overall aim, which reflects the government's priorities for the CJS, is to:
Deliver a high quality prosecution service that brings offenders to justice, helps reduce both crime and the fear of crime, and thereby promotes public confidence in the rule of law through the consistent, fair and independent review of cases and through their fair, thorough and firm presentation at court.
CPS Vision
The CPS is working to become a world-class, independent prosecuting authority that delivers a valued public service by:
- Strengthening the prosecution process to bring offenders to justice: providing an independent prosecution service, working with the police from the outset of a case to its disposal; advising the police before charge; building and testing the strongest possible prosecution case and presenting that case fairly in the courts on behalf of the public.
- Championing justice and the rights of victims: assessing the needs of victims and witnesses and their likely evidence from the outset and throughout the life of the case; making sure their experience of the CPS and the CJS encourages them and others to come forward in future to play their part in bringing offenders to justice.
- Inspiring the confidence of the communities we serve: being visible, open and accountable for our decisions; being responsive to the needs of the community and providing a valued public service; being seen as the decision makers who decide which cases should be brought to court and bringing them to justice.
- Driving change and delivery in the CJS: as a self-confident leader, influential in delivering local criminal justice and in shaping the CJS of the future.
- Being renowned for fairness, excellent career opportunities and the commitment and skills of all our people: where everyone is treated on merit; where people of ability can rise to the top and where all our people are renowned for their commitment, skills and dedication to justice.
- Having a strong capability to deliver: by transforming HQ support to frontline delivery, securing value for money and efficiencies to reinvest in frontline prosecution services; improving the management of prosecution costs; harnessing IT to support CPS business; and delivering through effective programme and project management.
The vision has been refreshed for 2008-11 and will continue to take the Service forward to becoming a world-class prosecution service.
Cases for advice and prosecution
- In 2007/08, the CPS provided 547,649 pre-charge decisions, completed 966,626 cases in the magistrates' courts and a further 96,992 in the Crown Court. This compared with a 2006/07 workload of 584,216 pre-charge decisions, 987,981 cases in the magistrates' courts, and 89,408 cases in the Crown Court.
CPS counting procedures were revised with effect from April 2007. Before that date, in cases where the defendant entered guilty pleas to some charges while others proceeded to a contested hearing, both the guilty plea and the subsequent contest were counted as a completed case. With effect from April 2007 cases falling into this category are counted once only, resulting in a slightly lower volume count. The 2006 - 07 figures quoted here have been adjusted in accordance with the new counting rules, and differ slightly from those previously published.
Case results
- During 2007/08, 828,535 defendants were convicted in the magistrates' courts and 76,947 were convicted in the Crown Court. The CPS made a substantial contribution to the CJS target of narrowing the justice gap.
- The percentage of cases discontinued in the magistrates' courts continued to fall, from 13.9% in 2003/04 to 12.7% in 2004/05, 11.8% in 2005/06, 10.9% in 2006/07 and 9.9% in 2007/08.
- Unsuccessful outcomes in the magistrates' courts fell from 21.3% of all outcomes in 2003/04 to 19.4% in 2004/05, 17.4% in 2005/06, 15.8% in 2006/07 and 14.3% in 2007/08.
- In the Crown Court, unsuccessful outcomes fell from 25.7% of outcomes in 2003/04 to 24.9% in 2004/05, 22.3% in 2005/06, 22.7% in 2006/07 and 20.7% in 2007/08.
Overall, unsuccessful outcomes fell from 21.6% of all outcomes in 2003/04 to 19.8% in 2004/05, 17.8% in 2005/06, 16.4% in 2006/07 and 14.9% in 2007/08; while convictions rose from 78.4% during 2003/04 to 80.2% in 2004/05, 82.2% in 2005/06, 83.6% in 2007/08 and 85.1% in 2007/08.
Percentage Unsuccessful Outcomes
People
- At the end of March 2008 the CPS employed a total of 8,351 people, 54 fewer than at the same time the previous year. This includes 2,913 prosecutors and 4,946 caseworkers and administrators. Over 91% of all staff are engaged in, or support, frontline prosecutions. The CPS has 945 prosecutors able to appear in the Crown Court and on cases in the Higher Courts, and 419 Associate Prosecutors (formerly known as Designated Caseworkers or DCWs) able to present cases in the magistrates' courts.
Full Time Equivalent figures. Data are provisional and subject to change. The figures quoted here were correct at 1st April 2008.
