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Wessex

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is the main prosecuting authority in England and Wales. In our daily operations we work in partnership with all agencies in the criminal justice system. We work especially closely with the police, although we are independent of them.

Wessex mapThe CPS has 14 Areas across England and Wales - the CPS Wessex Region consists of the counties of Dorset, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight and Wiltshire.

Chief Crown Prosecutor Kate Brown is the head of CPS Wessex, supported by Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor Sophie Stevens.

Emma Tebbutt, the Area Business Manager has responsibility for Business and Operational Delivery functions across the region.

We currently employ 219 members of staff, including lawyers, paralegals, administrators and specialist staff. 

Our Senior Management team, Business Centre, Crown Court, Crown Advocacy Support team and Complex Casework Unit are based in Eastleigh.

We also have a team of in-house Crown Advocates and court support legal staff covering the three counties.

Kate Brown, Chief Crown Prosecutor

Kate became Chief Crown Prosecutor for CPS Wessex in June 2024.

She began prosecuting for the CPS in 1994 in Shropshire, moving to Wiltshire, Hampshire and Dorset. She held a variety of positions before becoming the Senior District Crown Prosecutor for South East Hampshire in 2004.

In November 2006 she was appointed as the Temporary Chief Crown Prosecutor for Dorset and was permanently appointed to that role in September 2007. In April 2011, Kate became the Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor for Wessex. Kate is also a Crown Advocate.

She was appointed as the Chief Crown Prosecutor (CCP) for Wessex in January 2013 and became the CCP for CPS Direct in June 2017, then CCP for CPS South East in May 2021.

Kate was appointed Chief Crown Prosecutor for Wessex in June 2024

Adele Kelly, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor

Adele joined the CPS in 2004 from private practice in the City, where she specialised in commercial and insurance litigation. She prosecuted in the Thames and Chiltern area, gaining experience in all areas of the business, culminating in responsibility for all gang murders.

In 2014, she joined the Rape and Serious Sexual Offences (RASSO) Team in London as a Legal Manager, overseeing some of the Operation Yewtree and serious institutional abuse cases.

She returned to CPS Thames and Chiltern in June 2017, as Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor (DCCP) with responsibility for Magistrates’ Court work before taking up a role as DCCP in the South East in May 2018 until April 2023. During this time, she covered all areas of the business and developed the South East Rape Response Improvement Group. She is one of the national deputy leads for Rape and Serious Sexual Offences.

Adele joined CPS Wessex as our second DCCP in April 2023, overseeing the Crown Court and RASSO teams.

Sophie Stevens, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor

Sophie joined the CPS in 2006 leaving her work as a defence solicitor having qualified and worked in Hong Kong.

Before taking up her post as Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor, she was the Senior District Crown Prosecutor and Head of Complex Casework Unit and Rape and Serious Sexual Offence Unit. She is the Area lead for Disclosure and also the International Casework Lead.

Sophie has led Wessex in the RASSO Tri-force action plan and is committed to improving our service to all. In her spare time she enjoys open water sea swimming (all year round) and enjoys life in Portsmouth with her partner and their two dogs.

Emma Tebbutt, Area Business Manager

Emma has been Area Business Manager for CPS Wessex since October 2018.

Emma's civil service career began in 2000, with the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) as an advisor to the long-term unemployed. She then worked in operational lead roles, including time with the Disability Employment Strategy team with the DWP in London.

Further roles followed, including Partnership Manager for one of the most deprived boroughs in London, supporting a smooth transition of Welfare Reforms and working to support young people in the borough affected by gang issues.

Emma moved to the Ministry of Defence in September 2014 as a Customer Service Manager for Defence Business Services (DBS), supporting Front Line Commands (Navy, Army, Royal Air Force and Joint Forces Command). From March 2017, Emma became DBS Transformation Assistant Head.

She joined the CPS in September 2018.

Our Crown Court team is mainly based at our offices in Eastleigh. They are responsible for dealing with cases involving serious offences which have to be tried by a jury, or where the magistrates’ courts do not have sufficient sentencing powers for the seriousness of the crime.

Casework includes murders, robberies, serious assaults, dwelling house burglaries, complex fraud, the supply and trafficking of drugs, and the most serious road traffic offences, especially those that result in a fatality.

Our magistrates’ court team is mainly based at our Portsmouth Offices, with two support teams based at our Chippenham and Eastleigh offices. They are responsible for prosecuting a wide range of offences, generally those for which the maximum sentence is six months' imprisonment.

Casework includes domestic abuse, assaults, hate crimes, criminal damage, minor public order incidents, minor traffic offences (excluding those dealt with by the police as police-led prosecutions), possession of drugs, dangerous dog offences and commercial burglaries.

Our Rape and Serious Sexual Offences (RASSO) Unit is a dedicated specialist team which prosecutes cases such as rape, serious sexual assaults and child abuse. The lawyers in this team, which is based in our Portsmouth office, are all specially trained and fully understand the sensitivities of prosecuting cases of this nature.

The CPS Wessex Complex Casework Unit handles our most serious and high profile cases. These can include murders, large-scale child abuse or abduction. 

Our specialist prosecutors in the Wessex Fraud Centre deal with offending that has taken place in London, Surrey, East Sussex, West Sussex, Kent, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Wiltshire and Hertfordshire.

Casework includes fraudulent claims for Student Loads, Child Maintenance, Tax Credits, Disability Living Allowance and the fraudulent evasion of duty by selling prohibited or restricted goods.

Working with you

Local Scrutiny and Involvement Panels provide the opportunity for local communities to work with us to improve our response to hate crime, domestic abuse and rape and serious sexual assault conviction rates, ensuring that lessons are learnt and good practice identified.

CPS Wessex participates in three Local Criminal Justice Boards which bring together the Chief Officers from agencies within the criminal justice system. The boards work to improve public confidence in the criminal justice system and raise awareness of the agencies within it.

Current priorities focus on securing an increase in the number of offences brought to justice, caring for victims and witnesses of crime and improving public confidence in the criminal justice system.

The Chief Crown Prosecutor, amongst other staff, sits on each board alongside the police, probation, prison service and court service. 

Victims and Witnesses

There will inevitably be some circumstances when the prosecution has to make a decision to discontinue or substantially alter a charge in a case.

When this happens we will tell victims what we have done and why. In some of the more serious cases we will offer to meet the victim to explain our decision.

Victims have the right to request a review of a decision to discontinue proceedings or offer no evidence in a case.

Victims' Right to Review Scheme

Contact us

2nd Floor
Black Horse House
8-10 Leigh Road
Eastleigh
Hampshire
SO50 9FH
Switchboard: 02380 673800

Victim Liaison Unit, Including Complaints and Victims' Right to Review, public enquiries
Telephone: 02380 673868
Email: Victimliaison.wessex@cps.gov.uk

Finance
CPS Wessex Business Centre, tel: 02380 683338

News Centre

The Area Communications Manager only deals with queries from members of local media.

Telephone: 02392 855370
Email: wessex.communications@cps.gov.uk

If you are a member of the national media, please call the CPS Press Office on 020 3357 0906 or email cps.pressoffice@cps.gov.uk

Out of hours: 020 3357 0913 for emergency media queries only.

Contact information for Defence

The following email addresses are for the sole use of defence firms who are on the Criminal Justice Secure email system (CJSM).

Please note if you have sent this email from any account other than a CJSM account we will not respond electronically to your request. Further information on CJSM.

Please ensure that the following information is provided in the email:

SUBJECT BOX - Unique Reference Number (URN) and court centre. 
BODY OF EMAIL - Defendant's name, date of birth, date of hearing and nature of request.

Failure to include this information will result in a delay processing your request.

Magistrates' Court cases

Switchboard: 023 92856210

Request for disclosure in relation to first hearing or any queries about first hearing cases FirstHearingMags.Wessex@cps.gov.uk.cjsm.net

Request for anything in relation to ongoing cases or matters being adjourned in the Magistrates' Court CaseProgressionMags.Wessex@cps.gov.uk.cjsm.net

Rape and Serious Sexual Offences Unit

Switchboard: 023 80673800
Email: Rasso.wessex@cps.gov.uk.cjsm.net

Complex Casework Unit

Switchboard: 023 80673800
Email: wessex.complexcasework@cps.gov.uk.cjsm.net

Crown Court cases

Black Horse House, 8-10 Leigh Road , Eastleigh, Hampshire, SO50 9FH
DX 148580 Eastleigh 4
Switchboard: 023 80673800

Gateway team: Deals with volume cases anything up to a four day (included) trial estimate.
Allocated team: Custody cases, anything with a trial estimate in excess of four days.
Wessexcrowncourtunit@cps.gov.uk.cjsm.net

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