We increase trust in the Crown Prosecution Service
We place victims at the heart of the Criminal Justice System, promoting a supportive, respectful and fair approach.
Our ambition is to strengthen public trust by ensuring victims, witnesses and defendants receive clear, consistent and fair treatment at every stage of the process. By improving communication, addressing disproportionality and enhancing transparency in how decisions are made, we aim to increase confidence in CPS outcomes and the fairness of the system as a whole.
| We will measure success through our Key Performance Indicators: | Target |
|---|---|
| We will maintain or increase the proportion of people that are confident that the CPS prosecute the right person for the right offence (2025: 53%), ensuring we are listening to the public and testing whether we are effectively communicating our purpose, performance, and priorities. | ≥53% |
| At least 97.5% of approved invoices and witness expense claims will be settled within 10 days of receipt, measuring whether we are prompt in meeting our obligations to the public, ensuring that supporting the system to deliver justice doesn’t cause a financial burden. | ≥97.5% |
| At least 76% of our letters to vulnerable and/or intimidated victims will be sent within the timeliness standards of 24 hours, so victims can trust we will contact them in good time, and so we drive performance towards achieving our statutory commitment of 100% timeliness. | ≥76% |
| At least 90% of our letters to all other victims will be sent within the timeliness standards of five days, so victims can trust we will contact them in good time, and so we drive performance towards achieving our statutory commitment of 100% timeliness. | ≥90% |
This year we will increase trust in us through:
- Improving support for victims and witnesses
- Acting fairly and addressing disproportionality1
- Strengthening transparency and accountability
| Programme | This year we will: | By: |
|---|---|---|
| Victim Transformation | Update and launch the Bereaved Family Scheme across the CPS in order to improve the experience of bereaved families. | 30 September 2026 |
| Complete an independent evaluation of the Universal and Enhanced Service pilots to inform how we improve victim experience as well as ensure value for money in everything that we do. | 31 March 2027 | |
| Disproportionality Action Plan | Deliver a set of inclusive videos for our people that share real experiences from ethnic minority community groups. This will help everyone better understand bias and the impact it can have on people, and why our work to tackle this matters. | 31 December 2026 |
| Deliver themed case strategy packs to help prosecutors spot and tackle bias in their decisions supporting fairer outcomes. | 31 December 2026 | |
| Domestic Abuse Joint Justice Plan | Create a new training module on strangulation and suffocation to support our prosecutors to build robust cases that support early resolution. | 31 December 2026 |
| Review and update the joint protocol with Police on stalking and harassment by to improve safety and outcomes for victims. | 31 March 2027 | |
| All new starters will complete e‑learning on Evidence‑Led Prosecutions to support consistently high standards in the most sensitive cases. | 31 March 2027 |
- CPS’ initiative to ensure legal decision-making is free from racial bias.