Criminal cases that the Crown Prosecution Service take to court are in the news every day. This section also covers many issues related to our work, including violence against women and girls, hate crime, support for victims and witnesses, statistics, and speeches by the Director of Public Prosecutions and other senior staff.
Latest news
You can find our latest news stories here and search for older stories. You can also find more information about high-profile cases and the work of the CPS.
Working with the media
To make criminal court reporting more open, the CPS, police, and media representatives created a joint protocol (agreement) for working together. We are currently working on an updated version of the protocol.
Showing 51 - 58 of 58 results for area "South East"
A mother and her boyfriend have been convicted of murdering of her 18-month-old son, who died after multiple injuries were deliberately inflicted on him.
On the night of his death, Alfie Philips was with his mother Sian Hedges and her boyfriend Jack Benham, staying in a caravan belonging…
The actions of a murder victim have helped to convict her killer by managing to scratch her attacker's face before she died in a ferocious attack at her home.
Sara McKenzie, 62, went to Joy Boulton’s home in Ash, Surrey, on the morning of 11 May 2023 and when Joy opened her front door, she was…
New figures from CPS internal data shows that the number of rape referrals made by Kent, Surrey and Sussex Police has almost trebled in the last three years.
The South East has been taking part in a pilot programme to transform how adult rapes are prosecuted, which is now being rolled out…
Prosecutors and police forces in the South East have been working tirelessly to address the gap between reported rapes and cases reaching court.
Robust discussions about barriers to prosecution identified that earlier and more meaningful engagement between police and the CPS could drive up the…
The CPS hate crime annual report, published today (Tuesday 16 October), shows that CPS South East, which is responsible for these types of prosecutions in the three counties, had the third highest conviction rate out of 14 CPS Areas.
Between April 2017 and March 2018, there were 787 hate crimes…
CPS South East has engaged staff, set clear priorities with a strong vision and has used a peer review approach to improve performance in its Rape and Serious Sexual Offences team, according to a report published today (Tuesday 30 January 2018) by Her Majesty’s Crown Prosecution Service…
CPS South East's Chief Crown Prosecutor has joined a new commission looking at domestic and sexual violence.
Jaswant Narwal will be part of the commission, chaired by Baroness Hilary Armstrong, which will look at how to support some of the most marginalised women in society, including those…
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has today (21 August) published new public statements on how it will prosecute hate crime and support victims in Kent, Surrey and Sussex.
The revised statements cover the different strands of hate crime: racist and religious; disability; and homophobic,…
News ItemHate crimeSouth East
Press Office contact details
Please note that our Press Office is NOT able to deal with issues or queries from members of the public - these contact details are for accredited journalists ONLY. Do not call this number unless you a member of the press. For all general enquiries, please visit contact.cps.gov.uk.
If you are a national or international journalist with a media enquiry, you can contact the CPS Press Office on 020 3357 0906 or email [email protected] (9am-5pm weekdays only).
For out-of-hours media enquiries please call 020 3357 0906 to reach the duty press officer.
If you follow us on social media, you can expect posts covering some or all of the following:
Operational updates on decisions to prosecute or take no further action;
Reactions and statements on trial outcomes;
Policy updates from the Director of Public Prosecutions and other prosecutors;
Updates on media appearances by CPS staff
Content that explains the role of the CPS and how we work
Highlighting of relevant work by our criminal justice partners and other stakeholders
We will aim to be fair and accurate in all the information we publish. We will aim to correct any inaccuracies as soon as possible.
We are unable to monitor social media round the clock. We are not able to engage with all those who seek a response from us due to resources but also due to privacy and the sensitive nature of some of our work. The best way to contact the CPS is through our website.
Please do not try to report crime using social media. To report crime, please call 101 or visit your local police station. In an emergency, always call 999.
If you follow us on social media we will not automatically follow you back. Being followed by us does not imply endorsement of any kind.
Media protocol
To ensure greater openness in the reporting of criminal proceedings, the CPS, the police and media representatives developed a joint protocol for working together. We are currently in the process of updating the protocol.
