Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
These initiatives were driven by Baroness Taylor of Bolton, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
Baroness Taylor of Bolton has not introduced any legislation before Parliament
Baroness Taylor of Bolton has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting
It is not our intention to deposit the tender documentation into the Library of the House. It is the responsibility of individual customer authorities to publish contracting information on Contracts Finder and/or other transparency platforms.
The end of term email from the Secretary of State was sent to 45,418 email addresses. Of those recipients:
The email has a 45% unique open rate. It was opened 60,245 times as of 26 July 2023, indicating that it had been forwarded beyond the original contact list. The open rate cannot be broken down by categories of school leaders versus subscribers.
As with all departmental communications, Civil Service advice is provided on tone and content, along with factual accuracy checks to ensure it meets the needs of the audience it is intended for.
The department does not intend to publish a table of the information requested. The department’s remit is to consider whether the academy school or multi-academy trust has a complaints procedure that is compliant with Part 7 of the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014, and that they have allowed their own complaints procedure to be completed, when handling complaints received. The department does not consider the subject of the complaint, as academies are autonomous bodies and they are responsible for handling complaints raised against them.
In the last five years, no employees of the department or its Executive Agencies have been reprimanded for inappropriate political activity.
Four digital photographs of my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, were taken since 7 September 2022. These were welcome photos featuring the department’s Permanent Secretary for use on the internal staff intranet. These were all taken in-house at no cost. Four photos were additionally taken for use on social media.
Since 15 September 2021, approximately 20 photos of those who have held the post of Secretary of State for Education are currently stored by the department’s social media team.
Regarding the most recent photography captured with the department’s ministers, the dates are as follows:
These photos were taken in-house at zero cost for use on our staff intranet and social media channels. Photos of the department’s ministerial team that are featured on gov.uk are provided by Parliament.
Four digital photographs of my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, were taken since 7 September 2022. These were welcome photos featuring the department’s Permanent Secretary for use on the internal staff intranet. These were all taken in-house at no cost. Four photos were additionally taken for use on social media.
Since 15 September 2021, approximately 20 photos of those who have held the post of Secretary of State for Education are currently stored by the department’s social media team.
Regarding the most recent photography captured with the department’s ministers, the dates are as follows:
These photos were taken in-house at zero cost for use on our staff intranet and social media channels. Photos of the department’s ministerial team that are featured on gov.uk are provided by Parliament.
The table below shows the total value of co-investment by the government to support apprenticeships in levy-paying employers in the 2017/18, 2018/19, 2019/20 and 2020/21 financial years.
Financial Year | Total co-investment spend by government for levy paying employers (£million) |
2017/18 | 14 |
2018/19 | 52 |
2019/20 | 76 |
2020/21 | 106 |
The government pays 95% of training costs for employers that don't pay the levy, who are often small and medium sized enterprises, with these employers required to co-invest the remaining 5%. Apprenticeships that started before 1 April 2019, when the co-investment rate was reduced to 5%, continue at the previous co-investment rate of 10%.
The table below shows the total value of co-investment by the government to support apprenticeships in non-levy paying employers in the 2017/18, 2018/19, 2019/20 and 2020/21 financial years.
Financial Year | Total co-investment spend by government for non-levy paying employers (£million) |
2017/18 | 189 |
2018/19 | 528 |
2019/20 | 650 |
2020/21 | 557 |
To note, the expenditure in both tables includes spend on additional payments to employers and providers, such as for English and maths training and for learner support. These costs are met by government, through the wider apprenticeship budget for all employers, and are not deducted from the balance of funds in employers’ apprenticeship service accounts.
The department’s accounts for 2021/22 financial year have not yet been audited and published.
The table below shows the total value of co-investment by the government to support apprenticeships in levy-paying employers in the 2017/18, 2018/19, 2019/20 and 2020/21 financial years.
Financial Year | Total co-investment spend by government for levy paying employers (£million) |
2017/18 | 14 |
2018/19 | 52 |
2019/20 | 76 |
2020/21 | 106 |
The government pays 95% of training costs for employers that don't pay the levy, who are often small and medium sized enterprises, with these employers required to co-invest the remaining 5%. Apprenticeships that started before 1 April 2019, when the co-investment rate was reduced to 5%, continue at the previous co-investment rate of 10%.
The table below shows the total value of co-investment by the government to support apprenticeships in non-levy paying employers in the 2017/18, 2018/19, 2019/20 and 2020/21 financial years.
Financial Year | Total co-investment spend by government for non-levy paying employers (£million) |
2017/18 | 189 |
2018/19 | 528 |
2019/20 | 650 |
2020/21 | 557 |
To note, the expenditure in both tables includes spend on additional payments to employers and providers, such as for English and maths training and for learner support. These costs are met by government, through the wider apprenticeship budget for all employers, and are not deducted from the balance of funds in employers’ apprenticeship service accounts.
The department’s accounts for 2021/22 financial year have not yet been audited and published.
Identifying priority groups for vaccinations are clinical decisions taken by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), informed by advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccinations and Immunisation (JCVI). JCVI advised that the primary objective of the 2022 autumn booster programme is to augment immunity in those at higher risk from COVID-19 and thereby optimise protection against severe COVID-19, specifically hospitalisation and death, over winter 2022/23.
Other school staff are currently not eligible to receive an autumn booster as part of this programme. However, staff who meet the central eligibility criteria are entitled to a free flu vaccination through the NHS, and schools can choose to provide flu vaccines for their staff through their occupational health services.
My right hon. Friend, the former Secretary of State for Education, did not formally meet in a one to one format with my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Transport, between 15 September 2021 and 20 June 2022.
Ministers and officials in the department regularly attend meetings alongside other government departments, including the Department for Transport, and have done so in the lead up to the strike action. These meetings have been to prepare for the industrial action, highlighting risks and contingencies for our sectors. Daily meetings are taking place, both at an official and ministerial level, to monitor how the rail disruption may be impacting pupils and students.
The department will continue to closely monitor the impact of the rail strikes.
My right hon. Friend, the former Secretary of State for Education, did not formally meet in a one to one format with my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Transport, between 15 September 2021 and 20 June 2022.
Ministers and officials in the department regularly attend meetings alongside other government departments, including the Department for Transport, and have done so in the lead up to the strike action. These meetings have been to prepare for the industrial action, highlighting risks and contingencies for our sectors. Daily meetings are taking place, both at an official and ministerial level, to monitor how the rail disruption may be impacting pupils and students.
The department will continue to closely monitor the impact of the rail strikes.
Paragraph 3 (1) of Schedule 1 of the Children Act 2004 states that the Children’s Commissioner is to be appointed by the Secretary of State.
The Children's Commissioner for England is a significant public appointment. This means the appointment process must adhere to the requirements of the Governance Code for Public Appointments, and that the preferred candidate is subject to scrutiny by the Education Select Committee.
Paragraph 3 (4) and (5) of Schedule 1 of the Children Act 2004 (“the 2004 Act”) states that a Commissioner can only be appointed for a maximum term of up to six years, and that a person who has previously held office as the Children’s Commissioner may not be considered for reappointment.
Appointments to the post of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector are conducted in line with the Public Appointments Process, following the Governance Code, as set out by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. Further information on this can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/governance-code-for-public-appointments.
These are Crown Appointments made by the Queen in Council, on the recommendation of my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education. The duration of terms served for public appointments can vary, but it is presumed that no individual should serve more than two terms or serve in any one post for more than ten years.
The Children’s Commissioner post is a significant public appointment and must adhere to the requirements of the Governance Code for Public Appointments.
In accordance with Section 9 of the Governance Code for Public Appointments, it is permissible for public appointees to be politically active providing the activity is publicly declared. The Office of the Children’s Commissioner has published a register of interest on their website for their Advisory Board, Audit and Risk Committee and Senior Leadership team.
As set out in the Framework Document between the Children’s Commissioner and the Department for Education, the Commissioner has freedom to determine their own priorities and activities, and should be subject to as few constraints as possible in deciding how to carry out their business within their statutory remit. This independence is secured primarily through the Children Act 2004.
The Commissioner is required under Section 8 (1) of the Children Act 2004, to publish an annual report which sets out the way in which she has discharged her functions, and what she has found in the course of exercising those functions. This report is sent to my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, and laid before each House of Parliament.
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
We have not made an assessment of the environmental impacts of disposable vapes. However, as part of the review of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations, we will consult on policies aimed at driving up levels of separate collection of electric and electronic waste, including vaping devices, later this year.
The National Travel Survey does not provide a breakdown by state-funded and independent schools.
The National Travel Survey does not provide a breakdown by state-funded and independent schools.
There are no immediate plans to introduce a ban on disposable vaping devices.
There has been no change to the offer of COVID-19 vaccinations for children aged five to 11 years old. In February 2022, the Government accepted advice from the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) for a one-off, non-urgent vaccine offer for children aged five to 11 years old not in clinical risk groups. This offer has been applicable to children aged five years old by 31 August 2022 and eligible children may still receive this vaccination.
On 15 July 2022, the Government accepted the advice of the JCVI to offer a booster vaccination in autumn 2022 for those at higher risk of severe COVID-19. All children aged five years old and over in a clinical risk group are eligible for a booster dose in the autumn campaign.
In considering the eligible categories for the COVID-19 booster vaccine, the Government is guided by the independent expert Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) on COVID-19 vaccinations. On 15 July 2022, the Government accepted advice from the JCVI on the eligibility criteria for the autumn booster vaccination programme in 2022.
The JCVI advised that the primary objective of the booster vaccine programme is to increase immunity in those at higher risk from severe illness, hospitalisation and death in winter 2022/23. The JCVI’s assessment of eligibility considered that while the vaccines offer good protection against severe outcomes in vulnerable individuals, it provides relatively brief protection from non-severe symptomatic disease. Therefore, the JCVI advised that the following should be eligible for an autumn booster dose: all adults aged 50 years old and over; those aged five to 49 years old in a clinical risk group, including pregnant women; those aged five to 49 years old who are household contacts of people with immunosuppression; those aged 16 to 49 years old who are carers; residents in a care home for older adults and staff working in care homes for older adults; and frontline health and social care workers.
The JCVI's current advice is that only school staff, teachers and support staff at higher risk from severe COVID-19 illness in these eligible groups will be offered a COVID-19 booster vaccination, in addition to children aged five years old and over who are at clinical risk.
The details of the number of children, and how much the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office have spent in each of the last 10 financial years on the Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) policy are in the table below:
Academic Year | Total Spend | Total Number of Children |
2012/13 | £12,640,489.05 | 684 |
2013/14 | £14,651,331.96 | 637 |
2014/15 | £14,322,691.28 | 628 |
2015/16 | £13,440,797.70 | 616 |
2016/17 | £13,870,134.56 | 604 |
2017/18 | £13,531,420.70 | 518 |
2018/19 | £14,060,063.38 | 511 |
2019/20 | £14,916,298.06 | 525 |
2020/21 | £14,951,945.41 | 514 |
2021/22 | £14,410,903.45 | 531 |
*Figures may differ from previously published figures due to process changes/financial systems over the last 10 years
It is right that, as the economy rebounds, those best able to contribute share in the task of restoring the public finances to a sustainable footing.
That is why, at Budget, the Chancellor announced an increase in the Corporation Tax (CT) rate from 19 per cent to 25 per cent from 2023 onwards. This will, by definition, only apply to companies that are making profits, and profitable businesses have continued to pay CT throughout the pandemic.
The attached excel spreadsheet contains a table which details the schools which have received funding under Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) payments made by the Ministry of Defence, how much and for which financial year, for the last ten financial years.
The below table details the number of children supported and the amount spent on the Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) by the Ministry of Defence in the last ten financial years.
Financial Year | Number of Children | Number of Service Personnel | Total Spend |
2012-13 | 7,357 | 4,951 | £98.82 million |
2013-14 | 6,310 | 4,300 | £89.25 million |
2014-15 | 5,803 | 3,880 | £84.51 million |
2015-16 | 5,516 | 3,671 | £80.86 million |
2016-17 | 5,273 | 3,486 | £103.45 million |
2017-18 | 4,550 | 3,075 | £79.79 million |
2018-19 | 4,609 | 3,048 | £80.22 million |
2019-20 | 4,430 | 2,982 | £83.23 million |
2020-21 | 4,307 | 2,901 | £79.58 million |
2021-22 | 4,324 | 2,897 | £83.25 million |
The below table details the number of children supported and the amount spent on the Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) by the Ministry of Defence in the last ten financial years.
Financial Year | Number of Children | Number of Service Personnel | Total Spend |
2012-13 | 7,357 | 4,951 | £98.82 million |
2013-14 | 6,310 | 4,300 | £89.25 million |
2014-15 | 5,803 | 3,880 | £84.51 million |
2015-16 | 5,516 | 3,671 | £80.86 million |
2016-17 | 5,273 | 3,486 | £103.45 million |
2017-18 | 4,550 | 3,075 | £79.79 million |
2018-19 | 4,609 | 3,048 | £80.22 million |
2019-20 | 4,430 | 2,982 | £83.23 million |
2020-21 | 4,307 | 2,901 | £79.58 million |
2021-22 | 4,324 | 2,897 | £83.25 million |
Dr Byrom’s report makes a number of important recommendations which HMCTS is in the process of implementing. Because HMCTS’s response to the recommendations is integrated into the wider work on reviewing data use and management, spending is included in departmental and programme budgets. As such, it is not possible to disaggregate work on the recommendations from other work on data. In addition to spending from these departmental and programme budgets, HMCTS has allocated £4.92m of reform funding specifically to implementing our Data Strategy in 2020/2021.HMCTS budgets for future years have not yet been set.
ADR UK awarded MoJ a grant of £2.89m over three years for the data-linking programme Data First to facilitate and promote research in the area of justice. This work was commissioned for overall strategic aims of ADR UK and Data First and not specifically to address the recommendations from the Byrom report.
Nightingale courts provide much needed additional capacity for face-to-face hearings in a Covid-safe environment and contribute greatly for our response to the Covid-19 pandemic. As part of our recovery plans, we are working towards establishing a total of 60 additional court rooms through Nightingale courts by the end of March 2021.
When considering Nightingale courts, we assess where the need is greatest and look for suitable venues based on hearing capacity, whether building alterations are required, safety and security and length of hire. We consider the cost of provision, using public buildings where these are available and suitable, and each venue is assessed for value for money before final decisions are made.
Cases are listed in Nightingale courts in the same way as our permanent estate, and at similar utilisation rates.
We have now opened Nightingale courts at 21 locations bringing the total number of temporary court rooms set up nationwide to 40. These additional temporary courtrooms have allowed us to increase capacity, particularly for jury trials, in locations where there is an operational requirement and hold additional hearings within a safe environment.
A list of Nightingale parent courts and the number of days sat in each parent court is provided in the table below using the latest available validated data.
Table showing data on sitting days covering the period 1 January 2019 to 30 November 2020
Parent Court(s) | Associated Nightingale Court | Nightingale Court Open Date | Sitting Day1 Total in Parent Court Only before Nightingale Court (Jan 2019 - Nightingale Court Open Date) | Sitting Day 1Total in Parent Court Only after Nightingale Court (Nightingale Court Open Date - Nov 2020) |
Worthing Magistrates' and County Court | East Pallant House | 20/07/20 | 1743 | 421 |
Southwark Crown Court | Prospero House | 03/08/20 | 3540 | 628 |
Swansea Crown Court (St Helen's) | Swansea Civic Centre | 17/08/20 | 1308 | 214 |
Telford Justice Centre2 | Former County Court at Telford | 17/08/20 | 1967 | 315 |
Teesside Combined Court | Middlesbrough Town Hall | 18/08/20 | 5275 | 817 |
Blackpool County Court | Former Magistrates court Fleetwood | 24/08/20 | 1027 | 92 |
Blackpool Magistrates' Court | Former Magistrates court Fleetwood | 24/08/20 | 1748 | 253 |
East London Family Court | 102 Petty France | 24/08/20 | 3732 | 614 |
Leeds Combined Court | Cloth Hall Court | 28/08/20 | 8991 | 1130 |
Luton Crown Court | Knights' chamber and visitor centre Peterborough Cathedral | 28/08/20 | 1435 | 280 |
York County Court | York, Hilton hotel | 28/09/20 | 1736 | 195 |
Manchester Crown Court (Crown Square) | The Lowry theatre, Salford | 28/09/20 | 3927 | 357 |
Manchester Crown Court (Minshull street) | The Lowry theatre, Salford | 28/09/20 | 2691 | 235 |
Manchester tribunal3 | The Lowry theatre, Salford | 28/09/20 | 5299 | 443 |
Teesside Combined Court (Middlesbrough County Court) | Middlesbrough, Jury's Inn hotel | 28/09/20 | 5559 | 521 |
Chester Crown Court | Chester, Chester Town Hall | 19/10/20 | 1465 | 116 |
Bristol Crown Court | Bristol Law Society | 19/10/20 | 2881 | 145 |
Bristol Civil Justice Centre | Bristol Law Society | 19/10/20 | 5782 | 361 |
Queen Elizabeth II Law Courts | Liverpool, St Georges Hall | 26/10/20 | 8317 | 548 |
Winchester Combined Court | Winchester Guild Hall | 26.10.20 | 1975 | 124 |
1. If a courtroom has been used at all on a given day, we count that as 1 ‘day sat’
2. Includes Telford Justice Centre Annex
3. Manchester Tribunals: Includes Alexandra House – Manchester Tribunal and Piccadilly Exchange – Manchester Tribunal
Data and management information can change over time and are not subject to the same level of checks as official statistics. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale case management system and is the best data that is available.
Ensuring that we can operate safely during the Covid-19 pandemic is our top priority. We have put in place measures in our court rooms so that they can hold Covid-19 secure trials, moved to virtual hearings where possible and opened additional court rooms in Nightingale courts as part of a package to increase available capacity.
HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) are evaluating the use of remote hearings during the Covid-19 outbreak. This will include a large-scale survey of over 5000 public users, capturing their experiences of and attitudes to remote hearings. Survey findings will be supplemented by in-depth interviews with users on their experiences. HMCTS will publish the findings of the evaluation once it is complete and has been quality assured.
In addition, as part of HMCTS’s ongoing perceptions work, all users can complete a short feedback survey on how they found their remote hearing.
HMCTS are also continuing to develop the Video Hearings Service as part of Reform. The Video Hearings Service is being tested in a small number of courts, and HMCTS are conducting research with users on their experiences to inform development of the service.
HMCTS published a full response and progress update in October 2020 to Dr Byrom’s report Digital Justice: HMCTS data strategy and delivering access to justice. The response is attached and details HMCTS response and progress made to date on each of the 29 recommendations.
Delivery of HMCTS response is funded in part through existing budgets including the Reform programme, and in part through funding from Administrative Data Research UK.
HMCTS published a full response and progress update in October 2020 to Dr Byrom’s report Digital Justice: HMCTS data strategy and delivering access to justice. The response is attached and is also available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/hmcts-response-and-progress-update-on-dr-natalie-byrom-report and details HMCTS response and progress made to date on each of the 29 recommendations.
The response confirms timelines for the collection of protected characteristics data; for starting to share data with academic researchers and others as part of the Data First project, and for the development of our approach to open and shared data.
HMCTS has published an update on their response to Covid-19 in the criminal courts, Civil and Family Courts and Tribunals in England and Wales, please see attached.
This provides a comprehensive update on recovery plans and the work being undertaken to restore capacity. This includes installing plexiglass screens to make the estate COVID-secure, recruiting additional staff and establishing Nightingale courts.
The requested information is not held by HMCTS. Some possession claims do not progress because they have concluded by other means without the court being notified (for example because the Defendant has left the property or paid any arrears) and for this reason outstanding volumes cannot be calculated.
HM Courts and Tribunals Service publishes management information on workload and timeliness within the family courts on a monthly basis. This includes the number of outstanding cases which have been receipted but not yet disposed of at the end of each month.
The following table details the number of private family law (children) cases and public family law cases outstanding at the end of each month of this year. This presents the most current data at the time of responding.
Month | Private Family Law – outstanding cases | Public Family Law – outstanding cases |
January 2020 | 51,906 | 18,841 |
February 2020 | 53,844 | 19,367 |
March 2020 | 56,378 | 19,958 |
April 2020 | 58,819 | 19,626 |
May 2020 | 62,528 | 20,478 |
June 2020 | 66,271 | 21,156 |
July 2020 | 69,993 | 21,915 |
August 2020 | 73,126 | 22,390 |
September 2020 | 72,812 | 22,881 |
This information is extracted from HMCTS case management systems and as management information, it is not subject to the same quality assurance process as official statistics. The latest HMCTS management information report (October 2020) can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/hmcts-management-information-october-2020.
The information relating to outstanding private family law case excludes applications made under the Family Law Act 1996. This information is not published.
Information about the volume of outstanding divorce applications each month is not published. However, this HMCTS management information report does contain other data about the management of divorce applications.
As part of our recovery plans across all jurisdictions, Nightingale Courts have enabled us to open a great deal of additional court capacity.
All 18 of the existing Nightingale Courts operate regular court opening hours of 9-5pm, and this will apply also to the additional five Nightingale sites announced this week. Data on sitting days in each court is recorded under their parent court. It is therefore not possible to disaggregate the data with sufficient granularity to set out sitting hours in each Nightingale.
Crown Court trials which proceed on the planned date are recorded as effective. We do not record trials in the Crown Court under a category of completed.
Data showing effective trials in each month of 2020 in England and Wales, can been found in the table below.
Published data is up to September 2020 (the end of Q3) and we are unable to provide data past that point.
Year | Month | Number of effective trials1 |
|
2020 | January | 906 |
|
| February | 824 |
|
| March | 520 |
|
| April | - |
|
| May | 8 |
|
| June | 61 |
|
| July | 200 |
|
| August | 275 |
|
| September | 471 |
|
Notes:
1). The total number of trials listed during the reporting period indicated, is considered 'effective' once a jury is sworn in regardless of whether they go on to reach a verdict. Not all cases will go to trial, for the purposes of trial effectiveness we consider a ‘trial’ at the point of initial listing. A trial which goes ahead on the planned date and occurs is then considered as ‘effective’, a trial that is listed but does not go ahead is considered either cracked, ineffective or vacated.
The average number of days taken from charge to completion for crimes tried by jury in the Crown Court in England and Wales between the period of 2008 to 2019 has been provided in the table below.
The average waiting time between charge and completion for crimes tried by jury in the Crown Court in England and Wales in each month of 2020 is not available at this time. This is due to MoJ changing its data gathering, access and release practices due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
| Number of defendants whose cases have completed 5 | Charge to completion |
| |
| ||||
|
| |||
| Number | Mean | Median |
|
2010 Q2-Q4 | 72,916 | 204 | 174 |
|
2011 | 92,813 | 210 | 178 |
|
2012 | 82,214 | 212 | 179 |
|
2013 7 | 76,134 | 196 | 165 |
|
2014 | 76,531 | 206 | 174 |
|
2015 | 76,818 | 232 | 189 |
|
2016 | 69,563 | 234 | 186 |
|
2017 | 64,592 | 224 | 178 |
|
2018 | 64,852 | 239 | 188 |
|
2019 | 57,463 | 226 | 178 |
|
Notes:
1) Includes cases with an offence to completion time greater than 10 years but excludes a small number of cases with identified data quality issues and breaches. 2) Includes all for trial criminal cases (triable-either-way and indictable only cases) which have received a verdict and concluded in the specified time period in the Crown Court. This data also includes cases where the prosecutor has chosen not to continue with the prosecution. Not all cases included in this data will have gone to a full jury trial, for example where the defendant has pleaded guilty before their trial date.
3) Only one offence is counted for each defendant in the case. If there is more than one offence per defendant that completes on the same day, a set of validation rules applies to select one offence only and these relate to the longest duration, seriousness and the lowest sequence number of the offence.
4) Data from Q1 2018 to Q4 2019 are not comparable with previous periods and there is a requirement to break the series. The data from Q1 2018 onwards has been revised following the identification of defendant attrition through the timeliness process, as a result these defendants have been put back into the analysis. It is our intention to investigate the more efficient and effective way to provide robust and reliable back series in future.
5) The number of defendants shows the number whose cases have completed and where it has been possible to match from initial appearance at magistrates’ court to completion in the Crown Court. The match rate is typically between 90-95%, as for some cases, it is not possible to match defendants through the system and these cases are excluded.
6) Timeliness figures are only available from April 2010, so data for 2010 is presented above for Q2 to Q4 only.
7) Committal proceedings were abolished nationally on 28th May 2013. Triable-either-way cases are now sent rather than committed for trial.
The volume of outstanding cases in the criminal courts is published routinely. The latest available data for the number of cases outstanding (1) in the Crown Court of England and Wales, and (2) in the Magistrates’ courts, in each month of 2020 has been provided in the table below.
| Magistrates1-3 | Crown1,2 |
Month | Outstanding | Outstanding |
Jan-20 | 314,169 | 38,411 |
Feb-20 | 316,818 | 39,218 |
Mar-20 | 337,897 | 40,037 |
Apr-20 | 391,228 | 40,997 |
May-20 | 415,559 | 41,342 |
Jun-20 | 433,516 | 42,459 |
Jul-20 | 444,173 | 44,892 |
Aug-20 | 443,605 | 47,544 |
Sep-20 | 424,651 | 50,123 |
Oct-20 | 411,807 | 52,133 |
Notes:
1) The management information presented in this table reflects what is recorded on relevant case-management systems on the date of extraction. The case-management systems are continually updated and so the information presented will differ from previously published information.
2) The management information presented is different from the quarterly MOJ official statistics published due to timing and definitional reasons. The official statistics go through a more comprehensive quality assurance and analysis process to ensure quality and coherence.
3) Figures above include all case offence types. However, MOJ published statistics are filtered to include only the following offence types: Triable-either-way, Indictable Only, Summary Motoring, Summary Non-Motoring, Breaches.
The published number of outstanding single employment tribunal claims each month in 2020 are set out below:
Month | Outstanding claims |
Jan 2020 | 36,315 |
Feb 2020 | 35,653 |
Mar 2020 | 36,758 |
Apr 2020 | 39,241 |
May 2020 | 36,365 |
Jun 2020 | 42,786 |
Jul 2020 | 44,303 |
Aug 2020 | 45,130 |
Sep 2020 | 46,512 |
Recovering from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic is our top priority. By opening 18 Nightingale courts, we have added vital capacity and provided 33 extra court rooms, alleviating the pressure on courts and tribunals resulting from the pandemic. Additionally, we have secured £30m of funding to open a further 40 Nightingale court rooms in early 2021.
We do not break down data on cases heard in Nightingale Courts.