Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to provide support to young victims affected by backlogs in the youth courts.

The Ministry of Justice is committed to ensuring young victims of crime receive the support they need during this challenging time.

That is why throughout the pandemic, we have worked closely with criminal justice agencies and victim and witness support services, to ensure victims are kept well informed through regular communications and guidance. We are also working across government and with key stakeholders through our Covid-19 Victim and Witness Silver Command Group, which allows us to monitor and respond to emerging risks and issues, such as those impacting young victims at court.

The Government has also funded Barnardo’s See Hear Respond service, offering rapid support for children, young people and families, to help them cope with the Covid-19 crisis.

Alongside this, the Court-Based Witness Service continues to provide emotional and practical support to all witnesses, including children, to help them give their best evidence in criminal proceedings, with young, vulnerable and intimidated witnesses eligible for further outreach support prior to attending court. This will often include home visits, or remote meetings during Covid-19.

In consultation with Public Health England, and Public Health Wales, HMCTS has put in place arrangements for social distancing and mitigation of the risks associated with the pandemic. These arrangements have, since July, enabled Youth Courts to conclude more cases every week than have been received, with the safety of all those involved in these hearings being paramount. We do not currently envisage that it will be necessary to revert to any contingency listing arrangements during a second wave of covid-19.