Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many judges attended training in relation to working on cases which involve domestic abuse in the most recent period for which figures are available; and whether that training was (a) delivered by specialist domestic abuse organisations and (b) evaluated for its effect on those who undertook that training.

To preserve the independence of the judiciary, the Lord Chief Justice (LCJ), the Senior President of the Tribunals, and the Chief Coroner have statutory responsibility for judicial training, under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007, and Coroners and Justice Act 2009 respectively. These responsibilities are exercised through the Judicial College. The judiciary and professional staff in the Judicial College are responsible for the design, content, and delivery of judicial training.

Judicial training in domestic abuse is included in family law and criminal courses run by the Judicial College. It is prioritised for induction and continuation training for judges. All judges must complete their induction training before they can hear such cases. During the 2020/21 training year all judges newly appointed to sit in crime and family received this training. The training is undertaken by judges of all levels, and speakers and tutors range from district judges to judges from the Court of Appeal and the training always includes lectures from academics and experts in psychiatry, psychology and other professions and agencies working to address domestic abuse.

The training reflects the wide nature of domestic abuse and covers all areas recognised by the Government as abuse, ranging from serious sexual and other assaults, emotional abuse, coercive and controlling behaviour, including financial coercion and control. Training is kept under constant review and is regularly updated to reflect latest developments.