Delays in the criminal justice system are “probably worse than I’ve ever known them to be”, the country’s top prosecutor said as he vowed better support for victims.
Director of Public Prosecutions Stephen Parkinson said his “highest priority” since taking on the role is to “reduce delay in the criminal justice system”, with improving the experience of victims next on his list.
Setting out a plan on Thursday to curb the “high level” of victim attrition, where they withdraw support for prosecutions, he said there was “absolutely no doubt” that the delays faced by victims are “totally unacceptable”.
So I feel this quite strongly that we need to do better ... to provide better support for victims
Victims are facing waits of between two and five years to see a case go to trial, and Mr Parkinson told MPs earlier in the week that staff had heard of court listings now running into 2027.
The former defence lawyer, who has been at the helm of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) for a year, told reporters the work was “particularly important” amid the delays, adding: “They are as bad as, probably worse than I’ve ever known them to be.”
“One of the consequences of that is that victims are withdrawing support, they’re not staying with us,” he said, calling it a “key reason” behind launching the programme.
Some 20% of adult rape cases, where there had been a charge, stopped between March and May this year because the victim no longer supported a prosecution – around two out of 10 cases.
Mr Parkinson said the CPS had “more than doubled” the number of prosecutions being brought in rape and serious sexual offence cases since 2020, with a “significant improvement” in the charge rate rising from 59% to 75% in the first quarter of this financial year.
But by contrast, during the same latest period, “62 prosecutions were stopped because the victim no longer supported prosecution – that’s actually five times more than the quarterly average in 2020 so the problem of victim attrition is growing alongside the fact that we’re actually doing better in terms of the number of prosecutions we’re bringing and our charge rate”, he added.
Mr Parkinson told reporters it could take roughly 700 days on average – almost two years – from the point of an allegation being reported to police for rape victims to see their case concluded.
Spending thousands of hours sitting with people “caught up” in the criminal justice system over his 20-year legal career helped him understand this can be “extremely stressful”, Mr Parkinson said.
The “reality” for many people is they “just simply cannot get on with their lives while the situation is unresolved”, said Mr Parkinson.
He added: “So I feel this quite strongly that we need to do better in the criminal justice system as a whole, and obviously within the Crown Prosecution Service, to provide better support for victims.”
This is just the beginning. We're going to evaluate if this works
Mr Parkinson’s comments follow his warnings to the Commons Justice Committee on Tuesday that suspected criminals could be “taking advantage” of the courts backlog in the hope trials could run into problems amid delays, adding that prosecutors were seeing a “very significant rise” in caseload which is 85% higher than it was prior to the coronavirus pandemic.
Workload is expected to grow by around 10% next year, he said.
Research carried out three years ago on the experience of victim encounters with the CPS suggested there was a “lack of understanding” of the role of prosecutors, a wish for better communication and “more cohesion” in the support offered within the justice system, according to Mr Parkinson.
He said the CPS valued its “independence” but this had “sometimes been at the cost of doing what we should be doing, which is to engage with victims”.
A culture within the body of being shy to speak to victims was also described and, at times, has even been considered a faceless organisation.
The changes announced focus on improving how prosecutors communicate, so they can provide clear information and be more empathetic.
At the same time prosecutors are being urged to speak directly to police in a bid to speed up case progression.
Improving the wording and format of letters is one example of reforms so they no longer mention the defendant’s name within the first few lines. Officials told how some victims found this distressing and at points had been the first time they were learning the identity of their attacker.
There is also a trial taking place on increasing the level of communication with victims. Previously contact was only made when charges were being altered or dropped, and when victims were met at court.
The pilot is testing contacting victims when a decision to charge has been made, in writing or by phone, to discuss the move and answer any questions.
Meanwhile 40 victim liaison officers (VLOs) have been hired around the country to act as a single point of contact with the CPS for victims of rape and serious sexual offences, who they can approach from the moment a charging decision is made.
While not legally trained, but requiring an understanding and awareness of the law and good communication skills, the VLOs can advise where victims can get support and offer to arrange pre-trial meetings with prosecutors.
The project is in its “early days” but so far 550 people have been offered meetings and 28 have taken place so far, mostly online.
Victims can choose where the meetings are held and whether these are in person or online.
Some 550 staff who specialise in such cases have been trained in how to have “sensitive conversations” and to combat “myths and misconceptions” such as about consent.
Mr Parkinson said the CPS had been “thinking about this for some time” but officials accepted they could have acted sooner.
The move comes after families of Nottingham attacker Valdo Calocane’s victims were critical of their interactions with the CPS.
Asked by the PA news agency if the plan will avoid a repeat of this, Mr Parkinson said: “I’m as confident as I can be.”
While he said prosecutors met with the relatives on a number of occasions, he admitted: “We used the wrong language. We’ve changed our guidance to prosecutors and so I hope we have learned from that.”
He added: “This is just the beginning. We’re going to evaluate if this works.
“I’m fairly confident that it will work in terms of improving the confidence of our victims, we’re going to get feedback from them.
“So hopefully it will improve confidence, but also hopefully it will also reduce victim attrition.”
