Criminal court statistics (quarterly): July to September 2015
The latest statistics on type and volume of cases received and processed through the criminal court system of England and Wales in the third quarter of 2015 (July to September).
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These statistics focus on key trends in case volume and progression through the criminal court system in England and Wales. There is also information concerning the enforcement of financial penalties in England and Wales.
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At magistrates’ courts, the number of disposals at Q3 2015 continues to remain higher than receipts. Outstanding cases have continued to decrease since Q1 2015.
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Following a steady increase in the number of outstanding cases in the Crown Court from Q1 2013, there has been a decrease since Q4 2014. This reflects that Crown Court receipts have been declining, with a decrease of 9% from the same quarter in the previous year, whilst the number of disposals continues to remain higher than receipts.
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For cases committed to Crown Court, the overall number of days from first listing to completion increased from 164 to 204 days between Q3 2013 and Q2 2015, although there has been a small decrease to 195 days in Q3 2015.
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Across a two-year period, average waiting times for triable-either-way cases and indictable only cases have increased by 6.6 weeks and 4.9 weeks respectively. Waiting times have remained fairly steady in non-trial cases.
Pre-release
In addition to MOJ professional and production staff, pre-release access to the quarterly statistics of up to 24 hours is granted to the following postholders:
MOJ:
Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, Minister of State (Policing, Crime, Criminal Justice and Victims), Minister for State (Justice and Civil Liberties), Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (HMCTS, Tribunals, Judicial Policy, Coroners), Lord Chief Justice, Permanent Secretary, Director General of Finance and Public Services, Director General of Criminal Justice, Director Sentencing and Rehabilitation, Policy Advisor (Victim and Criminal Proceedings), Policy Advisor (Criminal Procedure), Policy Advisor to the Secretary of State, Head of Analytical Services Directorate, Chief Statistician, Attorney Generals Office, Press Office and relevant special advisers.
Her Majesty’s Court and Tribunals Service:
Chief Executive, Director of Crime, Director Finance, Head of Crown Court Improvement Branch, Head of Criminal Enforcement, Head of Performance, Analysis & Reporting, Deputy Director of Legal Services, Cross Jurisdictional Director of the Court Service, Data Collection, Performance and Reporting Manager, Head of Communications, and Performance Information Manager.