CIRENCESTER Courthouse will remain open for another year amid efforts to cut case backlogs.

The Ministry of Justice announced this week that the courthouse in North Way, Cirencester will continue to hear criminal and civil cases until March next year.

The courthouse was one of several Nightingale courts which were set up during the coronavirus pandemic to tackle the increasing backlog of court cases across the country.

Other temporary courts in Birmingham, Blackpool, Chichester, West Sussex, Gloucestershire, Croydon, London, Swansea and Telford in Shropshire, will also remain open for another year. 

However, extra courts in Maidstone, Kent, and Wolverhampton, in the West Midlands, will close at the end of March because The Ministry of Justice believes they are no longer needed.

Nick Emmerson, president of the Law Society of England and Wales, said extra resources to tackle backlogs causing 'unacceptable delays' for victims were welcome but warned: “Additional physical capacity alone is not the solution.

"We know there are already nightingale courts sitting empty due to a lack of judges.

“The most pressing issue is there are not enough lawyers, court staff or judges to cover all the outstanding cases.

"Long-term investment is needed across the whole criminal justice system to remedy this.

“If no immediate action is taken, courts will be even less able to cope, with potentially damaging consequences for society.

“A significant injection of funding is urgently needed to prevent this collapse.”

Justice minister Mike Freer said: “People who break the law must face justice and ensuring these 20 extra courtrooms remain open in 2024 will do just that.

“Crown courts are already dealing with the highest number of cases than at any point since 2019.

"We want to keep making progress and deliver swifter access to justice.”