THE CROWN PROSECUTION SERVICE

Transcription

1 THE CROWN PROSECUTION SERVICE STRATEGY AND BUSINESS PLAN Enter

2 Managing performance A changing environment A new CPS vision & strategy for A priority programme of work Planning business activities Managing risk Next Contents

3 To navigate the document please click on any of the sections listed to the right or use the navigation bar at the bottom of the page. 04 Foreword by the Attorney General 06 Section I Introduction by the Director and the Chief Executive 08 Section II Working in a changing environment 16 Section III Developing a new CPS vision and strategy 2008 to Section IV Prioritising our programme of work 20 Section V Planning business activities 52 Section VI Managing performance 54 Section VII Managing risk 56 Annexes Next Print Close

4 4 FOREWORD BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is the largest national prosecuting authority in England and Wales. The Service has developed considerably over the past few years and is now recognised as a key part of the criminal justice system (CJS), and essential to the effective and efficient delivery of justice. The role of the prosecutor has been transformed so that priority is given to being a proactive prosecutor working with the police and other agencies to bring offences to justice. But the CPS is also very well placed to make a much greater contribution to the prevention of re-offending and making communities safer. I am especially pleased that this strategic plan highlights that work; and this is something on which I will be working with the DPP and others over the coming year. The CPS has also been, and will continue to be, at the forefront of championing efforts to support victims and witnesses. Through Witness Care Units and other initiatives the CPS will be meeting fully the Prosecutors' Pledge and focusing on the needs of particularly vulnerable victims and witnesses. Doing this will also encourage more people to come forward and engage with the criminal justice system. Foreword by the Attorney General

5 5 A key feature of the next year will be a concentration on improving performance in the core CPS work in the magistrates' courts. As part of that the CPS will continue to play its full part in rolling out Criminal Justice Speedy, Simple, Summary (CJSSS). This continues to be a success story for the criminal justice system and represents a strong partnership between the judiciary and other agencies. Baroness Scotland QC Attorney General

6 6 SECTION I INTRODUCTION BY THE DIRECTOR AND THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE This strategy and plan build on the significant progress that the CPS has achieved over the last four years. We have taken greater responsibility by presenting more of our own cases in court; our decisions to charge in all but minor cases have made the criminal justice system more effective; and our focus on victims and witnesses has helped increase their confidence and satisfaction. We have transformed our approach to and our performance on equality and diversity issues to become recognised leaders across government. All of these improvements have been made as part of the CPS's work to serve the public and make communities safer. But we realise that there is more to do. We need to extend the types of advocacy we undertake and improve the quality of our work in this area; we need to combine the robustness of our charging decisions with improvements that ensure we are efficient and support our police partners in tackling the crimes that have most effect on our communities; and we need to focus our efforts for victims and witnesses to maximise the quality of service they receive. To do this we have identified six key priorities for the CPS in the coming year: improving our delivery in the magistrates' courts; completing and embedding our Advocacy Strategy; improving our services to victims and witnesses; playing our part in achieving the Public Service Agreements (PSA) targets for the criminal justice system; restructuring our delivery model; and ensuring we lead, manage and engage effectively with our people, partners and the wider community. Our vision is ambitious and this programme of work is challenging. Success will only be achieved if our behaviours match our aspirations and our people are equipped to meet these challenges. We need to be visible and proactive, ensuring that we use our influence positively to inspire confidence in our partners and the public both through the service that we give and the things that we say. We need to demonstrate the value that we add to the justice system. We need to show that we are what we aspire to be the public's prosecution service. We are grateful for the direction, guidance and support of Baroness Scotland, the Attorney General and look forward to working with her and Vera Baird, the Solicitor General to address our priorities and contribute to the reduction of re-offending. Section I Introduction by the Director and the Chief Executive

7 7 In the recent Capability Review, conducted by the Prime Minister s Delivery Unit, the CPS was recognised as a well-led organisation, with many strengths, that has transformed its reputation over recent years. Much of this transformation was brought about in the period by the CPS being clear about its goals, planning effectively to achieve these and driving performance based on those plans. This document the strategy for , the detailed national business plan for 2008/09 and activities which will continue to support our programme of work beyond 2009 sets out the next stages in the CPS's journey to becoming a world class prosecution service. It gives a brief description of who we are and the strategies that identify some of the key business drivers for the CPS in the period from 2008 to It goes on to outline the CPS vision and strategy for this period, priorities for action in the next year and key business activities that will ensure the priorities are addressed. Finally, the plan outlines the emerging performance management framework that will be used to drive the achievement of the CPS's priorities and, through these, the outcomes that we seek for the public. Below is a diagram that illustrates how these elements of the vision, strategy and plan fit together: A changing environment CPS vision and strategy CPS business priorities Business activities Managing performance Managing risks Sir Ken Macdonald QC Director of Public Prosecutions Peter Lewis Chief Executive

8 8 SECTION II WORKING IN A CHANGING ENVIRONMENT Any successful strategy needs to take account of the key changes and business drivers in the external environment and its own internal capability and capacity to deal with these. The CPS vision and supporting strategy have been developed taking into account a number of internal and external business drivers and changes across the criminal justice system. A number of key central government reports and strategies combined with the new PSAs emerging from the government's Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) have influenced our vision, strategy and priority programme of work. These strategy documents, reviews, plans, and PSAs are further explained below after an overview of the criminal justice system. The Criminal Justice System (CJS) The purpose of the CJS is to deliver justice for all, by convicting and punishing the guilty and helping them to stop offending, while protecting the innocent. It is responsible for detecting crime and bringing offenders to justice; and carrying out the orders of court, such as collecting fines, and supervising community and custodial punishment. The CJS is one of the major public services in the country; it encompasses the work of the Police Service, the Crown Prosecution Service, Her Majesty's Court Service, the National Offender Management Service (comprising prisons and probation) and the Youth Justice Board. Within central government, three departments are jointly responsible for the criminal justice system and its agencies. They are: the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), the Home Office (HO), and the Attorney General s Office (AGO). Section II Working in a changing environment > The Criminal Justice System (CJS)

9 9 The Ministry of Justice The MoJ is responsible for criminal law and sentencing, for reducing re-offending and for prisons and probation. The MoJ also encompasses the responsibilities of the former Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA), overseeing magistrates' courts, the Crown Court, the Appeals Courts and the Legal Services Commission. The Home Office The Home Office is responsible for crime reduction, policing, security and counter-terrorism, borders and immigration, passports and identity. The Attorney General s Office The Attorney General and Solicitor General (the Law Officers) are the chief legal advisors to the government and are responsible for all Crown litigation. They have overall responsibility for the work of: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS); Treasury Solicitor s Department (TSol); Serious Fraud Office (SFO); Revenue and Customs Prosecution Office (RCPO); and Her Majesty's Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI). On 25 March the government published a White Paper entitled The Governance of Britain. This included the government's views on ways in which the role of the Attorney General should be reformed. The review has confirmed that the Attorney General will remain the superintending Minister for the CPS and other prosecuting departments; but that the relationship will be redefined. This will include the drawing up of a protocol which will set out how the Attorney on the one hand, and the prosecutors on the other hand, are to exercise their functions in relation to each other. The Attorney will remain responsible for setting the overall strategic direction for the prosecutors. The CPS will be working to ensure that its vision is consistent with that set by the Law Officers and that the work we do is consistent with the protocol referred to above. The Office for Criminal Justice Reform The government body responsible for coordinating the efforts of the Ministry of Justice, the Home Office and the Attorney General s Office is the Office for Criminal Justice Reform (OCJR). OCJR is a cross-departmental organisation, which means that it reports to ministers in all three government departments mentioned above. It drives forward improvements set out by the National Criminal Justice Board (NCJB), which is made up of ministers, senior civil servants and heads of service. The NCJB is chaired by the Home Secretary, the Secretary of State for Justice and the Attorney General. Locally, 42 Local Criminal Justice Boards (LCJBs) co-ordinate activity and share responsibility for delivering criminal justice in their area.

10 10 The Crown Prosecution Service The CPS, the largest organisation superintended by the Attorney General, was set up in 1986 as an independent authority to prosecute criminal cases investigated by the police in England and Wales. In undertaking this role, the CPS: Advises the police during the early stages of investigations; Determines the appropriate charges in all but minor cases; Keeps all cases under continuous review and decides which cases should be prosecuted; Prepares cases for prosecution in court and prosecutes the cases with in-house advocates or instructs agents and counsel to present cases; and Provides information and assistance to victims and prosecution witnesses. When reshaping our vision and strategy, consideration was given to a number of external and internal business drivers: key government strategies and plans, new PSA targets, the CPS Departmental Strategic Objective (DSO), CPS resources and the recommendations from the Capability Review. Key government strategies, reviews and plans Key documents were reviewed: Cutting Crime: A New Partnership , better known as the Crime Strategy, and Working Together to Cut Crime and Deliver Justice the CJS Strategic Plan for Also considered were: the findings of Sir Ronnie Flanagan's report into the future of policing; our ongoing commitment to the government's sustainable development strategy Securing the Future which sets out the government's plan for tackling sustainable development; and the Transformational Government strategy with the aim of designing our public services for the benefit of the citizen, taxpayers and frontline staff, and exploring the shared services culture. The Crime Strategy The government's Crime Strategy was published in July It presents the government's roadmap to achieve a more holistic view of tackling crime, from prevention through to rehabilitation working in partnership across government. The document sets out the main lessons learnt over the past ten years, and looks at how this knowledge can be carried forward into new areas, find new ways of working and innovative solutions. The strategy identifies a number of key areas to focus on over 2008 to 2011: A stronger focus on serious violence; Continued pressure on anti-social behaviour; Continuing to reduce re-offending where the government will continue to strengthen the capability of the police, the CPS and other prosecutors, and courts; and Work to simplify criminal justice system processes. The strategy also highlights the needs to make CJS performance management and targets more sophisticated allowing for greater flexibility to respond to local crime priorities and local accountability. Section II Working in a changing environment > Key government strategies, reviews and plans

11 11 The CJS Strategic Plan In November 2007, the Home Secretary, the Secretary of State for Justice and the Attorney General published a CJS Strategic Plan for : Working Together to Cut Crime and Deliver Justice. The plan sets out the challenges faced by the criminal justice system in the next three to five years: Whilst crime is falling, the public still believe it is rising; Whilst we have brought more offences to justice, most of the additional offences have been at the lower end of the scale and the public remain concerned about a perceived rise in serious crime; Whilst bringing offences to justice remains important, the CJS has to consider the best way of dealing with offences and offenders to prevent re-offending and make communities safer; To inspire the confidence of diverse communities, we have to ensure that CJS systems and processes are being applied fairly to all communities in England and Wales; More should be done to improve the quality of service to victims and witnesses and drive up their levels of satisfaction even further; In order to inspire confidence, the system has to work effectively and that a proportionate response needs to be made to each case (e.g. minor offences need to be dealt with quickly and effectively whereas the most serious offences need to be treated in a way that fully reflects the seriousness of their impact on society); and The funding increases of recent years have come to an end and the CJS as a whole will have to deliver its business more efficiently. The plan states that, by 2011, the CJS will work together to respond more effectively to crime and be more effective in bringing offences, especially serious offences, to justice and reducing re-offending. The public will be better informed and consulted about criminal justice so they can be confident that it is fair, effective and meets local needs. Further steps will be taken to ensure that people of all races are treated fairly by the system. Victims will be put at the heart of the CJS and they, and all other witnesses, will receive high standards of service. Processes supported by modern technology will be faster and simpler to make them more efficient; and the police will be in a position to focus even more of their time on tackling crime.

12 12 PSA targets The government's spending plans for the three years to 2010/11 incorporate 30 cross government Public Service Agreements (PSAs) setting out the key commitments to improve public services to be delivered over the period. Two PSAs (referred to as PSA 24 and PSA 23) are most directly relevant to the work of the CPS and the wider criminal justice system. PSAs will typically be delivered across several departments, and in this instance, the PSA targets set out in the 2007 Spending Review are jointly owned by the Home Office, the Ministry of Justice and the Attorney General s Office. PSA 24, also known as the Justice PSA, has the objective of delivering a more effective, transparent and responsive criminal justice system for victims and the public. It has five specific commitments, which are, to: Improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the CJS in bringing offences to justice; Improve public confidence in the fairness and effectiveness of the CJS; Improve victim and witness satisfaction with the CJS and the police; Provide consistent collection, analysis and use of good quality ethnicity data to identify and address race disproportionality in the CJS; and, Increase the recovery of criminal assets by recovering 250m of assets acquired through crime by 2009/10. The lead on PSA 24 is the Ministry of Justice. The Attorney General's Office and the Crown Prosecution Service will play a key part in its achievement. 'Make communities safer' (PSA 23) focuses on protecting the public from serious violent crime, reducing the level of serious acquisitive crime, tackling anti-social behaviour issues, and reduce re-offending. The lead on PSA 23 is the Home Office. In common with the Justice PSA, the Attorney General's Office and the Crown Prosecution Service will play a key part in its achievement. The CPS Departmental Strategic Objective As the new PSAs only cover the government's key cross-departmental priorities, a new concept of Departmental Strategic Objectives (DSOs) was introduced as part of the Spending Review process to ensure that all the department s other business was clearly set out and able to be used for performance management purposes. The CPS has one DSO for the period which is: To bring offenders to justice, improve services to victims and witnesses and promote confidence, by applying the Code for Crown Prosecutors, adopting a proportionate approach to determine which offenders should be charged and which should be diverted from court, and by firm and fair presentation of cases in court. The DSO translates into eight performance management indicators which, along with the public service outcomes and the priority programmes outlined in the next chapters, form the basis of the revised performance management framework for the CPS. This is described in Section VI of this document. Section II Working in a changing environment > PSA targets

13 13 The CPS Resources for 2008/9 The PSA targets for the CPS and the financial resources needed to deliver these were set as part of the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR07). In common with many departments the CPS has been set some challenging financial targets and the budget for the CPS will reduce in real terms over the three years of the CSR07 period by 3.5% per annum. Within this target, the costs of Headquarters and the Business Centres must reduce by 5% per annum in real terms. The government has recognised the increasing workload associated with counter-terrorism activity and has agreed to provide the CPS with additional funding of 8 million per annum to ensure that the department is properly resourced to make a full and effective contribution. The following table shows the net resources available to the CPS in 2008/09: CPS Resources 2007/ / SR2004 Baseline 631, ,870 Of which Administration Costs 57,400 56,000 Counter-terrorism funding 8,000 7,928 CSR07 revised baseline 639, ,798 The challenging nature of the CSR07 settlement means that the CPS has developed and agreed with HM Treasury an ambitious value for money delivery agreement that, if successfully delivered, will enable the department to maintain performance within a reducing budget. The chart below shows that in real terms the CPS budget will be worth 66 million per annum less in 2010/11 than in the baseline year of 2007/08. This represents the resource gap that must be closed through the implementation of more efficient ways of working across the department. CPS Resource vfm savings 706m 688m 66m 672m 46m 642m 640m 632m 2007/08 Baseline 2008/ / /11 The CPS Efficiency Delivery Plan which supports the CSR07 Value For Money (VFM) Delivery Agreement sets out how the department intends to deliver 66 million in savings, over the three year period from 2008/09 to 2010/11. The savings will be achieved by improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the prosecution process, expanding the CPS Advocacy Strategy programme, obtaining better value through procurement and supplier management strategies, and reforming the department's corporate services functions and optimising use of departmental assets. The target represents year on year savings of 3.5% in real terms. The key themes from the CPS VFM Delivery Agreement are focused on: Efficiency and proportionality in the preparation and presentation of cases through programmes such as CJSSS, simplified case file preparation and implementation of the Optimum Business Model (OBM) in all Areas; Administrative efficiency savings in HQ and Business Centres; Savings from more effective procurement; Maximising the efficiency benefits from joined up IT; and Increasing the rate of effective deployment of Higher Court Advocates (HCAs) and Designated Caseworkers (DCWs).

14 14 The CPS Capability Review The Capability Review Programme is part of the wider Civil Service reform agenda. It will lead to a Civil Service which is better at delivering to the public. The reviews provide an assessment of capability for departments, identify key areas for improvement, and set out key actions. Following the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit (PMDU) led Capability Review of the Service, the CPS has recognised that it has a number of key areas in which it needs to develop further if it is to deliver in the next three to five years. These are: Fostering pride in excellence Making sure that we aim for excellence in all we do and that we value the contributions of all our people to the business, particularly the delivery of the core business in the magistrates' courts. Clearly defining what a national service, locally delivered means for the CPS Articulating the roles of different parts of the organisation and how they work together to achieve our strategy, strengthening our partnership working and our financial capabilities. Developing the talent and capabilities of the CPS people Demonstrating a passion for development at all levels and professionalising our managers and leaders as well as our lawyers. Making performance management real for everyone Building on our progress with performance management systems and making performance management more effective at an individual level by rewarding good performance and tackling poor performance. Taken together, all of the strategic drivers described above, give a clear picture of the environment in which the CPS will work in the next three years and the major challenges we face. The following chapters describe how these challenges will be met. Articulating a single overarching strategy focused on Public Service Outcomes Ensuring that our strategy is expressed in terms of how we contribute to safer communities, the delivery of justice and that it allows us to set clear priorities for the CPS. Section II Working in a changing environment > The CPS Capability Review

15 15 Key strategic drivers: A new Crime Strategy; A new vision and plan for the CJS for the period , with an emphasis on partnership to respond more effectively to crime, bring more offences to justice and reduce re-offending with locally-led improvements supported nationally; A new spending review period, new PSAs and targets with a focus on efficiency and effectiveness of the CJS in bringing offences to the public; Diminishing resources; A strong focus on the recommendations arising from the Capability Review.

16 16 SECTION III DEVELOPING A NEW CPS VISION AND STRATEGY The CPS works on behalf of the public, playing a key role in ensuring that our communities are safer. To ensure that the CPS continues to move forward, the vision and strategy for the organisation were reviewed and refreshed, to take into account the drivers and issues described in Section II. Inspiring confidence in the communities we serve; Working in partnerships to serve the public; and Improving ourselves to improve the service we give. locally, nationally and internationally, and tackle local crime and disorder which impacts adversely on communities. We will ensure that we handle all our cases professionally and appropriately to deliver a consistent, tailored, high-quality service for all our cases. The CPS vision The CPS vision statement reflects the government's priorities for the criminal justice system, the Attorney General's vision for the Law Officers' Departments and our continuing ambition to improve our service to the highest level. The vision statement is as follows: The CPS is a prosecution service that is confident and independent, efficient and effective becoming truly world class. Everything that we do aims to deliver justice for all and to make our communities safer. The achievement of this vision is set out in a high-level strategy which is built around five strategic themes to reflect the organisation's greater focus on achieving the right results for communities and the wider public. These are: Working effectively and efficiently to bring offences to justice; Championing justice and the rights of victims and witnesses; Under each strategic theme, we set out a vision for 2011 as a broad measure of success. Each theme is underpinned by a number of key tasks that we will need to undertake to ensure we achieve our objectives. Working effectively and efficiently to bring offences to justice By 2011, we will bring a greater proportion of serious and priority offences to justice; more cases will succeed because our legal decision-making will improve; and more cases will succeed because we have excellent administrative support for our cases. We will be using conditional cautioning and other diversionary powers and tackling prolific and priority offenders and persistent young offenders to help prevent re-offending. We will do this by improving our magistrates' courts performance, handling cases from start to finish, and being proactive in managing cases. We will choose the right disposal to prevent re-offending, tackle the most serious crimes Championing justice and the rights of victims and witnesses By 2011, more victims and witnesses will attend court because we provide excellent support to them from the point of charge. The CPS will be meeting its obligations to victims and witnesses in line with its revised victim and witness strategy; victim and witness satisfaction with the service we provide as part of the CJS (as measured by Witness and Victim Experience Survey WAVES) will have increased. There will be a decrease in unsuccessful outcomes in cases involving violence against women. We will do this by supporting victims and witnesses through the development of an integrated victim and witness strategy. We will ensure that our prosecutors respect and stand up for the rights of victims. We will focus on the needs of women and children who are victims and witnesses, and enhance our service to families of victims of murder and manslaughter by helping to ensure that their voices are heard in court. Section III Developing a new CPS Vision and Strategy > The CPS vision

17 17 Inspiring confidence in the communities we serve By 2011, our communities will see us as an organisation which involves them constructively in key decisions on the prosecution business; the public will know more about what we do and be confident that we do it well. More hate crime prosecutions will be successful; 250 million of assets will have been taken from criminals; and there will be significantly reduced disproportionality based on identity or community membership in our decision-making. We will do so by being accountable to the public for our decisions. We will engage with communities, working alongside our criminal justice partners, and deliver community justice. We will improve performance on hate crimes, deprive criminals of the proceeds of crime by confiscating assets from criminals to show that crime does not pay. Working in partnerships to serve the public By 2011, our partners will acknowledge that we have improved our service to them and the public. We will do so by improving our partnerships developing our Prosecution Team relationship with the police and working more closely with the courts to deliver swift, effective, appropriate justice. We will also play a leading role on the National Criminal Justice Board (NCJB), the Local Criminal Justice Boards (LCJBs) and other national and local strategic partnerships including liaison with Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships (CDRPs) to ensure that we play our part in identifying and tackling local priorities. We will influence legislation and reform, helping to rebalance the CJS in favour of the law-abiding majority, and informing policy making with the practitioner's perspective. We will work to streamline our processes and join up criminal justice using IT and demonstrating our contribution to a more joined up, efficient and effective criminal justice system. Improving ourselves to improve the service we give By 2011, the best people will want to work for the CPS and we will be a provider of talent to Whitehall and beyond. The CPS will have improved its performance against the Cabinet Office Capability Model (which focuses on the most crucial areas of capability leadership, strategy and delivery) both in terms of ratings and relative to other government departments. Our people will show greater pride in public service. We will be improving our efficiency and effectiveness by critically reviewing what we do and how we do it. The CPS will have increased workforce diversity at all levels. We will do so by ensuring we have the capability to deliver now and in the future through improving the skills and behaviours of our leaders and managers. We will maximise the advantages of a new, flexible management structure. We will deliver and utilise the benefits from change. We will make the best use of resources by delivering our efficiency plans; we will continue to be an employer of choice. We will tackle inequality and value diversity; we will build our learning and skills by making professional development the norm for all our people. For the first time the CPS strategy has clear measures of success for each of the strategic themes. These measures have been used to develop a revised performance management framework for the organisation that will ensure we are focused on the outcomes that matter to the public. But there is a need for the CPS to be clear about which, out of all of these activities, needs to be tackled as a priority to ensure we move forward as quickly as we can and that we tackle the issues that will have most impact on our delivery to the public. These priorities are discussed in the next section (IV).

18 18 SECTION IV PRIORITISING OUR PROGRAMME OF WORK Section III gives a clear guide to the strategic themes we will seek to address over the period, the key areas of activity within these themes and the outcomes that the public can expect from us. We recognise that we cannot focus on all these areas of activity at the same time and to the same extent. They are also different in their overall impact. It is important, therefore, to identify what we will focus on initially and how we will ensure that the focus drives real performance improvement. The CPS priority programmes Taking into account all of the drivers identified in section II and the potential impacts of the many activities we could undertake, the CPS has identified six priority programmes for 2008/9 and beyond: Improve performance in the magistrates' courts; Complete and embed our Advocacy Strategy; Focus our support to victims and witnesses; Play our part in achieving the agreed PSA targets for ; Restructure our delivery model to improve performance, particularly on serious cases, and improve value for money; Ensure that we lead and manage well to get the best from all CPS people, and that we engage with them, partners and communities to improve our service. Whilst the first four are specific programmes aimed at changing what we do, the fifth and sixth are about changing the way in which we do things, making us more efficient as an organisation and changing our behaviours to ensure that we achieve all the other priorities, move towards a culture of continuous improvement and make the CPS world class. Section V describes the specific actions we will be taking under each of these programmes to drive the achievement of the outcomes we seek for the public, and move us towards achieving the CPS vision. Section IV Prioritising our programme of work > The CPS priority programmes

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20 20 SECTION V PLANNING BUSINESS ACTIVITIES FOR 2008 TO 2011 Business activities Project title Project description Expected outcomes High-level milestones Outcomes & milestones Outcomes & milestones Improve performance in magistrates courts The magistrates' courts are where the CPS deals with the vast majority of its cases. It is where the crimes that most directly affect communities are brought to justice. The CPS strives to be excellent in its magistrates' court work by having efficient systems and committed staff to deal with this crime in an effective and value for money way. As a priority we will be: Implementing the Optimum Business Model as the first stage of a continuous improvement programme for our core business in the magistrates' courts; Implementing CJSSS; Improving our work in the magistrates' courts by developing proportionate approaches to simple cases; and Rolling out and monitoring the benefits of conditional cautioning. The Optimum Business Model (OBM) Mike Kennedy The aim of the OBM project is to review and identify best practice to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of magistrates' courts processes OBM is a framework of tested structures, key roles and processes, together with a toolkit to support implementation The recommendations continue to evolve to ensure OBM remains current and to ensure that best practice is captured, adopted and incorporated into the model Drive operational efficiency improvements as part of a continuous improvement cycle across the CPS Areas Reduce the number of adjournments due to the CPS and the number of hearings Improve the timeliness of trial readiness Improve the timeliness of reviewing evidence and responding to actions Reduce file movement thereby reducing time spent looking for files Improve time taken to action correspondence By the end of September 2008 all Areas to have implemented OBM Areas to have formal sign-off following quality assurance by OBM Team Development of leaders and managers across the CPS to support a continuous improvement culture at all levels Review of success of initial OBM implementation Extension of OBM approach to other areas of CPS business Section V Planning business activities for 2008 to 2011 > Improve performance in magistrates courts

21 21 Business activities Project title Project description Expected outcomes High-level milestones Outcomes & milestones Outcomes & milestones Criminal Justice Speedy, Simple, Summary in the magistrates' courts (CJSSS-MC) Mike Kennedy CJSSS-MC is a cross-cjs project involving the police, the CPS, the Legal Services Commission (LSC), the Courts, and the Judiciary The aim of CJSSS is to make justice faster, more efficient and effective to improve the CJS for victims, witnesses and offenders as well as the public Dispose of a majority of guilty pleas at first hearing Dispose of a majority of contested cases in two/three hearings Majority of trials to take on average no more than six weeks from charge to disposal By April 2008 rollout fully completed across all 42 Areas By May 2008 conduct and evaluate post-implementation reviews Develop and implement performance monitoring / reporting framework The aim is for an increasing majority of guilty pleas to be dealt with at first hearing; contested cases disposed of in two/three hearings; and trials to be commenced within six weeks of first hearing CJSSS in the Youth Court (CJSSS-YC) Mike Kennedy CJSSS-YC is a cross-cjs project involving the police, the CPS, the Legal Services Commission (LSC), the Courts, the Youth Justice Board (YJB) and the Judiciary The aim of CJSSS is to make justice faster, more efficient and effective to improve the CJS for victims, witnesses and offenders as well as the public Dispose of a majority of guilty pleas at first hearing Dispose of a majority of contested cases in two/three hearings Majority of trials to take on average no more than six weeks from charge to disposal By March 2009 extend and complete rollout of CJSSS in the Youth Court across remaining 36 Areas The aim is to match CJSSS-MC performance by increasing the majority of guilty pleas to be dealt with at first hearing; contested cases disposed of in two/three hearings; and trials to be commenced within six weeks of first hearing

22 22 Business activities Project title Project description Expected outcomes High-level milestones Outcomes & milestones Outcomes & milestones Developing proportionate approaches to simple cases (known as Streamlined Process SP) Mike Kennedy The aim of SP is to support the overall delivery of CJSSS and to deliver a more proportionate prosecution preparation for anticipated guilty pleas and anticipated not guilty pleas, both suitable for disposal in the magistrates' court The SP introduces a much simpler file build procedure for first hearing Reduce police time for building and submitting files for simple anticipated guilty plea cases Reduction in Designated Caseworker/prosecutor preparation time for simple, anticipated guilty plea cases Dependent on the results of the preliminary evaluation of SP in the seven test Areas, planning for further implementation from April 2008 From September 2008 if evaluation is positive, agree rollout programme with police partners Complete agreed rollout programme and begin to capture benefits Plan for Post-Implementation Reviews (PIRs) Refine streamlined process in line with PIR findings and maximise benefits Conditional cautioning Mike Kennedy The aim is to divert cases away from the magistrates' courts through conditional cautioning: a decision made by the CPS prosecutor Continued increase in the number of conditional cautions issued, thus diverting cases away from the magistrates' courts Oversee changes to conditional cautioning brought about by the new codes of practice April-June 2008 ministerial approval sought for revised codes of practice for conditional cautioning (which have been subject to public consultation) November 2008 subject to ministerial approval, testing of punitive conditions (financial penalty) prior to further rollout Embed conditional cautioning as a CPS tool to contribute to speedier justice and prevention of re-offending Evaluate impact of conditional cautioning on magistrates' courts caseload and re-offending Undertake an equality impact assessment for conditional cautioning Section V Planning business activities for 2008 to 2011 > Improve performance in magistrates courts

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24 24 Business activities Project title Project description Expected outcomes High-level milestones Outcomes & milestones Outcomes & milestones In-house advocacy A visible prosecution service that takes real ownership of its cases is a fundamental part of a strong criminal justice system. The CPS's efforts to use its own in-house advocates to conduct more of its own cases in the Crown Court and the magistrates' courts and extend the use of Designated Caseworkers will benefit the public. A focus on improving quality will give us a firm basis for the future. As a priority we will continue to deliver and embed the Advocacy Strategy in the Crown Court and magistrates' courts. Advocacy Strategy Mike Kennedy The aim of the Advocacy Strategy is to transform the CPS into a Service that routinely conducts its own high quality advocacy in all courts, and across the full range of cases. This will have benefits both for the CPS, the wider criminal justice system, and the public. The strategy consists of three main workstrands: Increasing in-house coverage of magistrates' court hearings and summary trials (thereby reducing reliance on external agents) Increase national in-house coverage in the magistrates' court to 88.3% of available sessions will improve case progression through the courts and increase lawyers' experience of summary trial advocacy Increase national DCW deployment in the magistrates' court to 22.6% of available sessions. This will provide dedicated and proportionate magistrates' court advocacy on straightforward cases and release lawyers to focus on more complex matters Increased HCA deployment in the Crown Court will increase trial advocacy experience of the CPS lawyers and generate financial savings By May 2008 secure the extension of DCW statutory powers to expand their role, through the Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill, with Royal Assent (subject to successful passage through Parliament) By September 2008 rollout training for, and implementation of selected new DCW powers (subject to passage through Parliament) By December 2008 establish pathfinder areas to pilot DCW conduct of, summary trials (subject to passage through Parliament) Develop and introduce an Advocacy Quality Management Strategy to support continuing improvements in the standard of in-house advocacy Complete and evaluate DCW summary trials pathfinders Further increase HCA deployment in the Crown Court, particularly in volume trials of up to five days, and beyond Further increase DCW deployment and in-house magistrates' court coverage in all Areas Carry out a follow up report based on the 2007 Equality Impact Assessment (EIA) and its recommendations Complete national rollout of DCW summary trials powers Further increase HCA deployment in the Crown Court, particularly in complex trials of up to 10 days and beyond, and in high cost cases, either as sole advocate or as junior Further increase DCW deployment and in-house magistrates' courts coverage, so that all CPS Areas deal with 90% of available magistrates' courts sessions in-house March 2011 programme close Section V Planning business activities for 2008 to 2011 > In-house advocacy

25 25 Business activities Project title Project description Expected outcomes High-level milestones Outcomes & milestones Outcomes & milestones Advocacy Strategy (continued) Mike Kennedy Increasing the proportion of those magistrates' court sessions dealt with by DCWs, releasing lawyer capacity and Increasing and developing HCA deployment in the Crown Court Increased experience of trial advocacy in the magistrates' courts and Crown Court improves lawyer performance across the board, including charging and effective case building or preparation, and results in an improved service to victims, witnesses and the public Develop and introduce a system for supporting appropriate inhouse applicants for appointment as Queen s Counsel

26 26 Business activities Project title Project description Expected outcomes High-level milestones Outcomes & milestones Outcomes & milestones Victim and witness care Those in society most directly affected by crime are the victims. Perpetrators cannot be brought to justice unless witnesses are willing to play their part in the criminal justice process. The CPS has come a long way in ensuring that the needs of victims and witnesses are taken into account within the criminal justice process. Now we need to ensure that our efforts are co-ordinated and targeted to deliver excellence in all that we do for victims and witnesses. As a priority we will be: Developing an integrated victim and witness strategy, improving our Witness Care Units and meeting our Victims' Code obligations; Improving our performance in dealing with violence against women. Implement the Victim and Witness Strategy Mike Kennedy The Victim and Witness Strategy provides for the first time a unified strategy to support delivery of the CPS vision to champion justice and the rights of victims and witnesses A strengthened prosecution process by securing the attendance of victims and witnesses who are able to give their best evidence, and to make a significant improvement in our standards of victim and witness care which contribute to the relevant public service outcomes included in the Justice PSA Improve Direct Communication with Victims (DCV) and No Witness No Justice (NWNJ) performance Improve HMCPSI Overall Performance Assessments (OPA) in relation to services to victims and witnesses Improve the level of assurance on delivery of victim and witness care commitments in Annual Certificate of Assurance By June 2008 official launch of Victim and Witness Strategy at the senior managers conference Communications strategy to support delivery of the CPS victim and witness care commitments produced By July 2008 review impact of DCV Action Plan and assess requirement for further action By March 2009 undertake thematic reviews designed to improve delivery of NWNJ Minimum Requirements Develop an effective mechanism for the identification and sharing of victim and witness care best practice advice From April 2009 set Area Performance Review targets for improvement in victim and witness satisfaction using WAVES data By October 2009 review all written guidance to support delivery of victim and witness care commitments By June 2009 review the standard of recording of victim and witness details on CMS and WMS and assess requirement for further remedial action By July 2009 post-implementation review of the pre-trial interviews with witnesses scheme By March 2010 multi-disciplinary review of resources dedicated to victim and witness care By September 2010 scoping exercise for future policy development and operational support required to inform the Victim and Witness Strategy By December 2010 review of monitoring arrangements to ensure compliance with victim and witness care commitments By March 2011 review and evaluation of key victim and witness care policies Programme of thematic reviews to support improved victim and witness care performance throughout the year Section V Planning business activities for 2008 to 2011 > Victim and witness care

27 27 Business activities Project title Project description Expected outcomes High-level milestones Outcomes & milestones Outcomes & milestones Implement the Victim and Witness Strategy (continued) Mike Kennedy By March 2009 develop an effective mechanism for the evaluation of services to victims and witnesses which will seek to obtain views beyond the WAVES survey to provide comprehensive feedback from victims and witnesses Publish a comprehensive public policy statement on the CPS victim and witness care Review how information is made available to the public in relation to victim and witness care with a view to making such information more easily accessible Victim and witnesses with mental health issues and/or learning disabilities/ disorders (part of the V and W Strategy) Roger Daw The aim is to improve the management and outcomes of cases involving victims and witnesses with mental health issues and/or learning disabilities/disorders Ensure early identification of this category of witness Ensure the identification of appropriate special measures Improve support for this category of victims and witnesses By June 2008 identify existing best practice within the CPS By March 2009 publish guidance and public policy statement in relation to victims and witnesses with a mental disorder / learning disabilities Develop disability awareness and related mental health/learning disorder training for relevant CPS staff Engage with Her Majesty s Court Service (HMCS) to ensure that court case management (listing practices, appropriate support) complements pre-court support Appropriate guidance, monitoring and performance management systems will be in place Improve satisfaction of this category of victim/witness in relation to case outcome and access to support

28 28 Business activities Project title Project description Expected outcomes High-level milestones Outcomes & milestones Outcomes & milestones Violence against women (VAW) Strategy s Séamus Taylor Roger Daw The aim of the strategy is to secure the co-ordination and improved prosecution response to a range of crimes that fall under the umbrella of VAW, these include domestic violence (DV), rape, sexual offences, honour crimes, prostitution and trafficking Improve prosecutions of VAW crimes (VAW unsuccessful outcomes reducing to overall: 29%, DV: 28%, rape: 41% and other sexual offences: 28%) Improve support for victims Improve our understanding of the equality and diversity issues within VAW crimes and address any disproportionality By June 2008 implement VAW indicator and targets for DV, rape and sexual offences and evaluate performance data quarterly Complete DV training for prosecutors, caseworkers, and DCWs Put in place further 36 Specialist DV Courts with support for victims Publish report on so-called honour crimes and forced marriage pilot Publish VAW report Finalise VAW guidance to inform prosecutors of the links between existing policies/guidance to include a review of the trafficking and prostitution policy and guidance Expand VAW indicator to take on further VAW strands Publish VAW performance report of 2008/09 data Start of new Area VAW co-ordinator and specialist prosecutor roles/structure VAW co-ordinator seminars bi-annually Measurement of stakeholder views Work with HR to address any VAW issues in staff policies and practice By 2010 VAW indicator to cover performance monitoring of DV, rape, sexual offences, forced marriage, so-called honour crimes, child abuse, crimes against older persons, prostitution and trafficking Publish VAW Performance Report of data Measure victim's satisfaction, safety and access to support By March 2009 develop methods to measure views of stakeholders Section V Planning business activities for 2008 to 2011 > Victim and witness care