Telford magistrates Court will not be downgraded, officials insist
The final magistrates court in Shropshire will not be downgraded the courts service has insisted – despite remand cases being moved out of the county.
Remand cases currently heard at Telford Magistrates Court will take place in Kidderminster from April 1.
Some solicitors and court staff have raised fears that the move is the first step towards complete closure of the court.
Stephen Scully from Lanyon Bowdler Solicitors said lawyers had also been concerned that the court could be cut back to only running on two days a week from next month.
The solicitor also raised fears over the long-term future of the court.
He said: "All other work in West Mercia will go to Kidderminster, which means that a person from Shropshire who hasn’t got a solicitor may find they are represented by a firm in South Worcester and vice versa.
"Now remands have gone, it is our view Telford will be closed within a year because it just won’t be cost effective to keep open."
Concerns
But the Ministry of Justice has today promised there are no plans to move more cases out of the area.
A spokeswoman for the Courts and Tribunals Service said: "There are no plans to change its usual practices. The court absolutely will not be going down to two sittings."
It comes after a meeting between Shropshire solicitors last month, when concerns were raised that moving cases to Worcestershire would cause difficulties for defendants, witnesses and families, particularly from Telford and north Shropshire.
The decision to move all remand cases to Kidderminster on a six-month trial basis was announced after a consultation last year.
At last month's meeting, the solicitors voiced fears that they would be moved to Worcester after that time.
John McMillan from WLB Law said: "We believe the plan is that it will all go to Worcester eventually. We think it’s a con and don’t think it was a genuine consultation."
This has also been denied.
The Ministry of Justice spokeswoman added: "That is completely incorrect. The idea behind moving remand cases was to streamline the process and make it a bit quicker. That was seen as a positive thing."
