The Magistrates’ Association has warned that a lack of accessible, useable justice data in England and Wales is undermining public confidence in justice and causing policy decisions to be made without full evidence.
In its new report ‘Open Data in the Justice System’, the Magistrates’ Association has urged government and justice agencies to shift towards a more open, joined-up approach, where data is easier to find, access and use, information can be linked across the whole system, and publication and access are the default, not the exception. Such an approach would strengthen evidence-based policymaking, but also improve transparency and public trust.
David Ford, National Chair of the Magistrates’ Association, said:
“England and Wales already generate and publish large volumes of justice data, leading Europe in openness. But this data is siloed and difficult to access for both the general public and policymakers who need it to make evidence-based decisions.”
Government and non-government agencies and departments that collect justice data include: the Ministry of Justice (quarterly statistics on case backlogs and the operation of the courts); the Home Office (official statistics for crime and policing; the Office for National Statistics (datasets on crime types, demographics, and public attitudes); the Crown Prosecution Service (quarterly operational management information); HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) (they collect and provide data on court operations, case volumes, outcomes, etc); HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS); the Legal Aid Agency; the Sentencing Council; plus local authorities, devolved governments, even NHS England and a range of Third Sector and research organisations.
The report uses the example of a 2023 report from the Domestic Abuse Commissioner, on domestic abuse and how it’s handled in the Family Court, which was forced to rely on roundtables, a correspondence review, a survey of legal practitioners, and even two-year old surveys produced by Channel 4’s Dispatches programme to form its recommendations. If justice data had been more easily accessible and joined-up, the report argues, the Commissioner might have been able to used more relevant and reliable data.
David continued: “Our report sets out a clear vision for a more open, joined-up approach to justice data, where publication and access are the default, and not than the exception. By making data easier to find, link and use across the justice system, we can strengthen evidence-based policymaking, improve transparency and accountability, make better use of public money, and ultimately build greater public confidence in the justice system.”
The Magistrates’ Association has made eight recommendations towards ensuring a more open approach:
- Data creators and publishers to adopt an open data approach to the collection, production and publication of data relating to the justice system in England and Wales.
- The Transparency and Open Justice Board to include openness of data in its key objectives.
- Parliament to create a presumption of publication for justice system data
- Parliament to create a presumption of access for justice system data
- The MoJ and Senior Judiciary to promote a joined-up approach to the collection and production of data across the justice system
- Data publishers to improve data discoverability
- The MoJ to continue to promote the use of linked data across the justice system
- The MoJ to create an independent inspector to conduct and publish an annual review of data practices within the justice system to promote recommendations 1-7.
