PR 2024 149 Provision of Crown Advocacy Diaries

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is responsible for prosecuting cases heard in the criminal courts in England and Wales. The CPS is divided into 14 Areas, each responsible for cases within their local court circuits. Along with four central divisions accountable for the most serious and specialist crimes.

CPS Advocates have rights of audience in both the Magistrates' and Crown Courts and are allocated cases to review and present in these courts. They are supported by Solicitor Agents and Barristers.

The Crown Advocate Diary (CAD) is a diary system used by Advocacy Clerks to manage allocation of cases being heard in the Crown Court to CPS Crown Advocates. The CAD holds details of Crown Advocate specialisms, level and availability, including court and non-court appointments and working patterns.

The Advocacy Clerk obtains a list of cases and hearings for those cases, search for Crown Advocate availability, allocate a Crown Advocate and enter these details in both the CPS Case Management System (CMS) and the CAD. Crown Advocates are notified of new allocations, schedule preparation and confirm their availability. The day before the hearing, the Advocacy Clerk obtains a court list from the Crown Court and will confirm the cases/hearings and court with the Crown Advocate. In some courts multiple cases are allocated to the same Advocate covering a specific Pre-Trial Preparation Hearing (PTPH) court.

The current CAD was built internally but is outdated and no longer fit for purpose as it cannot support a proposed increase in Crown Advocates or changes to the business process. The CPS are looking to replace the existing CAD with an off the shelf, product that meets our key requirements and can be available within short timescales.