Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what (a) cost-benefit analysis, (b) organisational risk assessment, and (c) equality impact assessment for users has been made in relation to the Common Platform.

A full cost benefit analysis of Common Platform was undertaken as a component part of the wider portfolio of investment in courts’ transformation. This analysis fully conformed to the Treasury’s “Green Book” - which provides detailed guidance in Chapter 6. Treasury guidance was followed and the portfolio level cost benefit analysis was subject to scrutiny and validation by the Government Major Projects Portfolio in February 2021 and approved, having met the required standard of a robust assessment of the costs and benefits.

HMCTS have undertaken a number of assessments for the Common Platform case management system. These were undertaken in 2020 and are currently being reviewed.

The health, safety and wellbeing of all HMCTS colleagues is taken extremely seriously. For our Common Platform programme, we have assessed risk throughout, and continue to keep it under review. At an organisational level, that assessment has been documented through a Change Impact Assessment, Public Sector Equality Analysis and a Workforce Equality Analysis, which remain under regular review. At a local/site level, risk assessments for particular areas of risk are documented using standard organisational templates where required. This meets the obligations we hold and satisfies us that risks are suitably and sufficiently managed.