Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has had recent discussions with the Coroners Courts Support Service on taking steps to improve the (a) practical and (b) emotional support provided to (i) families and (ii) other witnesses attending the Coroners’ Courts.
Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Government is grateful for the important and valuable work that the Coroners Courts Support Service (CCSS) does in providing practical and emotional support for bereaved families in many coroner areas across England and Wales. This work is key to the Government’s objective of ensuring that the bereaved are placed at the heart of the inquest process.
We are keen to see support services in every coroner’s court in England and Wales, subject to affordability. Following the Justice Committee’s recommendation in the 2021 report on its Inquiry into the Coroner Service, the Ministry of Justice is taking forward an engagement plan, including with the CCSS, to better understand the support services currently available in coroners’ courts in England and Wales, and what is needed going forward. We aim to complete this assessment in as soon as practicable.
We are also undertaking a factual update of our Guide to Coroner Services for Bereaved People, which will be followed by a more fundamental review to take account of forthcoming changes which will impact on coroner services, including implementation of the statutory Medical Examiner scheme and the Independent Public Advocate. The review will also look at ways of improving the accessibility of the Guide, so that bereaved people are better able to engage with it at what is inevitably a very difficult time in their lives.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the (a) practical and (b) emotional support provided to (i) families and (ii) other witnesses attending the Coroners’ Courts.
Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Government is grateful for the important and valuable work that the Coroners Courts Support Service (CCSS) does in providing practical and emotional support for bereaved families in many coroner areas across England and Wales. This work is key to the Government’s objective of ensuring that the bereaved are placed at the heart of the inquest process.
We are keen to see support services in every coroner’s court in England and Wales, subject to affordability. Following the Justice Committee’s recommendation in the 2021 report on its Inquiry into the Coroner Service, the Ministry of Justice is taking forward an engagement plan, including with the CCSS, to better understand the support services currently available in coroners’ courts in England and Wales, and what is needed going forward. We aim to complete this assessment in as soon as practicable.
We are also undertaking a factual update of our Guide to Coroner Services for Bereaved People, which will be followed by a more fundamental review to take account of forthcoming changes which will impact on coroner services, including implementation of the statutory Medical Examiner scheme and the Independent Public Advocate. The review will also look at ways of improving the accessibility of the Guide, so that bereaved people are better able to engage with it at what is inevitably a very difficult time in their lives.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent steps his Department has taken to improve the (a) practical and (b) emotional support provided to (i) families and (ii) other witnesses attending the Coroners’ Courts.
Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Government is grateful for the important and valuable work that the Coroners Courts Support Service (CCSS) does in providing practical and emotional support for bereaved families in many coroner areas across England and Wales. This work is key to the Government’s objective of ensuring that the bereaved are placed at the heart of the inquest process.
We are keen to see support services in every coroner’s court in England and Wales, subject to affordability. Following the Justice Committee’s recommendation in the 2021 report on its Inquiry into the Coroner Service, the Ministry of Justice is taking forward an engagement plan, including with the CCSS, to better understand the support services currently available in coroners’ courts in England and Wales, and what is needed going forward. We aim to complete this assessment in as soon as practicable.
We are also undertaking a factual update of our Guide to Coroner Services for Bereaved People, which will be followed by a more fundamental review to take account of forthcoming changes which will impact on coroner services, including implementation of the statutory Medical Examiner scheme and the Independent Public Advocate. The review will also look at ways of improving the accessibility of the Guide, so that bereaved people are better able to engage with it at what is inevitably a very difficult time in their lives.
Laid - 21 May 2024 In Force 9 Sep 2024
These Regulations amend the Cremation (England and Wales) Regulations 2008 (S.I. 2008/2841), the Coroners (Investigation) Regulations 2013 (S.I. 2013/1629) and the Notification of Deaths Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/1112).
Found: Cremation, Coroners and Notification of Deaths (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2024
Nov. 03 2009
Source Page: Letter dated 03/11/2009 from Lord Bach to Lord Ramsbotham regarding Coroners and Justice Bill 2008-09: Coroners appointed. 2 p.Found: Letter dated 03/11/2009 from Lord Bach to Lord Ramsbotham regarding Coroners and Justice Bill 2008-09
Written Evidence Jan. 24 2024
Inquiry: The Coroner Service: follow-upFound: TCS0022 - The Coroner Service: follow-up National Panel for Local Authority Coroners Services Written
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to ensure the adequacy of coroners' inquests.
Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The coroner’s statutory duty, through the investigation and inquest process, is to establish who has died, and when, where and how they died. Coroners are independent judicial office holders and the way in which they conduct their investigations and inquests is a matter for them. However, the Government and the Chief Coroner are clear that the bereaved should be placed at the heart of this process.
The office of the Chief Coroner was introduced in 2013 to provide judicial leadership, guidance and support to coroners and to promote consistency of standards and practice. In addition, the Chief Coroner is required to provide an annual report to the Lord Chancellor which, amongst other issues, assesses the consistency of standards between coroner areas.
The Government continues to identify and implement measures to promote consistency of standards in coroner services – for example, through the programme of coroner area mergers, and by means of a suite of provisions in the Judicial Review and Courts Act 2022 to streamline coronial processes.
We also accepted a number of recommendations made by the Justice Committee following its 2021 Inquiry into the Coroner Service, and undertook to give further consideration to others. The Committee’s current follow up Inquiry will, amongst other issues, consider progress against those recommendations.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of sending coroner inquest notification letters to bereaved family members using signed for delivery.
Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
While the Ministry of Justice is responsible for coroner law and policy, it does not have operational responsibility for coroner services as they are a local service, funded and administered by individual local authorities. Moreover, coroners are independent judges and the way in which they manage their investigations and inquests is a matter for them.
Rule 9(1) of the Coroners (Inquests) Rules 2013 requires the coroner to notify the deceased person’s next of kin of the date, time and place of the inquest hearing. The method by which this notification is provided is a matter for the individual coroner service.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of allowing bereaved family members to receive coroner inquest notifications by text message.
Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
While the Ministry of Justice is responsible for coroner law and policy, it does not have operational responsibility for coroner services as they are a local service, funded and administered by individual local authorities. Moreover, coroners are independent judges and the way in which they manage their investigations and inquests is a matter for them.
Rule 9(1) of the Coroners (Inquests) Rules 2013 requires the coroner to notify the deceased person’s next of kin of the date, time and place of the inquest hearing. The method by which this notification is provided is a matter for the individual coroner service.
Correspondence May. 08 2024
Committee: Justice Committee (Department: Ministry of Justice)Found: Letter from Mike Freer MP, Minister for Courts and Legal Services, dated 2 May 2024 regarding The Coroners