National Strategy for the recruitment of Lay Magistrates

October 2003

• Foreword by the Secretary of State and Lord Chancellor
• Background Review
• Issues affecting the magistracy
• Current initiatives
• Strategic objectives
  
  
• Recruitment Strategy:
  
  • Annex A - Recruitment and retention of Magistrates  
  • Annex B - Raising the profile of the Magistracy  
  • Annex C - Supporting the Appointments Process  
  
  
  
• Annex D - Composition of the Lay Magistracy 2003  
  
  
• National Strategy for the recruitment of Lay Magistrates [Full document]

Foreword by Lord Falconer of Thoroton, Secretary of State and Lord Chancellor

Magistrates are recruited from members of the local community. No formal qualifications are required, but applicants are expected to demonstrate common sense, integrity, intelligence and the capacity to act fairly. They perform a valuable service on behalf of their communities and their role is pivotal to the administration, not only of local justice, but to our judicial system as a whole.

Approximately 97% of criminal cases begin and end in the Magistrates' Courts. Specially trained magistrates can deal with young offenders; certain family cases, and also take responsibility for licensing, betting and gaming matters in their area. I consider it particularly important that the magistracy is seen to be representative of all sections of our society and that no one group of people should feel that they are under-represented on the magistrates' bench.

My Department is already involved with a number of initiatives aimed at encouraging young people and minority ethnic groups to become involved in the judicial process and, although the ethnic make up of the magistracy countrywide is close to the national average for cultural representation per head of population there are still regional variations, both in age and ethnicity that need to be addressed.

To achieve this I have commissioned a National Recruitment Strategy, which will examine not only how to raise the profile of the magistracy generally, but also to develop a framework to target the recruitment and retention of magistrates from under represented groups, whilst continuing to draw on the support of those who have traditionally provided the backbone of local recruitment.

The strategy will aim to highlight the importance of the work of magistrates, particularly to employers, who must be persuaded that, by allowing staff who are magistrates time off to carry out their duties, they are contributing enormously to the maintenance of local justice and the values of good citizenship. This approach will also be designed to encourage the self-employed that they, too, have a role to play in serving their community by directing their individual talents towards furthering the cause of justice in the community.

I rely on my regional Magistrates' Advisory Committees to carry out local recruitment campaigns and to recommend to me those people whom they feel meet the criteria for appointment as a magistrate. The National Recruitment Strategy will draw together the experience of the Advisory Committees with a view to combining best practice and ensuring that recruitment is carried out in a targeted, professional and co-ordinated manner. The Strategy will build on what we have already learnt and help us to develop new ideas. This is intended to be a living document that can be changed and updated regularly and I am happy to encourage you to comment on the Strategy and to offer suggestions on how we might improve our approach.

Lord Falconer of Thoroton

Background Review

1. As part of its response to the report of the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry, the Lord Chancellor's Department (now the Department for Constitutional Affairs) set up an audit of policies and procedures in every part of its work, to assess the extent to which they provide equality of opportunity and support diversity. A working group was set up to seek to satisfy itself that there are in place policies and procedures, which are effective in:
   
   
   • Encouraging applications for appointment to the lay magistracy from all sections of society;
     
     
   • Eliminating discrimination in the appointment process and ensuring that all applicants are treated fairly;
     
     
   • Appointing lay magistrates who, as a group, reflect the diversity of the society they serve.
     
     
   
   
   
2. The working group reported to the Lord Chancellor in April 2000. The main findings of the report were that the existing system is not fundamentally flawed and has in place many of the structures necessary to ensure equality. However, it noted that an integrated national recruitment strategy, rather than the current piecemeal approach, would serve to encourage applications from people from under-represented groups and to co-ordinate local campaigns.
   
   
3. The report "Criminal Justice - The Way Ahead ", published in February 2001, confirms the efforts made to ensure that each lay bench broadly reflects the community it serves. It also corroborates that the composition of the lay magistracy nationally is now approaching ethnic representativeness, but that there are still variations locally in ethnic composition and an imbalance of age range.
   
   
4. The Lord Chancellor committed to addressing these concerns by commissioning a National Strategy for the Recruitment of Magistrates. In light of the review undertaken by Sir Robin Auld, work on the Strategy was deferred to the end of January 2002.
   
   
5. As part of his "Review of the Criminal Courts of England and Wales", Sir Robin Auld considered the selection and appointment of magistrates. He identified as the main problem the discovery and recruitment of a sufficient and appropriate range of candidates for appointment, not the criteria for, nor the mechanics of, their appointment. He pointed to the need to provide benches of magistrates that reflect more broadly than at present the communities they serve by:
   
   
   • Reviewing the community relations and educational initiatives of benches with a view to better inform the public of their work and to attract more suitable candidates for appointment;
     
     
   • Supporting the local Advisory Committees by establishing a properly resourced National Recruitment Strategy aimed not only at candidates for the magistracy but also at their employers;
     
     
   • Equipping local Advisory Committees with the information to enable them to submit for consideration for appointment candidates that will produce and maintain benches broadly reflective of the communities they serve, including the establishment and maintenance of national and local data-bases of information on the make-up of the local community and the composition of the local magistracy;
     
     
   • Instituting a review of the ways in which the role and terms of service of a magistrate might be made more attractive and manageable to a wider range of the community than is presently the case; and
     
     
   • Persisting with the current search for a substitute for political affiliations as a measure of social balance.
     
     
6. Proposals to take forward reforms to the criminal justice system have been set out in the White Paper "Justice For All", which was published in July 2002. This document focuses on a number of issues aimed at re-balancing the criminal justice structure in favour of the victim.
   
   
7. Getting the process right at the earliest stages is essential and some of the proposed reforms will include:
   
   
   • Reducing the delay in the disposal of magistrates' court cases;
     
     
   • Extending sentencing powers of magistrates from 6 to 12 months;
     
     
   • Requiring magistrates to sentence all those they have found guilty, rather than committing some to be sentenced in the Crown Court;
     
     
   • Integrating the management of courts within a single courts administration and allowing Crown Court judges to conduct trials in magistrates' courts.
     
     

Issues Affecting the Magistracy

8. The Lord Chancellor appoints magistrates (Justices of the Peace) in England and Wales save for the Duchy of Lancaster, where, currently, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster makes appointments. The Prime Minister is committed to ensuring that appointment procedures and policies are consistent nationally.
   
   
9. In his review, Sir Robin Auld recommended that the present division of responsibility for appointments between the Lord Chancellor and the Duchy of Lancaster should be reviewed.
   
   
10. Proposals in the review to transfer the responsibility for appointing magistrates within the Duchy of Lancaster to the Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA) are being examined.
    
    
11. To assist in identifying and recommending suitable applicants for the magistracy, there are a number of Advisory Committees throughout England and Wales that are responsible directly to the Lord Chancellor.
    
    
12. Each Advisory Committee either forms Interview Panels from its members or creates formal Sub-Committees to undertake the task. These Committees and Sub-Committees are made up of one-third non-magistrates and two thirds serving magistrates. The Advisory Committees recommend suitable applicants for appointment to the Lord Chancellor.
    
    
13. To assist Advisory Committees, the Lord Chancellor has issued Directions for Advisory Committees on Justices of the Peace. The Directions are a public document, currently being revised and will be published simultaneously in print and on the DCA website.
    
    
14. It falls to each Advisory Committee to seek to achieve a balance in terms of gender, ethnic background, occupation, geographical location and diversity of those suitable individuals who are recommended for appointment. It follows that a broad mix of applicants is essential, for a representative bench to be appointed.
    
    
15. The general, but erroneous, view is that magistrates are predominately middle aged and middle class. We need to challenge that perception and continue to recruit a spread of applicants from all walks of life and across all groups within the community.
    
    
16. If the magistracy is to reflect the society it serves, then all within society need to be convinced that the rule of law is fundamental and necessary to modern society, that it serves their purpose and that they should play a full part in the administration of justice.
    
    
17. There is no national, structured campaign to raise awareness and to portray the magistracy as a positive way of serving the community. Understanding is an important factor to increasing confidence in the criminal justice system.
    
    
18. There is a general difficulty in attracting applications from the working public. This is due in part to a lack of awareness of the responsibilities of a magistrate and of the entry requirements (or lack of them).
    
    
19. The common perception is that you need to have a legal qualification or background to become a magistrate. In fact, suitability for appointment is measured against six key qualities defining personal fitness, namely:
    
    
    • good character;
      
      
    • understanding and communication;
      
      
    • social awareness;
      
      
    • maturity and sound temperament;
      
      
    • sound judgement; and
      
      
    • commitment and reliability.
    
    
    
20. Sir Robin Auld's review recommended that the National Strategy should be aimed at raising awareness amongst employers of magistrates.
    
    
21. The message needs to be relayed to employers that service on the Bench allows magistrates to acquire marketable competencies that are transferable to the workplace, including mentoring and appraisal skills.
    
    
22. At this time, there is a significant discrepancy in the number of magistrates within various age groups. The table at Annex D sets out nationally, the profile of lay magistrates at 1 April 2003.
    
    
23. Although we greatly value the contribution of senior magistrates, for the magistracy to survive, more young people must be encouraged to come forward and apply to be magistrates.
    
    
24. It is vital that youth and family panels have a healthy pool of experienced magistrates. A representative bench, including a range of age groups, must also be a consideration to ensure that respect for the criminal justice system is maintained.
    
    
25. It is difficult to attract applicants in the younger age groups. Couples are starting their families later, so they cannot find the time for voluntary work until later in life. Some one-parent families cannot spare time to undertake voluntary work. Many people cannot afford to undertake unpaid voluntary work.
    
    
26. Nationally, magistrates sit over half a million days each year - this should be set against the costs of improving awareness and recruitment.
    
    
27. Where there are insufficient magistrates in any court to support the level of sittings, it places pressure on the existing magistrates to sit more often thereby increasing stress and pressure from employers/peers etc.
    
    

Current Initiatives

A Judiciary for All

28. With the help of Operation Black Vote (OBV) the Department for Constitutional Affairs launched the Magistrates Shadowing Scheme to increase the proportion of lay magistrates from an ethnic minority background. Recent information on judicial appointments show that just over 6% of the magistracy come from ethnic minority communities which make up 7.9% of the population as a whole - (Source: Census April 2001 - Office of National Statistics). These national figures mask significant differences from one area of the country to another.
    
    
29. The pilot exercise carried out between 2001-02 was a great success and many participants have since applied to become magistrates. The Department for Constitutional Affairs is providing a grant in excess of £100,000 in 2003 to OBV for phase two of this project and is committed to continuing funding throughout 2004. This work has three strands:
    
    
    • encouraging participation;
      
      
    • job shadowing; and
      
      
    • education and training.
      
      
30. This scheme is designed to enable individuals to gain invaluable experience of life as a magistrate.
    
    
31. Shadowers can only apply at the court where they gained their experience three months after the programme - however they can apply to another court at any other time.
    
    
32. Those involved in the initiative have agreed to become community ambassadors, explaining and promoting the role of magistrates and the courts in which they work with the support of a magistrate mentor from the Magistrates in the Community Project.
    
    

Citizenship Foundation

33. The Citizenship Foundation is an independent charity funded by grants from business, commerce, government and private donors which promotes citizenship education in the fields of:
    
    
    • Rights and responsibilities;
      
      
    • Law and the legal system;
      
      
    • Human rights;
      
      
    • Education for democracy;
      
      
    • Moral and critical thinking.
      
      
34. DCA supports the annual Magistrates' Court Mock Trial Competition with annual grants.
    
    
35. The competition is organised by the Foundation in conjunction with the Magistrates' Association and DCA. The competition aims to open up and demystify the court process.
    
    
36. Students rehearse specially written cases and have the opportunity to take part in mock trials in real Magistrates' Courts.
    
    
37. Last year, over 350 schools, 4,500 students and approximately 800 magistrates participated in heats in more than 60 Magistrates' Courts all over England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
    
    

Magistrates in the Community Project (MiC)

38. This is a project that aims to inform the public about the work of the magistracy and generally raise its profile.
    
    
39. It encompasses all the public relations work undertaken by magistrates at local level with the broad aim of "raising awareness in the community of the lay magistracy and its work in magistrates' courts, thereby increasing respect and confidence in justice and the criminal justice system".
    
    
40. The Department for Constitutional Affairs funds the whole of the MiC project. Nearly every branch of the Magistrates' Association has a branch liaison officer who will know all the co-ordinators, usually one for each bench. The co-ordinators organise activities that seek to reach new audiences and find new ways of presenting material to meet the needs of different sections of communities.
    
    
41. About 3,000 magistrates nationally take part in the project. Activities have included:
    
    
    • Providing a general outline of magistrates' courts for schools as part of the national curriculum regarding citizenship;
      
      
    • Using a pop-up theatre to demonstrate how a magistrates court looks and works to schoolchildren with special educational needs;
      
      
    • Participation in open days;
      
      
    • Arranging visits to courts;
      
      
    • Talking to an Asian visually impaired community group;
      
      
    • Staffing a stand at CBI and TUS conferences;
      
      
    • Assisting in training police recruits;
      
      
    • Presentations to the U3A (University for the Third Age).
      
      
42. The Magistrates Association has also developed a training pack to assist in presentations to communities and to employers. The training pack provides basic guidance for those who go into the community to raise awareness of the work of the magistracy.
    
    
43. They also aim to inform employers of the importance of their role in supporting magistrates in their employment. A booklet entitled "Local Business, Local Justice - A guide for Employers" supports the section aimed at employers. This booklet is currently being reviewed and updated. DCA funds the cost of publication.

Strategic Objectives

44. The three main objectives of the national strategy are:
    
    
    • To recruit and retain magistrates from a diverse spectrum of the population;
      
      
    • To raise the profile of the magistracy and dispel generally held misconceptions about its make up and the entry requirements;
      
      
    • To support the appointments process.
      
      
45. The following sequence of annexes set out a detailed programme of action that we propose to take to achieve our objectives. The annexes are arranged in three separate sections reflecting each of the above-mentioned aims:
    
    
    • Annex A - Recruitment Strategy
      
      
    • Annex B - Raising the Profile of the Lay Magistracy
      
      
    • Annex C - Supporting the Appointments Process

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