Calls for 'crumbling' crown court to be pulled down

Barristers have called for Nottingham Crown Court to be knocked down and replaced after a crack in a wall forced the building to temporarily close.

HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) said the cracking was located at the entrance of the building and some cases have been moved to Nottingham Magistrates' Court.

They said the crown court was expected to fully reopen on Monday.

Among those raising concerns was barrister and former Broxtowe Conservative MP Anna Soubry, who said the building was "a lost cause; we should demolish the place and start again".

HMCTS said: "The safety of all court users, staff and members of the public is of paramount importance to us.

"Due to cracking in the wall at Nottingham Crown Court, the entrance has been closed as a precautionary measure."

One trial went ahead at the crown court on Thursday, but others were moved, where feasible, to the magistrates' court off Carrington Street. Other trials have been delayed.

It comes as courts across the country are already facing major backlogs.

After the crack appeared at the crown court, a large tarpaulin was placed underneath and temporary barriers put in place.

Soubry, head of chambers at KCH Garden Square in Nottingham, called on the government to "admit you are flogging a dead horse".

"The situation is dire and the building is, in effect, unusable," she said.

"It's been barely fit for purpose for a very long time.

"The sooner we get out of it and pull it down, the better. Millions are being thrown at it but it isn't fit for purpose."

The court had a £14m upgrade to help fix "long-standing maintenance issues" and reduce delays.

But barristers said the situation remains challenging.

Soubry, who was the MP for Broxtowe from 2010 to 2019, said: "It's really tough, because they're trying to make good years of underfunding, and I put my hands up to that.

"We should have properly funded the criminal justice system. At least I am one of those who had the courage to come back to the bar and face the critics.

"I've been appalled coming back to the bar to see the real-life state the criminal justice system is in."

Peter Joyce KC, a long-serving barrister in Nottingham, warned about issues with the court building last year.

He said he was evacuated from court on Wednesday and his case was delayed.

"At the top of the building, there is a wall in which a section of plaster is cracked and crumbling and looks like coming down at any minute", he said.

He added: "The system is in chaos. The politicians should fund the system properly.

"They should knock this down and build a new one.

"It froze in the winter, it overheated in summer, it leaks throughout when it rains. It's thoroughly embarrassing and pathetic.

"The air conditioning, which was put in in the last two weeks makes so much noise that it can't be on when the court is sitting.

"The contractors went away two months ago, having repaired the roof, and now it is coming down again.

"The justice system is going to crash, if it hasn't already."

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