Future of Wrexham’s Magistrates Court Secured

Ministers have confirmed to local MP Ian Lucas that they are intending to continue using the town’s magistrates court, amidst fears it could close.

Ian Lucas this afternoon reiterated his ‘persistent campaign’ to maintain and improve the facilities of the Magistrates Courts in Wrexham. Mr Lucas has previously warned about the threat of a potential closure of Wrexham courts, with indications many services would be centralised to Mold.

The demolition of the nearby ‘iconic’ Police tower and station, which housed some cells used by the courts also pointed at a possible future problem.

Mr Lucas wrote to the Department of Justice after a recent report by HM Inspectorate of Prisons criticised the unsafe use of cells which serve the court – and asked Ministers what they were going to do about the situation.

In their reply, Ministers have said they will address the concerns in the report – and also confirm that they have decided that they will continue to use the court for criminal hearings after the forthcoming demolition of Wrexham Police Station.

Minister for the Courts, Shailesh Vara, states in the letter: “I am sorry that in previous replies to you the Minister was not able to confirm the future of the custody provision at Wrexham Magistrates’ Court as no decisions had been reached at that time.

“I am however now in a position to confirm that HM Courts and Tribunals Service intends to continue using Wrexham Magistrates’ Court for criminal hearings after the police station is demolished in 2017.

“We are currently considering a number of possible options, including the construction of new custody facilities at the court that will address both the need to replace the police cells, and the concerns raised by HM Inspectorate of Prisons.”

Speaking about today’s confirmation, Mr Lucas said: “There has been a cloud of uncertainty over the future of the court for several years so it is good news indeed that Ministers have finally made a decision on its future.

“It is even better news that they will be keeping a Magistrates’ Court in Wrexham. Those magistrates, legal professionals and others who joined the campaign to keep Wrexham’s court all deserve thanks for making Ministers make up their minds on the matter.

“I am also pleased to hear that Ministers will be addressing the specific concerns set out in the report which I wrote to them about – and I will be closely following those plans as they emerge.”

There is no indication where such new construction could take place, nor if it is part of a joined up thinking with Wrexham Council and their ‘masterplan’ redevelopment plans – as we have noted before there are elements of the Bodhyfryd site that could make way for a wider development area.