Inquest backlog starting to fall, figures show

Action to reduce Staffordshire's inquest backlog is starting to work, new figures show.

Hundreds of grieving families in Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire have faced long waits for hearings into their loved ones due to capacity problems within the coroners' service.

However, new figures show the number of cases over the six-month statutory time limit for an inquest fell from 297 in December to 260 in February.

The number of cases over 12 months reduced from 136 to 118, while the total number of open cases dropped from 788 to 672.

Recruitment of new coroners and support staff over the coming months is expected to drive down these figures further.

The coroners' service is paid for by Staffordshire County Council and Stoke-on-Trent City Council, and in December elected members agreed a £519,000 funding boost for new staff to help bring down the backlog.

While the recruitment process is still ongoing, other measures are already starting to have an impact, according to a new report.

A new triage system, for example, has allowed an "instant decision" to be made for cases that do not have a duty to be investigated.

The report to the joint coroners' committee states: "Both the coroners' officers and case progression officers are working more closely to ensure that all cases are progressed within a timely manner and cases are now being listed in date order to ensure that older cases are given a priority over newer cases.

"In addition, the reintroduction of written inquests has been proven successful in dealing with straight forward cases where family do not wish to attend an inquest."

A new full-time area coroner is expected to be in post by July, while a temporary area corner has been recruited and will start in May.

Two case progression officers and a part-time executive support worker are also set to be recruited.

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This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.