Published on:
10
April 2013
The Council has welcomed the Scottish Court Service's recommendation not to close Alloa Sheriff Court at this time.
The SCS published its report 'Shaping Scotland's Court Services' this week, following its consideration of responses received from a public consultation held last year.
The consultation included a proposal to close the Alloa court and move business to Stirling and Falkirk as part of a nationwide restructuring of the service.
The Council strongly objected to the proposal and ran an online consultation to gather local views. The final decision rests with the Scottish Government.
The SCS report says: "We do not intend to pursue the Alloa proposal. In the period since publication of our consultation document we have explored a number of options at both Falkirk and Stirling to determine whether additional courtroom accommodation could be provided within the footprint of the current buildings.
"We remain of the view that, given the proximity of Alloa to Stirling and Falkirk, our proposal to close Alloa and move the solemn business to Falkirk and the summary and civil business to Stirling is consistent with our vision for a modern court service and aligned to the Judicial Principles on Access to Justice.
"However, until such time as additional capacity can be provided in Stirling or Falkirk, either by a reduction in business or creation of additional courtroom space, we do not propose the closure of Alloa at this time. We will therefore monitor the situation at these courts and assess whether consolidation of the business as proposed can be accommodated at some future time."
Welcoming the news, Council Leader Gary Womersley said: "A total of 320 responses were made to the Scottish Court Service on the proposal to close Alloa court and only 6 of those agreed with the suggestion.
"These responses included our thorough and strongly worded report which detailed the many reasons why it is absolutely vital that this service remains in Alloa to serve the people of Clackmannanshire.
"The role of local courts in delivering justice and providing access to justice is valued by communities and a community the size of Clackmannanshire needs a local court. That strength of feeling is evidenced in the response to this consultation."