On 16th July Ben received a concerning letter from Shailesh Vara, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice announcing a consultation into the closure of 91 courts and tribunal services across England and Wales which included Bath Magistrates' and County Court. You can read the letter here.
They are planning to close Bath Magistrates' and County Court and use new technology to reduce the number of people who have to personally go to the court. Anyone who does have to go to court will have to travel to Bristol. Ben met with the Minister responsible before Parliament broke for summer to air his initial concerns.
The announcement is deeply worrying to Ben and he wants to be able to put a compelling argument to the Minister of Justice as to why they must save our court. To do this he wants to hear your views. These changes could have a big impact on a number of people across the city, and he would like to hear how it will impact you.
Ben was delighted to with the news that his campaign had been successful in saving the court from closure.