The innovative Justice Hub located in Dundee will enhance the delivery of justice across Tayside, Central and Fife by providing a trauma informed evidence by commission suite and live link evidence facilities, supporting the most vulnerable witnesses in providing their best evidence to Court.
With funding support from the Scottish Government, the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service plan to open the new Justice Hub in the summer 2024. The Justice Hub will serve both the High Court and Sheriff Courts across Tayside, Central and Fife, while supporting the delivery of civil justice.
The trauma informed evidence by commission (EBC) suite, enables vulnerable witnesses to have their evidence and cross examination pre-recorded in advance of the trial taking place, minimising further trauma by removing the need to attend court in-person. Once operational, this will be the fifth bespoke EBC suite in Scotland.
In addition to the EBC suite the Justice Hub will also include a digitally enabled civil court room, with the self-contained evidence suite providing two additional vulnerable witness live-link rooms to support the most vulnerable in society when giving evidence remotely to court.
Building upon the successful collaboration with justice partners at the Inverness Justice Centre, there are also plans for Victim Support Scotland to co-locate within the facility.
The Justice hub will be located at Quadrant House at Riverside Drive which is easily accessible by public transport.
Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs Angela Constance said: “Victims and witnesses can find interacting with the court system a daunting prospect.
“The new Justice Hub in Dundee has been specially designed to better support victims and witnesses through the court system. This includes when giving evidence to help reduce the risk of re-traumatisation.
“These premises are an important step in improving people’s experience of the criminal and civil justice courts and in achieving a modern, resilient and person-centred justice system."
Sheriff Principal Gillian Wade KC, Sheriff Principal of Tayside, Central and Fife, said: “A great deal of time and effort has been devoted to the planning, securing and designing of this impressive facility.
“The new Dundee Justice Hub will be a much welcomed addition to the court estate. It will enable the delivery of justice in an environment tailored to contemporary needs and underlines the commitment of us all to enhancing the court experience for everyone who needs our services.
“I shall watch the progression of the works with great interest and look forward to the opening of the Hub next summer.”
Eric McQueen, Chief Executive of SCTS said: “We recognise that attending court to give evidence can be a daunting and, for some people, a traumatic experience. The creation of the Justice Hub is a further step in our strive to modernise our services by ensuring the most vulnerable can have their evidence pre-recorded or can give their evidence by live link from the justice hub to the courtroom, while reducing the risk of further traumatisation as far as possible.
Kate Wallace, Chief Executive of Victim Support Scotland said: “VSS warmly welcomes additional facilities which offer victims and witnesses choice and control over how and where they give evidence. This is key if we want to achieve a trauma-informed justice system.
“Victims and witnesses tell us about the distressing effects of court cases, and this is one way we can minimise the stress and anxiety of attending court and support people to give their best evidence. VSS works with people in the community and in court every day all across Scotland, and locating some of our services within the new Dundee Justice Hub places us firmly at the heart of supporting people locally with care and compassion.”