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Local Activities

From August to October 2007 David Fraser, Sheriffdom Business Manager, and Lora Crabtree, Project Manager, visited all the Sheriff Courts to provide awareness sessions on the current position of unification and fines enforcement. These sessions included colleagues from the District Courts. Comments from these sessions have been captured and where appropriate are being fed into the plans which Kay Polson, Mike McBey and Lora Crabtree are managing to ensure changes to Lay Justice, Fines Enforcement and Court Unification are implemented as smoothly as possible.

Over the coming months invitations will be extended to allow staff to get together before work shadowing days which are planned for later in the year.

Fiona Hendry, Sheriff Clerk Aberdeen, had an informal visit to the Aberdeen DC on 6 November 2007 and this visit was reciprocated when the Aberdeen District Court Admin staff visited the main Sheriff Court building, the Mercatgate High Court Annex and offices on 20 November 2007. This will be followed up when Fiona sits in at the District Court later this month.

Fiona now aims to arrange exchange visits with the staff in Inverurie in the near future.

The only member of staff due to transfer from Moray Council to SCS with unification has now visited Elgin Sheriff Court and met with the staff. There are plans to following this initial meeting with longer work shadowing events in Elgin to allow all staff a better understanding of the work which will be processed in the new unified court.

Sheriff Clerk, Steve McKenna, has now met with staff due to transfer and they got straight on with discussing the finer points of transferring over cases and records. This supports the already close link between Sheriff and District Court in Fort William where soon-to-be colleagues are arranging work shadowing events in the new year.

Sheriff Court staff in Inverness are planning to arrange work shadowing for District Courts colleagues in the New Year and build the relationships which will ensure a smooth transition.

Kenny Finnie, Sheriff Clerk Stornoway, has a visit planned to the District Court office in early December 2007, this visit will be followed a short work shadowing event after the District Court sits on 13 December 2007. It is hoped that this will allow Sheriff Court staff to see the District Court in action as they process the Court disposal.