The Coroner Service
Justice Committee
Closed
Inquiry
This inquiry examined the effectiveness and capacity of the Coroner Service. It also looked at whether enough progress has been made in improving bereaved people's experience of the Coroner Service. The Coroners and Justice Act 2009 introduced changes to the service which were implemented in 2013. This included the appointment …
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26
Recommendations
2
Conclusions
1
Report
1
Letter
4
Events
Activity timeline 3 events
22 Feb
2022
2022
Correspondence
10 Sep
2021
2021
27 May
2021
2021
Report published
Reports 1 report · click to expand
| Title | HC No. | Published | Items | Response |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Report - The Coroner Service | HC 68 | 27 May 2021 | 28 | Responded |
Recommendations & Conclusions
10 results
1
Recommendation
Deferred
1st Report - The Coroner Service
The creation of a Chief Coroner followed by the introduction of guidance, mandatory training and...
The creation of a Chief Coroner followed by the introduction of guidance, mandatory training and appraisals for the most junior coroners are significant advances towards a more standardised Coroner Service than obtained a decade or so ago, even in the …
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Government Response
The government redirects the recommendation, stating that appraisal of judicial office holders is a matter for the judiciary, not ministers, and the Chief Coroner will respond directly to the Committee.
Ministry of Justice
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4
Recommendation
Deferred
1st Report - The Coroner Service
The Chief Coroner’s guidance on when and how to expedite a case to meet with...
The Chief Coroner’s guidance on when and how to expedite a case to meet with the requirements of the beliefs of the deceased is welcome, but whether the needs of faith communities will be met or not depends on how …
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Government Response
The government states that the Chief Coroner will respond to the Committee regarding his engagement with stakeholders concerning expediting cases to meet the needs of faith communities.
Ministry of Justice
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7
Recommendation
Deferred
1st Report - The Coroner Service
We encourage Senior Coroners to make sure that bereaved people are made aware by their...
We encourage Senior Coroners to make sure that bereaved people are made aware by their staff of the specialist support organisations that are available to them both locally and nationally.
Government Response
The government redirects the recommendation, stating that it will be for the Chief Coroner to provide a response.
Ministry of Justice
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8
Recommendation
Deferred
1st Report - The Coroner Service
Bereaved people deserve a charter of rights setting out the standards of service they are...
Bereaved people deserve a charter of rights setting out the standards of service they are entitled to receive from the Coroner Service. Setting out the standards they can ‘expect’ in the Guide to Coroner Services is inadequate. The Ministry of …
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Government Response
The government disagrees that its current Guide to Coroner Services is inadequate but acknowledges it is considering what more could be provided to bereaved families, with a full response due in the Government’s response to Bishop James’ report.
Ministry of Justice
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9
Recommendation
Deferred
1st Report - The Coroner Service
Bereaved people are at a disadvantage when they do not have access to the evidence.
Bereaved people are at a disadvantage when they do not have access to the evidence. It is important that the process for obtaining evidence is explained clearly to them as this is important for the fairness of the inquest. We …
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Government Response
The government states that the Chief Coroner will provide a detailed response to the recommendation regarding strengthening guidance and training on disclosure and pre-inquest reviews.
Ministry of Justice
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10
Recommendation
Deferred
1st Report - The Coroner Service
The failure of health and social care bodies to fulfil their duty of candour to...
The failure of health and social care bodies to fulfil their duty of candour to bereaved people during coroners’ investigations and inquests is disappointing. The Ministry of Justice should amend the Coroners’ rules to make it patently clear that the …
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Government Response
The government will consider the recommendation to amend Coroners' rules and extend the duty of candour to all public bodies in conjunction with its response to Bishop James Jones’ report in due course.
Ministry of Justice
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13
Recommendation
Deferred
1st Report - The Coroner Service
The current arrangements for challenging coroners’ decisions are unwieldy and cause unacceptable delays, stress and...
The current arrangements for challenging coroners’ decisions are unwieldy and cause unacceptable delays, stress and often expense, for bereaved people. The The Coroner Service 59 Ministry of Justice should introduce a system of appeals similar to that in Section 40 …
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Government Response
The government acknowledges the merit in considering an additional mechanism for appealing coroners' decisions, specifically referencing the original Section 40 of the 2009 Act, but it is not responding to the recommendation at this stage.
Ministry of Justice
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19
Recommendation
Deferred
1st Report - The Coroner Service
In the longer term, the Ministry of Justice should broker an agreement between relevant government...
In the longer term, the Ministry of Justice should broker an agreement between relevant government departments and the NHS (in England and Wales) for the establishment and co-funding of 12–15 regional pathology centres of excellence. (Paragraph 137) A unified national …
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Government Response
The government states it cannot accept the recommendation at this stage but will engage with the NHS to consider the proposal for regional pathology centres, noting NHS England and Improvement's in-principle support for considering such developments.
Ministry of Justice
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25
Recommendation
Deferred
1st Report - The Coroner Service
The system for the Coroner Service to contribute to improvements in public safety is under-developed.
The system for the Coroner Service to contribute to improvements in public safety is under-developed. The absence of follow up to coroners’ ‘prevention of future deaths reports’ is a missed opportunity. The Ministry of Justice should consider setting up an …
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Government Response
The government acknowledges the need for more to be done regarding Prevention of Future Deaths (PFD) reports and will consider options, including an Inspectorate of Coroner Services, but is not in a position to accept the recommendation at this stage.
Ministry of Justice
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26
Recommendation
Deferred
1st Report - The Coroner Service
The current arrangements for publishing coroners’ reports and responses to those reports require improvement.
The current arrangements for publishing coroners’ reports and responses to those reports require improvement. The information published is the bare minimum and is difficult to search and analyse. The Ministry of Justice should provide funding so information about the risks …
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Government Response
The government acknowledges issues with searching for reports and notes the Chief Coroner's office is working on cataloguing; however, it is not in a position to accept the recommendation to provide funding for improved online accessibility and searchability at this stage, stating they will consider resources.
Ministry of Justice
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Correspondence 1 letter
22 Feb 2022
To committee
Response from Chief Coroner on coroner service report
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