Bath & North East Somerset Council says it is pleased to learn that Bath Magistrates, County Court and Family Court has been saved from closure.
The Lord Chancellor has agreed to retain the Courts after weighing up evidence received during a public consultation.
Evidence was submitted to the Ministry of Justice by Bath & North East Somerset Council’s Community Transport and Environmental Panel, following a Scrutiny Inquiry last September.
The Inquiry heard evidence from members of the community and many professionals on the key issues and concerns raised by the proposal to close Bath Magistrates, County Court and Family Court or North Avon (Yate) Magistrates Court, with the transfer of the workload to Bristol Magistrates Court.
Both the positive and negative impacts were then reported back to the Lord Chancellor’s Office.
Having reviewed all the responses received during the consultation process, the Lord Chancellor has recently agreed to close 10 courts and tribunals in the South West region, with Bath being the only site to be retained.
Though there was an acceptance that alternative provision might be possible, the responses confirmed the facilities currently available in Bath are of an excellent standard and could in fact be used to better effect by taking work from other courts that may close following this consultation.
Cllr John Bull, (Labour, Paulton), Chairman of the Community Transport and Environment Policy Development & Scrutiny Panel, said: “We are delighted that the outcomes of the Scrutiny Inquiry Day have been carefully considered.
“The Department of Justice clearly took note of all the evidence that we gathered on the Investigation Day and the satisfactory outcome represents a triumph for the Scrutiny process.”