MAGISTRATES' courts in Berkshire are among the slowest in the country at processing cases, new figures reveal.

In the first three months of this year, Berkshire was the 10th slowest area in England, with cases taking an average of 92 days to get through court.

The average time from a suspect being charged to the case’s first listing at court was 32 days, according to the Ministry of Justice data.

Of the 2,909 defendants seen in Berkshire’s courts in that period, the average time from alleged offence to completion was 167 days.

In July, the government said 57 magistrates' courts and two crown courts could close, including Newbury Magistrates' Court, as part of a cumulative 30% budget cut to the service since 2010.

Maralyn Smith, manager for Victim Support in the Thames Valley, said that action is needed to reduce the ordeal experienced by witnesses and victims.

She said: “Giving evidence in court can be a stressful experience for victims and witnesses.

“They deserve access to justice and to be able to give evidence in an appropriate way that supports their individual needs.

"Action is required to reduce the long waits faced by victims and witnesses in seeing offenders brought to justice."

“The need to make the court process more efficient is also clearly highlighted by recent Victim Support analysis, which found that the Crown Court is taking longer than at any point in the past 15 years to process cases, and the backlog of outstanding cases now stands at over 54,000.”

An HM Courts & Tribunals Service spokesman said: “We are working closely with criminal justice partners to ensure cases are managed more effectively from the start and we are deploying additional resources to clear outstanding trials and reduce delays.

“We are also making better use of modern technology and improving local court facilities.

“Our aim is to build a simpler, swifter and more efficient justice system that will provide a better service for users, particularly vulnerable victims and witnesses."