Camberwell Green Magistrates’ Court is planned to close after The Ministry of Justice announced 86 courts around England and Wales would be shut, including 10 in London.

All cases will be moved to Croydon Magistrates’ Court where there are already three-month delays. This is in attempt to modernise the legal process, as the HMCT claim savings will go towards improving technology in court.

The difficulty and cost of travelling will however rise; this may prevent victims and witnesses attending court. This could lead to more miscarriages of justice, as well as putting many jobs at risk.

The Public and Commercial Services Union responded to the closure and said: “Violent and sexual offences are both on the increase, the closing will undoubtedly result in delays in bringing offenders to court and in trials taking place”.

With Southwark being the fifth highest borough in London on the sex offender list, the closing of Camberwell Magistrates’ Court comes with a risk. “Justice delayed is justice denied,” said the PCS.

There have been previous petitions against the closing of courts around England and Wales. 13 took place after the announcement of 86 courts closing on July 16, 2015, which contained over 10,000 signatures.

The PCS are also publicly opposed to the closing of the 1960s building, as they believe that the proposal is due to a cut of costs rather than an aim to improve the service.

The HMCT have proposed a plan as to how they will use the savings, which will be to support a £700 million investment over the next 4 years. This includes installing modern IT systems, and updating the courts estate. This is in hope to make the justice system more efficient and effective.

Some of the planned technology includes online pleas and claims, evidence systems and video conferencing.