Old Bailey gets SMS and email alert system

The UK's oldest court has started using computers to record hearings and reduce the time witnesses spend waiting to give evidence.

The Xhibit (eXchanging Hearing Information By Internet Technology) system, now rolled out to 50 Crown courts in England and Wales, allows court clerks to update information about hearings as they happen.

The system enables police, prosecutors and witness groups to get case details in minutes rather than days. Updates can be received by text email or pager and the public can follow court hearings online or via public display screens in court.

The government said it is getting £3.9m per year in benefit from the £20m system built by EDS.

Xhibit has an alert function which can alert police officers by SMS when they have to give evidence. Before the system was in place only three per cent of police time in court was actually spent giving evidence.

Constitutional Affairs Minister Harriet Harman said in a statement: "Attending court can be stressful at the best of times. With Xhibit witnesses can, using the latest technology, now be more in touch with the progress on their case."

The government hopes the system will save 80,000 police days per year by reducing the amount of time wasted waiting to give evidence.

The system will also result in the Police National Computer (PNC) being updated faster - the average time to update the PNC with court results was 35 days but Xhibit reduces that to one to two days.

Rollout of the system is due to be completed by April 2006.