An out-dated critical computer system poses a
"significant risk" forUK courts, according to aNational Audit Office reportpublished
today.
The 20-year-old Crest case management system, which runs ageing
computers using an unsupported operating system, is long overdue
for upgrade or replacement the report found.
"The lack of any facility for electronically transferring data
into Crest leads to duplication and risks error, as staff have to
re-key data," the report said.
But the report notes that HM Courts Service plans to address the
risk of the Crest system by moving it on to modern and supported
hardware and software by March 2011.
The report said the "replatforming" should facilitate functional
improvements to be made to Crest in the future.
The report also criticised the
Xhibit system designed to automatically update the court
service's criminal justice partners on the outcome of cases through
a web portal.
The system was introduced by the government to make it easier
for the police, witnesses and the wider public to keep track of
criminal cases.
Xhibit's slow speed and susceptibility to "crashing" at busy
periods puts pressure on staff to maintain duplicate records, the
report said.
The system has also not been updated since it was introduced in
2006 to reflect changes made to forms used to report the results of
certain types of cases.
"For some cases staff are having to input data manually and
either fax or post information to other service users," the report
said.
HM Courts Service has put in place a programme to improve
Xhibit's performance, but the report said it is too early to assess
how successful this programme has been.
As of December 2008, HM Courts Service was also considering
options for providing more flexible arrangements for updating the
forms within Xhibit, the report said.