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First look inside new £2.4m Dundee justice hub

The facility enables vulnerable witnesses to have their evidence and cross examination pre-recorded in advance of the trial taking place.

By Laura Devlin

August 5 2024, 10:00am

Sheriff Principal Gillian Wade KC inside the new Dundee justice hub. Image: Kim Cessford/DC Thomson.

A new £2.4m justice hub which aims to minimise trauma to vulnerable witnesses has officially opened in Dundee.

Last year, the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service unveiled plans to open an innovative centre which, they said, would enhance the delivery of justice across Tayside and Fife.

The hub will serve both the High Court and Sheriff Courts in the region by providing a trauma informed evidence by commission (EBC) suite.

This enables vulnerable witnesses to have their evidence and cross examination pre-recorded in advance of the trial taking place – minimising further trauma by removing the need to attend court in-person.

The facility also has two digitised civil courtrooms, which became operational in June.

Courtroom one inside the hub. Image: Kim Cessford /DC Thomson.

The hub will serve the High Court, Sheriff Court and Civil Courts. Image: Kim Cessford /DC Thomson.

The Dundee hub is the fifth such facility in Scotland, with other hubs already open in Glasgow, Inverness, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.

It houses two dedicated evidence suites which will allow vulnerable witnesses to give evidence live to court from the security of an alternative location.

The multifunctional EBC facility is already in use and this enables witnesses to have their evidence pre-recorded in a trauma informed environment and manner, in advance of trial, supporting recovery and minimising the risks of re-traumatisation.

One of the witness suites at the hub. Image: Kim Cessford/DC Thomson.

The facility aims to minimising further trauma by removing the need to attend court in-person. Image: Kim Cessford/DC Thomson.

The creation of the facility was enabled through £2.4m in Scottish Government funding.

Sheriff Principal Gillian Wade KC, Sheriff Principal of Tayside, Central and Fife, said: “The Dundee justice hub is a visionary and pioneering project which I am proud to see opening.

“It’s building on the (hubs) that already exist in Scotland. This one is the most modern and is more user friendly for the witnesses.

“For example, there is a separate entrance for witnesses so they don’t have to travel very far through the building.”

Sheriff Principal Gillian Wade KC. Image: Kim Cessford/DC Thomson.

Courtroom two at the hub. Image: Kim Cessford/DC Thomson.

Sheriff Wade added: “And the palettes have also been specially chosen to make sure they are calming and offer the best possible environment for the capture of evidence.

“As well as providing a natural home for the resolution of local disputes, it secures a safe space from which the most vulnerable witnesses can be supported to give their best evidence without having to fear the additional stress of appearing in a conventional courtroom.”