How much have Nightingale courts cost the taxpayer? £17 million

Jonathan Ames and George Greenwood report on the poor value for money these underused courts represent
The picturesque Peterborough Cathedral hosted just 56 Nightingale court sitting days costing a whopping £463,259
The picturesque Peterborough Cathedral hosted just 56 Nightingale court sitting days costing a whopping £463,259
ALAMY

Seven Nightingale hospitals sprang up across England during the height of the coronavirus pandemic, but in the end few saw any patients. Ministers might try to claim that the Nightingale courts were more of a success, not least because 23 of them are still running.

But Times Law can reveal that the Nightingale courts have cost the taxpayer at least twice as much to run as pre-pandemic courtrooms — and in some cases they were hardly used.

Figures from a freedom of information request that ministers attempted to block for 11 months have shown that the pop-up courts — which the Ministry of Justice launched slightly more than a year ago to keep the justice system running during the lockdowns — cost more than £17