Chester Crown Court
Crown Court · HMCTS region: North West · Local criminal justice area: Cheshire LCJB
948
Open (outstanding) cases, end of June 2026
+9.2% vs Jun 2024 (868)
401
New cases received, Apr–Jun 2026
Disposals in the same quarter: 403
22.6%
Ineffective trial rate, 2025
Trials that couldn't go ahead on the day
Caseload, last 2 years (quarterly)
Tap the chart for a share image ↗ · figures in the table below
| Quarter ending | Receipts | Disposals | Open at end |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 2024 | 445 | 364 | 866 |
| Jun 2024 | 409 | 407 | 868 |
| Sep 2024 | 379 | 407 | 840 |
| Dec 2024 | 412 | 380 | 874 |
| Mar 2025 | 396 | 379 | 880 |
| Jun 2025 | 424 | 426 | 880 |
| Sep 2025 | 425 | 392 | 909 |
| Dec 2025 | 426 | 362 | 972 |
| Mar 2026 | 450 | 474 | 941 |
| Jun 2026 | 401 | 403 | 948 |
Source: Criminal court statistics quarterly: April to June 2026 — Transparency files (csv) (MoJ, released 24 September 2026) · All offences, all case types
Trials listed
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| Period | Effective | Cracked | Ineffective | Vacated | Ineffective rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 170 | 98 | 74 | 314 | 21.6% |
| 2025 | 165 | 78 | 71 | 399 | 22.6% |
| Jan–Jun 2026 | 79 | 30 | 31 | 237 | 22.1% |
Source: Criminal court statistics quarterly: April to June 2026 — Transparency files (csv) (MoJ, released 24 September 2026) · Trials data tool (trials_2026Q2.csv). Ineffective rate = ineffective ÷ (effective + cracked + ineffective), MoJ definition; vacated trials excluded.
Waiting times and pleas (Cheshire LCJB, area level)
MoJ publishes these for the local criminal justice area, not for each court.
| Measure | Earliest | Latest |
|---|---|---|
| Crown Court: median age of open cases | 130 days (Mar 2024) | 152 days (Jun 2026) |
| Crown Court: median days, receipt to completion (cases closed in year) | 128 days (2024) | 156 days (2025) |
| Crown Court: guilty plea rate (trial cases, year) | 62.0% (2024) | 68.2% (2025) |
Source: Criminal court statistics quarterly: April to June 2026 — Transparency files (csv) (MoJ, released 24 September 2026) · Crown Court open-case age, timeliness and plea-rate data tools; magistrates’ timeliness data tool
Not published at court level
- Convictions, sentence types and custody rates for this court — see national figures on Sentencing and Search
- Court address and opening times — see GOV.UK Find a court or tribunal
- Individual cases, hearings or names — never shown on Court Day UK
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