WARRINGTON Magistrates’ Court is to be relocated and Warrington County Court is set to close as part of an overhaul of the justice system.

Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service confirmed the news despite concerns raised about the plans.

Under the shake up, cases heard at Halton Magistrates Court will be transferred to Warrington Magistrates’ Court.

This decision forms part of the plan to relocate Warrington Magistrates’ Court on Arpley Street to Warrington Combined Court Centre on Legh Street.

Tribunal hearings currently heard in Halton or Warrington magistrates’ court will move to St Helens County Court.

Warrington County Court will close and the workload will be moved to St Helens County Court instead of Liverpool Civil and Family Court and Manchester County Court as was originally proposed.

This is despite calls from the Warrington Law Society to rethink the plans.

A spokesman for the society said: “For a town the size of Warrington, with a population in excess of 200,000 people living locally to be without a local civil and family court is to fundamentally undermine the principle of ‘access to justice’ which has been the principle and guiding philosophy of the court service in recent years.”

A total of 482 responses were received to the proposals on court and tribunal services in the north west consultation paper.

More to follow.