Statement of Administrative Sources

The following Table describes the administrative/management sources which the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service currently use to produce official statistics.  There are no databases that are administered or managed by other organisations.

Table 1: Statistical usage of the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunal’s Service administrative and management sources

Name/Title of Administrative Data Source Name of overarching Administrative System (if different) Main administrative purpose of this source/system (Brief Description) Geospatial Coverage Title(s) of all Statistical Products derived from this Source

ICOS (Integrated Courts Operation System)

 

To collate and record information in both Criminal, Civil and Family court tiers

All court tiers within the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service
  • Judicial Statistics
  • Mortgage Press Release
  • Magistrates’ Court Bulletin
  • Crown Court Bulletin
  • High Court Bulletin
  • County Court Bulletin
  • Children Order Bulletin

Enforcement of Judgment’s Office

Judgment Enforcement Management System

Data on the enforcement of  civil judgments in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Judicial Statistics

Social Security/Child Support/Pension Appeals Commissioners

 

Data on those given leave to appeal, the number of appeals and leave to appeals to the Court of Appeal

Northern Ireland

Judicial Statistics

Coroners Service for Northern Ireland

 

Data on the caseload of Coroners

Northern Ireland

Judicial Statistics

Office of Care and Protection

 

Data on the number of case reviews and controllership orders

Northern Ireland

Judicial Statistics

Table 2: Detailed information about the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service’s governance arrangements for its administrative and management sources

Arrangements for providing statistical staff (whether inside or outside the organisation) with access to administrative or management sources for statistical purposes

When there are changes to administrative systems, statistical staff are consulted in a timely manner so that they can adequately prepare for the changes.
In relation to ICOS, a member of ICOS Support Team will highlight any changes in relation to new variables, additional orders and other changes to the format of the database.

Arrangements for auditing the quality of the original source data

When downloads are made, the following validation steps are completed:

  • checking consistency over time and between variables;
  • reliability of data using logic checks;
  • checking that variables fall within accepted ranges; and
  • checking with the ICOS Support Team in the event of any major discrepancies that have occurred since the last download.

Procedures for handling changes, and possible discontinuities, in the underlying source data

Individual court offices are asked to check any discrepancies that occur in relation to cases, for instance, when wrong dates have been input to the system.  Once these have been checked, a list of any necessary changes is compiled and supplied to the ICOS Support Team who arrange for the information to be amended on ICOS.

Procedures for ensuring the security of the statistical processes which use administrative or management sources

Data are received via ICOS from their secure internal download facility that only specified personnel have access to.  Persons are identified by case number and the names and addresses of personnel are not downloaded to the statistical databases.  Files are held on drives that are only accessible by relevant branch staff.  Files are not transmitted outside the branch.

Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service
Laganside House
23-27 Oxford Street
Belfast
BT1 3LA
www.courtsni.gov.uk