Court user satisfaction remains high, latest survey finds
Satisfaction levels remain high among professionals and members of the public who use the Scottish courts, according to the latest survey for the Scottish Courts & Tribunals Service.
The study, carried out between May and July 2019, recorded 92% of respondents as saying that they were "very" or "fairly" satisfied with the overall, the same level as in the previous survey in 2017. Only 2% were dissatisfied, while 6% were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied.
In specific findings, 97% said they found staff polite and 96% found staff to be helpful, while 68% were "very" or "fairly" satisfied with the time they had to wait, with 11% being dissatisfied. About three in five (61%) were given updates about how long they would have to wait, and a similar number had been given a reason.
In terms of court facilities, satisfaction with the comfort, cleanliness and safety and security of facilities used was generally (though not exclusively) over 75%, slightly lower than in 2017, while 81% of respondents were satisfied with the range of catering provision and 83% were satisfied with the quality of the catering.
Generally, most of those who had used the SCTS website had found it either "very" or "fairly" easy to find the information they were looking for, though a minority had more difficulty with certain categories.
The survey identified some areas which users felt could be improved. The most prevalent among the comments received was the need for better and/or more communication between staff and court users about delays, and timing of court cases.
Welcoming the results, chief executive Eric McQueen commented: "Our staff are very aware of the many reasons people attend court buildings. They show a genuine commitment to public service and this is borne out by our continued customer service excellence accreditation which we were again awarded in 2019. The user survey results now published, underline that very real commitment to delivering an excellent service for users."