Going to court as a witness

Attending court as a witness can be an intimidating experience.

You can be asked to attend court as a witness if you:

are a victim of crime
have knowledge about crime or incident
are an ‘expert witness’ with specialist knowledge relevant to the case
if you are a providing a character reference for one of the people involved in a case

If the police have a reason to believe that as a witness you won’t turn up to court, you may be issued with a summons. If you fail to attend trial after receiving a summons, you can be found ‘in contempt of court’ and a warrant may be issued for your arrest.

If you have not attended court before, the experience will be less daunting if you understand the structure and processes followed by the courts. If you are attending as a witness and feel vulnerable there is support available through your local Police Witness Care Unit. This unit will pass on your details so that you have an allocated Witness Care Officer throughout your contact with the court. Throughout England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales these services are provided by organisations such as the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), Citizens Advice Witness Service and/or the Victim Support organisation. This service is provided to any witnesses giving evidence, including witnesses for the defence. The Witness Service will provide help and advice on court procedures and giving evidence. If required, they will arrange a pre-court visit. They can also arrange for you to be accompanied into the courtroom while you’re giving your evidence.

In addition, special help can be provided for vulnerable people including children under the age of 17, victims of sexual offences and people with learning disabilities. This help can support you in giving evidence in the court proceedings.

It is a criminal offence to harass or intimidate a witness and if this happens you should report it to the police immediately.

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