• Norwood Forum

Volunteer to become a magistrate: your community needs you

Could you be a volunteer magistrate? Are you looking for a way of learning new skills and giving back to your community that fits in with your working life or other commitments?

The Ministry of Justice is looking to recruit over 4,000 new magistrates as part of a national recruitment drive. You can find out more here. Magistrates are volunteers from all walks of life who hear cases in courts in their community. They can hear cases in the criminal court, the family court, or both. You don’t need any special qualifications or experience to be a magistrate – you are given all the training you need, plus ongoing support. You just need to be between 18 and 70 and prepared to give up at least 13 days a year for five years.

If you can look at a situation from different perspectives, are open-minded, have a sense of fairness and can communicate with people from all backgrounds, then you’ve got what it takes to become a magistrate. The skills you’ll learn won’t just help you be an effective magistrate, you can take them back into your career and apply them in your personal life.

Five steps to becoming a magistrate:

1.Check if the role is right for you by visiting www.icanbeamagistrate.co.uk 
2.Talk to your employer and to family or friends and make sure you can spare the time. You’ll need to volunteer for at least 13 days a year, for at least five years.
3.If you’re applying to the criminal court, make sure you do two court visits before you apply.
4.Check for vacancies on the magistrate recruitment website and fill out an online application form. There is guidance to help with this in our website FAQs
5.If you’re shortlisted, you’ll be called for an interview.
6.Once appointed, you’re not on your own – you'll get ongoing training and support and be assigned a mentor.