Police and Crown prosecutors in Bradford are working closer together to speed up the wheels of justice.

Crown Prosecution Service lawyers are moving into police stations to develop better working relations and reduce administration costs and delays.

A pilot scheme in Halifax saw the amount of correspondence between the two organisations shrink dramatically.

The project has now spread to Bradford, where prosecutors have moved into Lawcroft House police station in Toller Lane and will be moving into Tyrls police station later this month.

Neil Franklin, West York-shire's Chief Crown Prose-cutor, said significant impro-vements had already been made in bringing cases to court quicker - including fast-tracking certain cases which had led to some offenders being convicted within three days of the crime. A second pilot study in Halifax resulted in a recommendation that from next April it should become mandatory for Crown prosecutors to give legal advice to police officers prior to charging, to reduce the chance of discontinued cases and downgraded charges.

Mr Franklin said: "The aim is to prosecute more people more effectively, with less delay. We are working towards seamless prosecutions and getting it right first time..

"Members of the public can feel more certain that some one who is charged will get to court. It will also have the effect of increasing the number of guilty pleas so it will be more effective in bringing people to justice quicker."

Bringing prosecutors and police under the same roof came about as a result of a report by Lord Justice Glidewell which concluded that the CPS should move towards closer partnership with the police by being under one roof.

"They seemed quite remote from each other and they needed to have a more joint approach to improve the quality of communication and efficiency," Mr Franklin said.

"This will have the effect of improving the service to victims, witnesses and the public."

Now police and prosecutors can combine files and allow prosecutors to advise investigating officers on what evidence is required to achieve a conviction. Prosecutors can give advice throughout an investigation ensuring that the evidence gathered will stand up in court.

"Co-location has reduced that amount of repair work, reducing the number of adjournments when the case came to court." said Mr Franklin.