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Ministry
of Justice
Transparency data
Quashed convictions
management information: 5
December 2024
Updated 5 December 2024
Applies to England and Wales
Contents
What the data means
How we identify convictions in scope
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© Crown copyright 2024
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/post-office-
horizon-system-offences-act-2024-quashed-convictions-management-information/quashed-
convictions-management-information-5-december-2024
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This page contains information on the progress made by the government in
identifying convictions imposed in England and Wales which were quashed
by the Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Act 2024
(https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2024/14) on 24 May 2024.
In February 2024, the Post Office and Crown Prosecution Service made the
Ministry of Justice aware of a total of 936 records for possible individuals
who may have been convicted because of the faulty Horizon accounting
system. Of these records, 27 did not include sufficient data for us to trace
the individual’s conviction.
In addition to this, individuals can identify themselves through contacting the
Ministry of Justice Post Office convictions casework team or through the
Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme website (https:/www.gov.uk/horizon-
convictions-redress-scheme) at any time. As of 29 November, the Ministry of
Justice is aware of 48 individuals who have self-identified and were not
previously known to us. These cases are under assessment. As there is no
time limit for individuals to self-identify, this number may increase over time.
There are currently therefore 957 individual cases that have been or
are being considered. As of 29 November, we have assessed 91% of
these individual cases.
The table below contains information on assessments made as well as
letters sent, as not every individual will receive a letter. This is explained in
greater detail in the explanatory notes below the table.
15 November Total to date
to 29 (July* to 29
November November
2024 2024)
Total number of individuals whose 53 875
convictions have been assessed (1)
The number of individuals identified as 39 561
having at least one conviction quashed
by the Act. (2)
45 526
Number of individuals who have been
sent a letter (2a)
The number of individuals assessed and
written to (or due to be written to),
requesting further information to help
identify if their convictions are in scope
of the Act. (3)
Number of individuals who have been
sent a letter (3a)
The number of individuals confirmed as
having no convictions quashed by the
Act. (4)
Individuals who only have convictions
for an offence committed outside the
time period specified by the Act and/or
individuals who only have convictions
for an offence other than those specified
in the Act. (4a)
Individuals who only have convictions
imposed after the Act came into force
(4b)
Individuals who only have convictions
where the prosecution was not brought
by the Post Office or the Crown
Prosecution Service in England and
Wales (4c)
Individuals who only have convictions
already considered by the Court of
Appeal (4d)
Individuals who only have convictions
already quashed by the courts (4e)
Individuals for whom a not guilty verdict
was recorded for the offence(s) being
considered (4f)
15 November
to 29
November
2024
12
13
1"
Total to date
(July* to 29
November
2024)
157
125
157
23
14
18
101
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15 November Total to date
to 29 (July* to 29
November November
2024 2024)
Total number of convictions identified as 153 1960
quashed by the Act (5)
*MoJ identified the first individuals with at least one conviction as in scope
of the Act w/c 22 July.
** The figures in the table above may change where a case has been
reassessed following additional information being provided.
The figures in this release are from a live system and may differ from
information released previously. In November 2024, the counting
methodologies for all figures were updated to better account for instances of
updated and amended records, data assurance processes, and those who
self-identify. Differences may also exist between figures due to differences
in time data was extracted. Letters returned as undeliverable are removed
from the totals of 2a and 3a. The total number of individual cases that have
been or are being considered has increased to 957 since the last
publication. This is due to an additional 8 individuals who self-identified to
the casework team who were not included in the previous total.
What the data means
(1) This number represents all individuals whose convictions have been
assessed.
(2) Individuals identified as having at least one conviction quashed by the
Act will be eligible for the Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme. If the
individual is deceased their personal representative may be eligible to
submit a claim. Once we have confirmed that someone has a conviction
quashed by the Act, we send them a letter to notify them of this as soon as
possible. The number of these individuals we have sent letters to can be
found at (2a). Letters are sent out in batches and there may be a small
delay between assessments being made and letters being sent. There are
currently 31 individuals with quashed convictions that we cannot write to as
we have been unable to confirm their current address.
(3) This number refers to individuals whose convictions appear to be out of
scope but may be able to provide further information to help us identify
whether their convictions are in scope of the Act. We are writing to these
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individuals to request this information. The number of these individuals we
have sent letters to can be found at (3a). Letters are sent out in batches and
there may be a small delay between assessments being made and letters
being sent. There are currently 31 individuals that we cannot write to in this
category as we have been unable to confirm their current address.
(4) This number refers to individuals who have not had any convictions
quashed by the Act in England and Wales and provides a breakdown of this
category into the following reasons:
e The conviction was for an offence committed outside the time period
specified by the Act or the conviction was for an offence other than those
specified in the Act. (4a)
e The conviction was imposed after the Act came into force (which was on
24 May 2024). (4b)
e The prosecution was not brought by the Post Office or the Crown
Prosecution Service in England and Wales. (4c)
e The conviction has already been considered by the Court of Appeal. (4d)
e The conviction has already been quashed by the courts. (4e)
« Anot guilty verdict was recorded for the offence(s) being considered (4f)
We do not write letters to individuals in this group unless they have self-
identified and asked us to consider their convictions.
(5) Individuals may have more than one conviction that falls within scope of
the Act. The total number of convictions is therefore higher than the number
of individuals who have been assessed as having at least one conviction in
scope of the Act.
Any convictions given in Northern Ireland are within scope of the Act but are
not covered by this publication. Any convictions imposed in Scotland are not
covered by the Act and are considered under separate legislation.
How we identify convictions in scope
The Act (https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2024/14/enacted) sets out 5
conditions alongside other criteria.
The 5 conditions which must be met for a conviction to have been quashed
cover: offence date; offence type; that the individual was working in a Post
Office or carrying on a Post Office business at the time of the alleged
offence; that the offence was allegedly committed in connection with
carrying on or working on Post Office business; and whether Horizon was
installed in the branch the individual was working in at the time.
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The Ministry of Justice Post Office convictions casework team are
conducting complex checks to identify whether individuals identified to us
have any convictions that are within scope of the Act. In order to limit the
burden on individuals to provide information themselves to show that their
convictions are in scope of the Act, we are checking multiple data sources
to obtain information on which convictions meet the Act's criteria. This
includes records from the Police National Computer, Post Office Limited,
His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service, His Majesty’s Revenue and
Customs, and the Criminal Cases Review Commission. Due to
inconsistencies discovered between the different data sources, the process
of identifying quashed convictions is taking longer than initially expected.
Once the casework team have verified that each conviction meets the Act’s
criteria, they will write to individuals to notify them of this. In some instances,
these letters may ask the individual for more information so that their
convictions can be fully assessed. In some cases we have assessed a
conviction in scope but are unable to contact the individual because we
have been unable to confirm their current address. Even where we cannot
contact an individual, their criminal records will be amended to reflect the
relevant quashed conviction(s).
If you have not yet received a letter and believe you have an eligible
conviction, we encourage you to register here (https://www.gov.uk/horizon-
convictions-redress-scheme) or contact the casework team by email at:
PostOfficeConvictions@justice.gov.uk. This information will be shared with
the convictions casework team who will confirm whether the individual’s
convictions are already being considered and - if they were not previously
known to the team - will commence the collation of data and assessment.
Data on Horizon-related financial redress can be found here
(https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/post-office-horizon-compensation-data-
for-2024).
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