HUDDERSFIELD Magistrates' Court building needs a drastic overhaul, say inspectors.

The attack came in a report on conditions in West Yorkshire criminal courts.

Officials from Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Court Administration visited courthouses dealing with criminal cases in West Yorkshire in November.

They looked at the quality of services for defendants.

As well as Huddersfield, the inspectors visited Leeds and Bradford Combined Courts and the seven magistrates' courts at Bradford, Leeds, Dewsbury, Bingley, Halifax, Wakefield and Pontefract.

The report concludes that, overall, the service provided to defendants is satisfactory.

It says many courthouses provide clean and bright waiting areas and well-cared-for courtrooms. Also, security is good.

But the inspectors found a number of areas that could be improved.

These included poor disabled access, long waiting times for court appearances and lack of space in cells.

The report highlights Huddersfield Magistrates' Court cells as needing a radical overhaul.

It says: "Some of the cell areas are dirty, need repairs or don't have enough space for prisoners, security staff or defence solicitors.

"The court cells are particularly poor. It is vital that plans to rebuild them are carried out soon.

"We have asked court managers to make things better for defendants in custody, to make it safer and more comfortable for them."

Philip Limbert, operations manager for the Huddersfield court said: "We are aware of the problem and are waiting for money, so we can carry out a total refurbishment of the cells as soon as possible.

"We believe this overhaul will dramatically improve conditions for defendants."

Improvements are likely to take four months to complete.

Last April the management of all courts was joined together in a new organisation, Her Majesty's Courts Services.