COURT workers whose jobs were under threat enjoyed a last-minute reprieve when Brentford and Feltham Magistrates Courts were saved from the chop.

Both courthouses were facing closure under a radical proposal by the Greater London Magistrates' Courts Authority (GLMCA) to close out of date buildings and reduce costs.

However, following a meeting by GLMCA executives on Thursday last week, the borough's courts were saved pending a major review between 2002 to 2006.

Nick McCarthy, assistant general secretary for AMO, the union for Magistrates' Court staff, said: "We are very happy that both Feltham and Brentford Magistrates' Courts will stay open because it gives job security."

Tony Arbour, Hounslow's Greater London Assembly member, who has been campaigning against the proposal since it was announced in January, said: "It's a great relief that both courts have had a last minute reprieve from the GLMCA and I hope that in further reviews they resolve to keep both courts open.

"I have argued since this proposal first came to light that local justice should be delivered by local people and I hope in time they will recognise this."

He added: "I think it's a jolly good Christmas present for court workers, who will have been on tenterhooks as to whether they would have employment in 2002, to know that at least for now their livelihoods are secure."