Scotland's first domestic abuse court has been expanded to cover more cases, with an extra £2.4m in funding.

Scotland's first domestic abuse court has been expanded to cover more cases, with an extra £2.4m in funding.

The specialist court will extend its service to include both the west and centre of Glasgow. Until now, the court covered only the south of the city, including Castlemilk, Govan, Pollok, Cardonald and Gorbals.

Assist, the support service linked to the court, received £2.4m from the Scottish Government and Glasgow Community and Safety Services to allow it to expand its service.

The specialist court was launched in October 2004 in Glasgow Sheriff Court and is designed to speed up cases. All cases referred to the court are assigned a date within six weeks of being called to trial, and the vast majority of the accused plead guilty before or during the trial.

To date, the court has dealt with around 3000 cases and Assist has supported more than 6000 victims of domestic abuse.

Stephen House, Strathclyde Police Chief Constable, said: "We have already made significant progress in the area but we will continue to work with our partners to provide support for all those affected and to bring those responsible for domestic abuse to account."

Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said: "Violence against women must not be tolerated in any form. We know the effects of domestic abuse can be devastating, including on children and young people, and we are determined to tackle it, wherever and whenever it occurs.

"The Scottish Government is committed to the rigorous and rapid prosecution of the perpetrators of domestic abuse and to improving support for the victims of this despicable crime.

"We are determined to build on the success of the pilot court in Glasgow and this latest stage of the roll-out of the domestic abuse court underlines our commitment, both financially and morally, to tackling the scourge of domestic abuse in Scotland."