A review of coroners and the way they work should lead to more compassionate treatment for bereaved families in Oxfordshire.

A Home Office report, produced by the Independent Review of Coroner Services, has called for a number of changes to improve efficiency and increase public confidence.

The Government will now consider the recommendations of the report, Fundamental Review of Death Certification and Coroner Services, published yesterday.

The report, which could change the way coroners work at inquests held at Old County Hall in Oxford, has been welcomed by lawyer Louise Christian, the daughter of a former Lord Mayor of Oxford.

She has represented bereaved families in a number of tragedies, including the Marchioness and Ladbroke Grove disasters.

But Ms Christian said she was disappointed the report did not recommend that all bereaved families in jury inquests should have the right to receive legal aid.

She added: "I believe families involved in death-in-custody cases, or medical negligence cases, should get legal aid."

Jury inquests are used when cicumstances surrounding a death are controversial or mysterious.

Ms Christian, who last year co-wrote Inquests: A practitioner's guide for lawyers, said it would be a regressive step if cases involving deaths in the workplace were deemed to no longer require a jury.

She added: "That appears to be the recommendation, and I would not be in favour of that."

Welcoming the report, Home Office minister Paul Goggins said: "The shortcomings within the current system have become increasingly evident. It is essential we build an effective, supportive and transparent system that commands public confidence."

The key proposals in the report include a more consistent and transparent approach to inquests, fewer inquests and more conducted privately, fewer post mortems, more informative outcomes and rights for the bereaved.

Oxford coroner Nicholas Gardiner was unavailable for comment.