This comprehensive Barnardo's i-HOP guide is a resource for all community health professionals including midwives, health visitors, school nurses and many more.
It aims to inform and help develop their work with the children and families of offenders. It includes an introduction to children affected by parental imprisonment including who they are, the general impact of parental imprisonment and on under fives, pregnant women in prison and how children experience the criminal justice system. The guide then looks at the Healthy Child Programme framework and how this links in to children affected by parental imprisonment. There is then a section around developing good practice including subsections around awareness raising, challenging stigma, early intervention, confidentiality, assessments, understanding what is happening in the family, practicalities, talking about imprisonment with children and very young children, resilience, continuity of support, linking with local strategies and initiatives, multi-agency working and information sharing and safeguarding. There is also a checklist for health professionals to use to better understand how to support these families as well as lists of frequently asked questions and resources for children, parents and professionals. Inside there is also a handy poster to display in your work setting which encourages families to self identify if they have a loved one in prison and ask for support. There is also a short document which summarises this resource.
Please download your free copy of the guide, poster and summary below:
