There are an estimated 310,000 children affected by parental imprisonment each year. It is important that professionals working in prisons, Young Offender Institutions (YOIs), Secure Children's Homes and Secure Training Centres (STCs) have an awareness of how to help children and parents maintain ties as a means of reducing reoffending and intergenerational offending, and also for the wellbeing of innocent families.
NICCO’s briefings for Prison and Young Offenders staff provide a poster, key stats and recommendations around the wellbeing of prisoners' children and support for professionals. NICCO’s briefing on safeguarding children visiting prisons highlights the important role of prisons in safeguarding children visiting family members, outlining key responsibilities and practice examples.
The following list provides links to key research, great practice models, important policy and helpful resources which are specific to helping you support offenders and their children and families.
Resources for Professionals in Prisons and YOIs
There are many more practical, informative and interactive resources for professionals working in Prisons and YOIs, such as toolkits for how to work with children and families in your setting, videos for raising awareness around the impact of imprisonment on families, media pieces which highlight the importance of this type of work and much more listed on NICCO. We feature a few in the list below.
Quality Statements & Toolkit - this comprehensive and easy-to-use resource enables multi-agency professionals to assess and develop their practice with children of offenders. Informed by research, it includes many good practice examples and a work plan template to set action points for your service.
Supporting children and families affected by a family member’s offending – A Practitioner’s Guide – An accessible and comprehensive Guide for multi-agency frontline practitioners including tools, resource lists and practice tips to support effective community-based interventions with offenders’ children and families.
SCIE- E-learning - these 3 interactive tools help all professionals gain an understanding of the impact of an offender's journey through the CJS on their children and family.
It’s no holiday- this film can be used for awareness raising. It uses children's voices to explore their experiences of a close family member's journey through the criminal justice system particularly imprisonment and visiting.
Resources for children & families
There are many more age-appropriate resources for children, parents and other family members to be used independently or with a professional, which offer information around the practical and emotional aspects of a loved one serving a custodial sentence. We feature a few in the list below.
National Offenders’ Families Helpline - Free and confidential information service providing basic advice, emotional support, and signposting to local services. Their website includes simple information sheets to print for offenders' families on all issues relating to a loved one's involvement with the criminal justice system.
Ormiston have produced leaflets for parents and carers on being a parent in prison, being a carer to children of imprisoned parents, visiting prison and what to tell the children.
The Outsiders series from APF includes quotes from families and prisoners and focus on Preparing for release, Sent to prison, Living with separation, Telling the children.
My Special Book- These downloadable and printable booklets have blank spaces for young children to communicate feelings around visiting Mum or Dad in prison or a YOI.
Resources for parents in custody
There more resources listed on NICCO for parents in prison and YOIs such as information for those with a disability, who have committed specific offences, around family ties and coping emotionally. We feature a few in the list below.
Ormiston have a leaflet with advice on being a parent in prison.
Mum’s the Word - A guide to being a good mum in prison- This new practical resource from Pact is to be used upon entry to prison and throughout. It includes quotes from mothers inside and activities.
Prisoners information book: Male and Young Offenders - This clear and detailed booklet is for prisoners and families who are not used to custodial processes.
Background information - Policy and Research
There is much research and policy concerning prisoners' children and families listed on NICCO. We feature a few key pieces below.
Children of Offenders Review - this pivotal NOMS and DfES report notes the gaps in data collection and service provision for children of offenders and gives clear policy recommendations.
Bromley Briefings - Document full of statistics around various facets of the prison population including a section around young offenders and offender’s children and families.
Prisoners' childhood and family backgrounds: Results from the Surveying Prisoner Crime Reduction (SPCR) longitudinal cohort study of prisoners - Large scale MOJ research which estimates there are 200,000 children affected by parental imprisonment.
Locked Out: Children's experiences of visiting a parent in prison - Report from Barnardo's with detailed recommendations on how to make prison visits more positive experiences for children.
Practice Models
There are more multiagency frameworks and practice models about other CJS work listed on NICCO. We feature a few in the list below.
Ofsted Good practice resource - Inclusive family learning in a prison setting: HMP Wolds- practice model about Family Learning programme which gives Dads inside and their children time to bond.
Fatherhood programme STC Oakhill - Prison and health service collaboration teaches new fathers essential parenting skills in a young offenders Secure Training Unit.
Training
Hidden Sentence Training - This has been developed by Action for Prisoners’ Families for multi-agency professionals, and gives an overview of issues which prisoners’ families routinely face. See a list of all training featured on NICCO, or find training in your local area by using NICCO’s search by region function on the home page.
