Children and families coping with imprisonment are often described as the ‘hidden’ victims of the penal system because they must endure their own sentence, despite not having perpetrated any crime. There are a variety of ways in which children and families can be affected by imprisonment including: disruption to child care arrangements, relationship breakdowns, financial loss and stigmatisation.
IPRT works towards the recognition and support of the rights and needs of children and families affected by imprisonment through research, advocacy, and awareness-raising activities. This includes an exciting three-year project (commenced in mid-2020) on families of prisoners, aiming to reduce harm for children and families affected by imprisonment, with a particular focus on reducing female imprisonment. We’re very grateful to our funders, Katharine Howard Foundation and St Stephen’s Green Trust, for supporting such a timely piece of work. You can read more about the network of organisations working in the area set up under the project on actionforfamilies.ie.
Please note this section contains information about advocacy and developments, both national and international. Practical information for prisoners and their families is available here.
2nd June 2017
On a given day, 800,000 children in the European Union alone have an imprisoned parent. Read here about COPE's annual cross-European campaign entitled ‘Not My Crime, Still My Sentence’ running throughout the month of June.
28th February 2017
This guide aims to enable practitioners to support children affected by a family member’s offending, with a whole-family approach.
23rd January 2017
Booklets designed to help defendants and their families to prepare for the possibility of imprisonment.
23rd December 2016
Christmas is one of the most difficult times of year for prisoners and their families.
16th December 2016
The Prison Reform Trust UK, in collaboration with the ICPR and the University of Birkbeck in London have released a report on the importance of family relations to prisoners on their release into the community.
5th September 2016
HM Inspectorate of Prisons has published a new findings report detailing the importance for prisoners of maintaining relationships with those outside prison.
15th January 2016
Ireland is being examined at the UN in respect of its compliance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child. IPRT's formal submissions were included as part of the Children’s Rights Alliance Parallel Report.
4th December 2015
A new report on children of prisoners details the views of children in particular on the experience of visiting a parent in prison.
16th October 2015
A new parenting programme piloted in Limerick prison is featured on the Sean O'Rourke programme on RTE Radio one.
2nd June 2015
The 2015 Children of Prisoners Europe June campaign, “Not my crime, still my sentence”, aims to inform, raise awareness about and draw attention to the rights and needs of children separated from a parent in prison.
Respect for rights in the penal system with prison as a last resort.