16th December 2006 Beginning 1 January 2007, the Rotterdam-based foundation Slechts op Bezoek (“Just Visiting”) will be shifting its main focus onto children with imprisoned parents. Since its establishment in 1996, Slechts op Bezoek has been offering support to families, friends and other close to offenders. Children have remained largely outside the scope of the … Read More
Year: 2006
New three-year European project entitled V.I.P. (Visiting in Prisons)
16th August 2006 A three-year European project entitled V.I.P. (Visiting in Prisons), part of the European Commission’s Grundtvig adult education and life-learning program, has begun involving partners from Portugal, Spain, Italy, Finland, Denmark, Poland, Germany and the UK Prisons H.M.P Winchester and The Wolds. This project aims to address offender and child relationships by improving … Read More
“Does Every Child Matter?”
16th July 2006 The Children Act 2004 introduced the UK Government’s “Every Child Matters” program of reform. A conference organized by Action for Prisoners’ Families in London in October explored if this was indeed true for meeting the needs of children affected by imprisonment within their families. It also looked at possible measures to tackle … Read More
An evaluation of the safer locals programme
16th June 2006 A report by researchers at the Cambridge Institute of Criminology Prisons Research Centre in England demonstrates how maintaining family ties and contact during imprisonment can help prevent suicide and self harm among offenders. The research, entitled An Evaluation of the Safer Locals Programme, was carried out by Alison Liebling, Sarah Tait, Linda Durie, … Read More
Parental imprisonment : effects on boys’ anti-social behaviour
16th May 2006 A new study by Joseph Murray and David P. Farrington of the Cambridge Institute of Criminology in England explores the long-term adverse impact that the imprisonment of a parent can have on children, assessing later-life outcomes for prisoners’ children compared to children separated from parents for other reasons. Entitled “Parental Imprisonment : effects … Read More
1973 Council of Europe Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners
In 1973, the Council of Europe drew up its own Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, adopted by the Committee of Ministers (Resolution 73. 5). In 1987, the Council of Ministers deemed it necessary to reformulate the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners so as to take into account “significant social … Read More
Dads and kids; The inside story
It is well documented that the effects on family life when someone is in prison can be enormous, so it is vital to enable prisoners and their families to develop and maintain positive relationships during a prison sentence. At the same time that the prison population has risen sharply (76,897 on 12 August 2005 compared … Read More