Volume 6 of the European Journal of Parental Imprisonment (EJPI) is now available! This edition of the EJPI highlights the role of schools in supporting children of prisoners. Children spend the majority of their day at school, and it is important for them to feel comfortable and safe in that environment. In many cases parental … Read More
Year: 2017
“Children deprived of liberty and alternatives to detention” Forum
The 11th European Forum on the Rights of the Child took place in Brussels on 7-8 November 2017, focussing on “Children deprived of liberty and alternatives to detention”. There were a number of presentations during the Forum, notably from Manfred Nowak, Independent Expert for the United Nations Secretary-General’s study on children deprived of liberty and … Read More
UN Global Study on Children Deprived of Liberty
In 2016, the UN launched a “Global Study on Children Deprived of Liberty”. There is a severe lack of quantitative and qualitative data, research and verified information relating to children deprived of liberty. The UN Global Study, lead by Independent Expert Manfred Nowak, intends to look at the scale of the issue (collecting disaggregated data) … Read More
Vulnerabilities and pathways related to parental imprisonment
The 11th European Forum on the Rights of the Child took place in Brussels on 7-8 November 2017, entitled “Children deprived of liberty and alternatives to detention,” bringing together over 350 participants from UN agencies and bodies, global, European and national organisations and individuals working to protect, defend and promote the implementation of the rights … Read More
Papa Plus: supporting the child-parent relationship in Bulgaria
In the European Union, some 800,000 children are separated from a parent in prison. The pan-European network Children of Prisoners Europe (COPE) has been working with the Fédération des Relais Enfants Parents (FREP) for 20 years to support initiatives across Europe that focus on preserving and strengthening bonds between children and their parent in prison, … Read More
How to replicate and implement the Italian Memorandum of Understanding on children with imprisoned parents
In 2014, COPE’s Italian network member Bambinisenzasbarre obtained the signature of a “Memorandum of Understanding”, entitled the “Charter of Children with Imprisoned Parents”. This agreement was signed by the Italian Minister for Justice, the National Ombudsman for Childhood and Adolescence and Bambinisenzasbarre. This document, the first of its kind in Europe, formally recognises the right … Read More
Final stages for Council of Europe Recommendation on Children of Prisoners
The Council for Penological Co-operation (PC-CP) of the Council of Europe has published the draft Recommendation on children with imprisoned parents. The draft Recommendation was presented during the 7th PC-CP Plenary meeting, 6-8 November 2017. It comes after months of work and collaboration between the PC-CP and COPE. The Recommendation acknowledges the challenges faced by … Read More
Children of Roma and Traveller Prisoners: A Short Guide (2017)
There is an overrepresentation of Roma and Travellers in prison populations in Europe, though exact numbers are difficult to establish, as some countries in Europe do not provide prison population statistics by “ethnicity” and “race”. There is a general lack of understanding and studies on the situation of Roma and Traveller prisoners across European countries, … Read More
Launch of Volume 5 of the European Journal of Parental Imprisonment
Volume 5 of the European Journal of Parental Imprisonment (EJPI) is available online! This volume, entitled Making children count: Improving data collection for children with imprisoned parents, focuses on the importance of data collection and the manner in which data is collected and then used. The language used and ways of collecting data can affect … Read More
EuroPris Family Relations Expert Group: Good Practice Collection
The European Organisation of Prison and Correctional Services (EuroPris) Family Relations Expert Group has drafted a Good Practice Collection in cooperation with Children of Prisoners Europe (COPE). This Collection has come out of two years of fruitful exchange between Prison and Correctional Service representatives from eleven countries across Europe, along with COPE. The Collection covers … Read More