Children of Prisoners Europe (COPE) is pleased to announce the release of the programme for our 2019 COPE Annual Conference, held 31 May in Krakow, Poland. This pan-European conference, entitled ‘Bridging the gap: Boosting the visibility, voices and cross-sectoral support of children who have a parent in prison’, will be hosted by COPE member Małopolskie Stowarzyszenie Probacja (Probacja Foundation)and will consider the importance of cross-sectoral support for children with imprisoned parents. A range of speakers from throughout Europe and abroad, including a number of experts from the Polish context specifically, will focus on multiple points at which the child’s best interests and the rights of children broadly should be taken into account, from the moment of a parent’s arrest, to sentencing, to reintegration after imprisonment.
Key speakers at this year’s conference will include Ann Adalist-Estrin, Director of the National Resource Center on Children and Families of the Incarcerated (USA) and author of the book The Impact of Parental Incarceration on Children in the Child Welfare System Curriculum, who will present on advocacy that protects children; Beata Zinkiewicz, an expert on the pedagogy of resocialisation at Andrzej Frycz Modrzewski University, speaking on the role of probation officers in family reintegration; and Shona Minson, a British Academy Post Doctoral Fellow at the Centre for Criminology at the University of Oxford, presenting on the implementation of the Council of Europe’s Recommendation CM/Rec(2018)5 and the pertinence of considering children during sentencing decisions.
The conference will also feature the voices of young people affected by parental imprisonment and will include opportunities for audience engagement and discussion. The keynote speech will be given by Dariusz Cieślik, County Court Judge, Family and Minors, Ministry of Justice and the conference will be co-chaired by COPE President Lucy Gampell, OBE and COPE Board member Rachel Brett.
The day will be divided into four conference sessions: the Polish context; Kids center stage; Fortifying cross-sectoral support; and Looking forward. Each session will be followed by a question and discussion period. The registration deadline is 20 May. Consult the full programme here: https://childrenofprisoners.eu/events/