Here you will find charters, conventions and other documents that are relevant to the issue of children of imprisoned parents. Organised by International, European and National legislation, the documents that follow provide legal frameworks for children’s rights and prisoner’s rights. This is by no means an exhaustive list of legislation and recommendations, but are foundational texts for COPE’s work.
International
1977 UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners
Adopted by the First United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders, held at Geneva in 1955, and approved by the Ec
2015 UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (The Nelson Mandela Rules)
Adopted in 2015, the 122 rules of the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules) lays a minimum s
2010 UN Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners and Non-custodial Measures for Women Offenders (the Bangkok Rules)
The United Nations’ 2010 Bangkok Rules include indispensable provisions regarding the rights of imprisoned mothers, among an expansive number of other
1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
The Convention on the Rights of the Child, the first legally binding code of child’s rights, was adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations
Europe
European Union Strategy on the Rights of the Child and the European Child Guarantee
The Strategy on the Rights of the Child and the European Child Guarantee were published by the European Union on 24 March 2021. These two comprehensiv
Council of Europe Compendium of Conventions, Recommendations and Resolutions Relating to Prisons and Community Sanctions and Measures
This compendium includes the following Conventions, Recommendations and Resolutions: CONVENTIONS European Convention on the Supervision of Conditional
Council of Europe Recommendation CM/Rec(2018)5
The Council of Europe Recommendation CM/Rec(2018)5 of the Committee of Ministers to member States concerning children with imprisoned parents is a lan
Council of Europe Strategy on the Rights of the Child (2016-2021)
The Council of Europe Strategy for the Rights of the Child provides a plan from 2016-2021 to improve upon and develop child rights legislation. Follow
2014 European Parliament 25th Anniversary Resolution
The 25th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child was effectively a European reiteration of and expansion on the original 1989 Con
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 (Resolutio
2000 Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union
The rights of the child as stipulated by the 2000 Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union: 1. Children shall have the right to such protec
National
Irish National Policy Framework for Children & Young People 2014-2020
Ireland’s Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures: The National Policy Framework for Children & Young People (2014-2020) is a broad document providing a pol
2014 Italian Memorandum of Understanding on Children with Imprisoned Parents
The charter on children of imprisoned parents formally recognises the right of children to maintain direct contact with their detained parent—and requ