Game with Mum & Dad
“I would like it to happen more often. I really enjoyed hugging my grandfather. Normally we just look at him and talk, separately.” — child, Portugal, 9 years old
Context
As outlined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), all children have the fundamental right to maintain contact with their family (Article 9). Article 3 underscores that the child’s best interests should be a primary consideration in all actions concerning them. Upholding these rights is crucial for supporting the emotional and psychological well-being of children with an imprisoned parent, as it fosters resilience and preserves family bonds.
Children’s rights lay at the heart of the Game with Mum & Dad project. This year, COPE invites its members participants to join the third edition of ‘Game with Mum & Dad’, the first international football campaign for children with a parent in prison. It is founded on the COPE network’s shared values of child safeguarding, child participation, non-discrimination and gender equality.
This initiative, consisting of sports games held on prison grounds between children and their imprisoned parents, was first pioneered by COPE member Bambinisenzasbarre in Italy and has since been carried out by 12 further partners across a total of 11 countries:
- Aangan Trust (India)
- lternative Sociale (Romania)
- CASPAE (Portugal)
- Czech Republic Prison Fellowship (Czechia)
- Exodus (The Netherlands)
- Families Outside (Scotland, UK)
- Generalitat de Catalunya, Department of Justice (Spain)
- Hoppenbank e.V (Germany)
- PACT (England, UK)
- Probacja (Poland)
- Projecte Nius (Spain)
- Relais Enfants Parents Romands (Switzerland)
- Relais Enfants Parents (France)
Why Does It Matter?
This awareness-raising campaign goes beyond hosting one-off events that offer families a temporary moment of connection. In addition to this, it aims to change how prisons are perceived, to break down barriers, to humanise the prison environment and embed the perspective of children with imprisoned parents within pentientiary systems. It seeks to boost momentum on the national and international level among decision-makers.
In the short term, these sport games—often football, sometimes other sports— provide opportunities for children to enjoy shared family moments in a less restrictive context. They help destigmatise imprisonment through shared moments of fun with peers, parents and caregivers while increasing awareness among prison staff about the benefits of strengthening family bonds.
In the long term, the campaign will serve as leverage for greater advocacy at the European and international level, urging decision-makers to consider and implement the systemic change required to meet the needs of children with an imprisoned parent. With this campaign, we hope to inspire key actors to become champions for change — to recognise their own roles and responsibilities in advancing children’s rights to maintain contact with a parent in prison. We hope it will generate an overall increased awareness of the potential impact of parental imprisonment on children and how prison services can play a part in strengthening the all important child-parent bond.
The campaign will be an opportunity to foster greater trust and to strengthen partnerships between COPE members and prison services, ministries of justice, and other entities. Ultimately, the campaign aims to dismantle the notion of prison as merely a place of confinement, encouraging an understanding of prison as a place of inclusion.
News from the field
Three matches and counting: How the GWMD model Is changing family visits in Germany
In mid-October, the forth “Game with Mum & Dad” event of 2025 in Germany was held at Bremen Prison.
Germany, 10 October 2025
Children and imprisoned fathers reunite through play as GWMD returns to Romania
The sports hall of the Vaslui Sports High School filled with quick footsteps and unspoken emotions. For a few hours, the space became a place where children and their detained parents reconnected through the simplest shared language: play.
Romania, 11 October 2025
Jakub Błaszczykowski, former member of the Polish national football team, took part in the GWMD event at Krakow Nowa Huta prison.
Poland, 24 Aug 2025
France closes summer 2025 series of GWMD on a high note
For two hours, in the Bois d’Arcy Penitentiary Centre, the usual routines of prison life gave way to laughter, play and meaningful connection, as 12 imprisoned fathers spent precious time with their 23 children.
France, 10 Jul 2025
Over 150 people attended the “Game with Mum & Dad” at Bollate prison (Milan, Italy), where the eagerly awaited meeting between imprisoned parents and their children took place.
Italy, 3 June 2025
More news here.
Get Involved!
Want to make a difference? Join us in the ‘Game with Mum & Dad’ campaign! Learn more by visiting the campaign website or emailing us at contact[@]gamewithmum-dad[.]eu. Creating long-lasting change takes time.
Donating to Game with Mum & Dad will help ensure the campaign’s sustainability, allowing COPE and partners to continue effecting real and lasting change for children with a parent in prison. If you wish to donate to this campaign, please do so here.