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 families with a parent in prison, such as a lack of quality child-parent contact, stigma and financial consequences, among others. The Recommendation emphasises the need to protect and prioritise children’s rights and best interests in all situations that concern them, in line with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). The Recommendation is accompanied by an explanatory report, drafted by COPE, which describes the current situation for children with imprisoned parents in Europe, and includes responses to the questionnaire also drafted by COPE and sent by the Council of Europe to the prison services in all its 47 Member States. The final version of this Recommendation is set to be adopted by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe at the end of March 2018.
Find the Draft Recommendation concerning children with imprisoned parents here.
Find the Draft Explanatory Report here.