In order to make visits as comfortable as possible, Bedford Row Family Project in Ireland, has set up hospitality services at the Limerick prison. These services provide refreshments to those who visit, as well as child-centered activities in the waiting room in order to create a relaxed atmosphere before the children visit their parent. The … Read more
COPE affiliate BAG-S e.V. (Germany), in partnership with the Alanus Hochschule art school, has developed an innovative tool to help guide children through prison, from entry to departure, when they come to visit a parent who is incarcerated there. Bear Buddy is described in a picture book that children can read while waiting to see … Read more
Yellow Spaces (Spazio Giallo) were implemented by Bambinisenzasbarre in prisons in Italy beginning in 2007. These are integrated socio-educational spaces inside prisons for children preparing themselves to visit with their parent who is imprisoned. The initiative gained recognition in Rome and in 2009 was given a Mention of Merit “Premio Amico della Famiglia” by the … Read more
The programme TAKT was launched in the Nuremberg area. It’s main focus is on sensitivity training for prison staff (prison officers and social workers), school environments (teachers and social workers), and teaching modules about children of prisoners for classroom discussion. The programme comes out of a group of interviews from a COPING study in which … Read more
For Fangers Pårørende (FFP) has for a long time wanted to do more to meet the needs of families of foreign nationals and minority ethnic prisoners. In 2014, FFP received funding for their Minority Ethnic Project, and employed a Minority Counselor. The goal of the project is to reach out to the families of minority … Read more
Relais Enfants Parents ASBL provides a meeting space to facilitate sharing between parents who are incarcerated. It is a place where parents can exchange stories and experiences. These discussions also allow the parents to develop a sense of both the difficulties faced during the separation or removal of a child and a sense of community in … Read more
In Sweden, Bufff has implemented a program to provide parental support as soon as possible after a parent is incarcerated. They begin the process during remand and early on during the prison sentence. This program, Child Talk, provides parental support for the sake of the child. It is for all parents, both in and out … Read more
For Fangers Pårørende (FFP) put on an exhibition called Behind the Wall. This was a photography project for children with parents in prison in Norway. A group of young people with parents in prison were allowed to take pictures in Ullersmo, a high-security prison outside of Oslo. The children were given photography lessons and a … Read more
The Czech Helsinki Committee has been successful in advocating for children’s rights to visit a parent in prison and are now holding days for assisted prison visits. These visits include children in foster care. Many of these visits are to female prisons and in these cases, mothers get to meet and have lunch with their … Read more
In France, Relais Enfants Parents (REP) and the Federation REP, hold visits for children of prisoners, mothers and fathers. They do so through a system of volunteers who accompany the children to the prisons. These volunteers are not prison-based and are trained before accompanying the children. This is done to give children a chance to … Read more
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The COPE network is part of the Child Rights Connect Working Group on Children of Incarcerated Parents.
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COPE is proud to be one of 18 organisations that contributed to writing the Child Rights Manifesto.
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