First Portuguese conference on children of prisoners
March 10, 2017
On 31 January, COPE’s Secretary General Nancy Loucks OBE of Families Outside represented COPE at a Parliamentary expert meeting and a national-level conference on children with imprisoned parents in Lisbon, Portugal. Nancy spoke on behalf of COPE about the network, recent European developments for children of prisoners and the Italian model Memorandum of Understanding. Among
Exodus collaborates with Ombudswoman for Children to grant wishes of children of prisoners
March 5, 2017
Every six months, Exodus organises an expert meeting on the rights and wishes of children of prisoners. The goal is to realise ten wishes of children of prisoners, following a step-by-step process. A variety of organisations work together (prison system, police, schools, lawyers, youth care, probation service). One of the topics that has come up
Council for Penological Co-operation Summary Meeting Report
March 5, 2017
The Council for Penological Co-operation (PC-CP) of the Council of Europe has published a Summary Meeting Report following the 14th meeting of the Working Group in Strasbourg, 30 January – 1 February 2017, in which two COPE experts participated to draw attention to the issue of children with imprisoned parents. Other topics discussed during the three-day
Council of Europe Committee of Ministers Recommendation
February 15, 2017
COPE began working in Strasbourg with the Council of Europe in late January 2017 to draft a Committee of Ministers Recommendation on Children with Imprisoned Parents. The Recommendation will be based on all aspects of the Italian Memorandum of Understanding that are relevant to prisons, including rights to visits; child-friendly spaces and information; supporting the child-parent relationship; prison officer
Children of prisoners briefing to States at United Nations, Geneva
February 3, 2017
As part of the Child Rights Connect working group on children of incarcerated parents, Children of Prisoners Europe (COPE) co-organised and participated in an international briefing for Member States at the UN in Geneva on 1 February 2017. This event took place during the 74th session of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child
Prison Inspectorate 2015/2016 Report in England and Wales
January 20, 2017
The Inspectorate of Prisons (England and Wales) report published in August 2016 acknowledged that maintaining family contact, where appropriate, is a “key source of support for prisoners during their time in custody and on their release”. The Inspectorate also recognised that: “maintaining contact with the imprisoned parents supports the children’s development: mentally, emotionally and in
Research: Children with Imprisoned Parents in Latvia
November 14, 2016
Anna Krasanova LL.M, Senior Lawyer of the Children’s Rights Division of the Ombudsman’s Office of the Republic of Latvia, has published research entitled “Research of the Situation Regarding the Right of the Children of Imprisoned Persons to Contact with Their Parents in Latvia”. In a bid to assess whether the situation of children with imprisoned
