Thousands of children in Scotland are silently suffering bullying, shame, distress and disruption to their education and development as a result of the imprisonment of a parent, according to a report published today by the Children's Commissioner.
Not Seen. Not Heard. Not Guilty: the rights and status of the children
of prisoners in Scotland shows that an estimated 13,500 children in
Scotland are affected at any one time by the imprisonment of a parent.
Among the key findings, the report argues that when sentencing options
are being considered, the impact on the child is rarely taken into
account. Indeed, mothers may be more likely to be sent to prison
because of a lack of childcare facilities needed for community
alternatives.
When children are taken into account, it tends to be as an aid to their
parents’ rehabilitation rather than as persons in their own right, said
the report. Furthermore, their access to an imprisoned parent may be
curtailed if a prisoner’s visiting privileges are reduced as a
punishment.
The study also highlights the lack of co-ordinated support available to children once a parent has been imprisoned.
Kathleen Marshall, Scotland’s Commissioner for Children and Young
People, said: "Children of prisoners are all but invisible in the eyes
of the law - they truly are the forgotten victims of crime. Their
voices are silenced by shame and stigma and, while some children may be
relieved when a parent goes to prison, for most it signals the end of a
carefree childhood.
"This is not a plea for offenders who should go to prison to be let off
the hook, it is a plea for their children to be protected from the very
real and often brutal financial, emotional and physical impact of
losing a parent. As the future of prisons in Scotland is reviewed,
politicians, the police, the Scottish Prison Service and social workers
all have a duty to place children’s rights, including stability in
education and home life, much higher up the agenda."
Andrew McLellan, Scotland's Chief Inspector of Prisons, said: "The
Commissioner’s report will help us all to understand the plight of the
children of prisoners. Theirs is a frightening and wretched lot in
life.
"Publicly they can be exposed to shame and bullying, while privately
they cannot be comforted by the strength and love of the absent parent.
Worrying about children is almost universal among prisoners. The more
Scotland can do to care for the children of prisoners, the better for
us all."
Sean McCollum, director of Families Outside, a charity that supports prisoners’ families, said:
"From our work in this area, we know that children of offenders suffer
ongoing trauma, loss and stress throughout arrest, trial, imprisonment
and release. This much-needed report sheds light on the plight of
thousands of children who are side-lined or forgotten at a time when
they are at their most vulnerable. We hope politicians and those
working in criminal justice sit up and take notice."
Green MSP Patrick Harvie also welcomed the report: "Nobody takes the view that those convicted of serious crimes should receive more lenient sentences because of their family circumstances. However, the children of prisoners have done nothing wrong, and the Justice Secretary must ensure better facilities are provided for them to see their parents or carers in Scotland's prisons.
"If Ministers fail to address this problem, thousands of children across Scotland risk being alienated from their parents each year. Prison is intended to protect society and to try to rehabilitate offenders. It's in everyone's interests that when prisoners are released they do not go back to their families as total strangers. As a society we cannot afford the unnecessary alienation and misery that the current system often causes."
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