Dr Stephanie Bennett, a senior lecturer in criminology and forensic psychology, attended the House of Lords on Monday, January 21, to present her research on the subject.
The research, published in November, was a collaboration with Professor Jane Payler and Professor Victoria Cooper of the Open University Children’s Research Centre.
The study focused on the needs and types of support available for children with a parent in prison.
Dr Bennett said: “It was fantastic to be able to shine a spotlight on the issue of identification and support for children who have a parent in prison.
“Currently, the exact number of children in England and Wales who have a parent in prison is unknown, and therefore many children and families may be missing out on the very support they need at an extremely challenging time in their lives.”
The most recent estimates show that between October 1, 2021, and October 1, 2022, there were 192,912 children with a parent in prison in England and Wales.
Dr Bennett added: “It is proposed that rather than basing figures on estimates, radical change is needed in terms of recording and storing information about how many children are impacted by parental imprisonment in real-time so that responsive support can be made available for the children and their families when they need it.”
The research found that parental imprisonment can negatively impact children’s development.
However, when children are supported through family-centred, relationship-focused, strengths-based services, they can engage more fully in their daily lives.
Dr Bennett said: “It was really promising to hear directly from officials at the Ministry of Justice that there is a commitment to identify children of prisoners and provide support to those in custody and their families.
“Our hope is that a statutory mechanism for the identification of children will be rolled out, enabling families to be offered the support they need in a timely way to enable the best possible outcomes for the whole family.”
The Westminster conference was attended by various academic and education professionals, including The Lord Hastings of Scarisbrick CBE, Katie Light, and Francesca Burt of the Ministry of Justice, and Caroline Nokes MP.
For more information about the Families First intervention evaluated as part of the research study, see www.yss.org.uk/families-first.
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