2005 News Archives

United Kingdom - 20th October 2005

Action for Prisoners' Families conference

Action for Prisoners' Families (APF) organized a conference in London on maintaining family contact on 20th October 2005. With over 200 delegates attending, the conference opened on an original note with the performance of a specially commissioned play entitled "Homeward Bound," by Mary Cooper. Performed by the M6 Theatre Company, the play skillfully highlights the issues and emotional conflicts that families face when a family member, in this case the father, is about to be released from prison.

Lithuania - 15th October 2005

Overview of “Best Practice”

An internal conference in Vilnius entitled Women and the Penal System in Europe : Review, Analysis of Requirements, and Overview of "Best Practice" (October 13-16, 2005) was held October 13-16, 2005, marking the culmination of an international research project sponsored by the European Commission (AGIS program) on women and the penal system in Europe.

Norway - 12th October 2005

Supporting teenagers with friends or relatives in prison

Foreningen for Fangers Pårørende (FFP), a Norwegian organization working on behalf of relatives and friends of offenders, has launched a project aimed at supporting teenagers aged 13 to 20 with friends or relatives in prison.

The Impact of Children's Visits on Imprisoned Fathers

A new study entitled "Effect van kinderbezoek aan gedetineerde Vaders" (The Impact of Children's Visits on Imprisoned Fathers) by Anke Bolwijn and Piet Bolwijn has just been published in the Netherlands . Based on a child-parent project carried out in the Dutch prison of Roermond, the study involves ten fathers and sixteen children age 3 to 13 and explores the impact of children's visits on imprisoned fathers. The visits scheme at Roermond offers fathers the opportunity to have physical contact with their children (children can climb onto their father's laps and they can embrace) and give them their full attention. In turn, the study finds that the prison atmosphere is quieter and more humane as a result of the visits. For further information: Anke Bolwijn and Piet Bolwijn, "Effect van kinderbezoek aan gedetineerde vaders", Proces 2004/5, pp. 196-201.

Canada - 2005

Crime Prevention and Intervention

A seminar entitled "Prévention et l'intervention face à la criminalité" (Crime Prevention and Intervention) is being held 20-22 April, 2005, in Orford , Quebec .

United Kingdom - 21st April 2005

Homeward Bound: The Resettlement Pathway for Children & Families

On 21 April 2005, Action for Prisoners' Families and the Eastern Regional Families Partnership (The Ormiston Children & Families Trust) are organizing a conference entitled Homeward Bound: The Resettlement Pathway for Children & Families.

Appeal to government departments to coordinate their action

In response to a report entitled "Poverty and Disadvantage Among Prisoners' Families," released in May by The Centre for Crime and Justice Studies and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, charities in the UK are appealing to government departments to coordinate their action to respond to the plight of the estimated 150,000 children a year whom they say are being neglected by the state.

New prison visits booking scheme

The Milan-based association Bambinisenzasbarre (BSS), a Eurochips member, is working in collaboration with San Vittore Prison to organize a new prison visits booking scheme for children with imprisoned parents.

United Kingdom - 23rd March 2005

Good practice workshop

Action for Prisoners' Families, in partnership with the Midlands Regional Visitors Centre Forum, is organizing a good practice workshop for members on 23 March, 2005, in Peterborough . The workshop will provide a platform for Visitors' Centre managers to describe methods they use to identify first-time visitors to prisons and to exchange good practice. Information for first-time visitors will be reviewed, and ways to provide this most effectively will be explored (i.e. leaflets, notice boards, information packs, staff available for discussion). Visitors' Centres play a vital role in improving family contact and increasing the support available to prisoners' families. APF will be repeating the workshop for visitors' centres in the North of England and Scotland in May 2005. Notes from both meetings will be combined into a draft good practice guide and distributed to members. For further information or to attend the workshop: Mark Heybourne at mark@actionpf.org.uk Tel: +44 01603 610888.

Belgium - 24th February 2005

Red Cross/ABSl joint prison visits project

The Belgian Red Cross and ASBL Relais Enfants-Parents held a press conference in Brussels on February 24, 2005 to present a joint prison visits project they have been running since late 2003.

European Union - 15th February 2005

Pulling up another chair

A Bernard van Leer Foundation European partners meeting entitled "Pulling up another chair" was held in London in February 2005, bringing together projects focusing on children's participation from eight countries to exchange information, discuss how children from birth to age 8 are taking part in matters that affect their lives, identify some of the relevant issues and challenges and address key research questions and their corresponding links to practice.

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