News 
Not Seen, Not Heard, Not Guilty: 13,500 Children Paying The Price Of Crime
7 Feb 2008
The report, Not Seen. Not Heard. Not Guilty: the rights and status of the children of prisoners in Scotland, published today by Scotland’s Commissioner for Children and Young People (SCCYP), shows that an estimated 13,500 children in Scotland are affected at any one time by the imprisonment of a parent. Their rights and interests are rarely taken into account, and the problem is likely to worsen as the number of prisoners - particularly women – increases (section three of report).
The report comes as policy makers gather in Edinburgh tomorrow (Friday 8 February) to debate the future of prisons in Scotland, with a keynote address from the Rt Hon Henry McLeish of the Scottish Prisons Commission, the body tasked with examining the purpose and impact of imprisonment. (1)
Among the key findings (2), 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 is as an aid to their parents’ rehabilitation rather than as persons in their own right. Further, their access to an imprisoned parent may be curtailed if a prisoner’s visiting privileges are reduced as a punishment.
The report also highlights the lack of co-ordinated support available to children once a parent has been imprisoned. Among the cases listed in the report, abuse and fear are commonly cited by children. Examples include a father who forces his child to take drugs to the mother in prison, a child who receives letters from a relative imprisoned for abusing her, and several children who are abused by a parent, sibling or carer while a parent is in prison (see section six).
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.”
