Tam Ballie, who has been Scotland's children's commissioner since May, said parenthood alone shouldn't determine a sentence. However, in cases where there was a close decision between custodial and community sentencing, the impact that having a parent in prison can have on children should be considered.
"There is an impact on children when parents are sentenced to terms in prison. There is an emotional impact when they are the primary carer, a financial impact due to loss of family income and a social impact when it is not fully explained to a child why the parent has gone and a story is invented to explain their absence," said Baillie.
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