I am working on an adventure playground where there is a family in which the father is on a prison sentence. I am worried about the impact this is having on the children. What can I do to help?
Children of prisoners experience a range of negative impacts, including isolation, stigma, anger, secrecy, loss and guilt.
Many families also experience hardship and poverty because income is lost. The culmination of some or all of these leads to poorer outcomes for this group of children compared to other groups.
How is the mother coping? I would start by talking to her. Has a Common Assessment Framework been carried out with the family?
One way in which you can help directly is by enabling the children to express their feelings, through adventure and creative play, artwork and also access to other services in to reduce the isolation. The children can write letters and create artwork to send to the father. In turn he can access projects such as Storybook Dads, which enables fathers to keep in contact with their children.
Answered by Jeanie Lynch. Lynch works for Barnardo’s and has 25 years’ experience of working with vulnerable children and families
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