Asked by: Andrea Leadsom (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
What support his Department is providing to new parents who are in the prison system.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
We know that there is an impact on families and children when a parent is imprisoned. Prisons run a variety of parenting courses that are commissioned by individual establishments to suit the needs of their particular population.
Mother and Baby Units have operated in women’s prisons for a number of years, they enable mothers to have their children with them in prison during an important period of bonding. The units are often praised in HMIP reports.
There are also many ad hoc provisions such as Storybook Dads which help to maintain contact with younger children.