In this episode we focus on the experiences and voices of children affected by maternal imprisonment. So often children are kept in the dark about what is happening, or their views and wishes are overlooked. This episode contains the voices of children who have been affected alongside professionals working to improve the support available.

We hear from Farhana and Tiff who have both been personally affected by their mother going to prison and have also written blogs on this topic for One Small Thing. They both describe experiences of being ignored and overlooked by the professionals around them.

We also speak to Sarah Beresford, Prison Reform Trust Associate and Churchill Fellow who explains how Child Impact Assessments can equip adults and services to listen more closely to the needs of children with mothers in the criminal justice system. A full podcast episode with Sarah can be accessed here.

We hear from Sarah Burrows, founder of Children Heard and Seen, a charity she set up to support children and families affected by parental imprisonment. A full podcast episode on Children Heard and Seen can be accessed here.

Sarah speaks about their important work, as well as the new Operation Paramount - a partnership with Thames Valley Violence Reduction Unit and Police which is the first-ever mechanism to identify children when their parent goes to prison. You can see a video about Operation Paramount here: https://www.tvvru.co.uk/project/paramount/

Read more about the One Small Thing charity here.

Twitter - @OSTCharity

This podcast is created and produced by The London Podcast Company.

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