All research and evidence on NICCO is reviewed using a Quality Assessment Tool (QAT) developed by the University of Huddersfield and Barnardo's.
Research and evidence is assessed in four key areas: Methodological Quality, Child-Centredness, Relevance to Policy and Strategy, and Relevance to Practice with offender's children. This ensures that items on the NICCO website are as useful as possible to academics, practitioners, commissioners and other professionals. For more information about the development of the QAT or to review research in order to list it on NICCO, please see the QAT webpage where you can download the Tool, Guidebook and a short step-by-step 'How To' document. Please contact us to submit quality assessed research on to NICCO.
Click on the icons to see a full list of items which have been awarded a standard icon or icon+ (for items which have scored particularly highly) in each key area:
Results 13 - 18 of 26
This peer reviewed article looks at representations of attachment relationships which were assessed in 54 children ages 2 to 7 years whose mothers were in prison.
The research found that 63% of the children were classified as having insecure relationships with mothers and caregivers. Secure relationships were more likely found in children who lived in a stable caregiving environment, when children reacted to separation from the mother with sadness instead of anger, and when children were older. Common reactions to initial separation included sadness, worry, confusion, anger, loneliness, sleep problems, and a regression in development. Results highlight the need for support for families affected by maternal imprisonment; especially efforts to promote stable, continuous placements for children, in addition to noting the importance of longitudinal research with this growing but understudied group.
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This book discusses the situation, problems and human rights of prisoners' children - and how they are treated throughout the justice process from the arrest of a parent through to their imprisonment and then release.
Based on extensive research from across Europe, the book argues that it is a paradox that the family is hailed as a fundamental unit in our societies, regarding children as an especially valuable and vulnerable group of citizens, but at the same time families are broken up on a massive scale through imprisonment. The book also discusses various reform initiatives, assisting in promoting good practice and improving the experience of children of imprisoned parents.
See When the Innocent are Punished below:
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This report includes a call for action from Parliament to select a Minister to take account for children who have a parent in prison.
It firstly outlines key research into the benefits and challenges of children visiting loved ones in prisons and their experiences of this including travel, prison rules, finances and environment. The report also contains information obtained by Barnardo's through a freedom of information request: that 506,694 visits were made by children to public prisons in 2013. The document then goes on to highlight the importance of improving the experiences of children who have a parent in prison and to call on the Secretary of State for Justice to appoint a Minister to take responsibility for developing a national plan to protect the children of prisoners, with a focus on improving prison visits and the identification of such children at the point of sentencing. The end of the report includes a note about Barnardo's work with children affected by parental imprisonment, capacity to train professionals and the i-HOP information hub on offenders' families.
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This chapter of Crime and Justice: a Review of Research written by top researchers in the field starts on the premise that there is little known about whether parental imprisonment causes problems (known as risk factors) such as anti-social behaviour, offending, mental health problems, drug abuse, school failure and unemployment.
This peer-reviewed research looks at parental imprisonment being the cause of these poor outcomes because of the strain of parent/child separation, stigma etc and also the differences between children's reactions based on parents sentence length, which parent is imprisoned and the social context. Various studies looking at parental imprisonment are discussed and summarised. The researchers conclude that children of prisoners have about three times the risk for antisocial behavior compared to their peers, and twice the risk of mental health problems. Furthermore, the researchers state that whilst few studies investigate the relationship between parental imprisonment and child drinking, drug, education, and employment outcomes (and those that do are based on unrepresentative samples, meaning that results should be treated with caution) - studies to date suggest that parental imprisonment is a risk factor for school failure, drug abuse and unemployment. However, parental imprisonment was not consistently associated with drinking problems. The research recommends children's protection from harmful effects of parental imprisonment by the use of family friendly prison practices, financial assistance, parenting programmes and sentences which are less stigmatising given social context.
Please download the effects of parental imprisonment on children below:
You must purchase this peer reviewed article from the American Psychological Association's PsychNet to view the entire article or request it for free from the authors via Researchgate.
Although written about American research, the finding from this article can be used by professionals everywhere. The National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being shows that approximately 1 in 8 children who are investigated by child welfare services (CWS) agencies for mistreatment have parents who were recently arrested. These children are disproportionatley younger than other children who come into contact with CWS, more likely to be African American and far more likely to be living within the care system. Despite the fact that 2 in 5 children age 2 and older with arrested parents had clincally significant emotional or behavioral problems, only 1 in 10 received mental health care. Parents in the study varied in characteristics by race but rates of substance abuse, serious mental illness, domestic violence, and problems meeting basic needs were all higher among arrested parents than among other parents. Purchase Parental Arrest and Child Welfare Services Agencies on Psychnet.
Request free access to Parental Arrest and Child Welfare Services Agencies on Researchgate below:
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This article considers three under analysed aspects of the wellbeing of children affected by parental imprisonment: time, space and agency. Time is considered in terms of children's past experiences and anticipated futures. Space is the thinking around new or changed environments. Agency is about resilience to structural, material and social confines which can intensify vulnerability. The interaction between these 3 spheres, the authors argue, allows researchers to identify key differences and broad similarities between these children. The article is illustrated with examples from a mixed methods longitudinal study.
Read more about reframing the analysis around prisoner's children's wellbeing below:
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