Support for Children (Impact of Parental Imprisonment) Consultation Response

Mary Fee, MSP, who chairs the cross party group on supporting children impacted by parental imprisonment, is proposing a Private Members Bill, the Support for Children (Impact of Parental Imprisonment) Scotland Bill.

SASW attended a Parliament meeting where the issues around appropriate support were discussed. We suggested that section 12 of the Social Work Scotland Act 1968 may be a useful tool to remind local authorities of the duties they have in facilitating welfare and preventing further hardship. Communities need to be empowered, support should be accessible and user friendly so that families, siblings and others can lead full lives and be best supported in their (temporary) loss.

Ms Fee says that, “Children of prisoners are the forgotten victims of the justice system who are unseen and go without support. My Bill will attempt to make sure these children are given the support they need. Children are being neglected and we have a collective responsibility to act. We all agree that children are vulnerable, children are in need of protection, and children do not deserve to be punished for the mistakes of their parents.

“We want to ensure immediate support is given to children if their parents are sentenced to custody. This Bill is not only preventative but can be looked at through the eyes of another form of early intervention.”

Click here to read the consultation document.

All opinions and comments are most welcome as Ms Fee would like to introduce a strong Bill in June.

The Consultation closes on the 7th of May. Click here to send your response directly to Scottish Government or click here to input to SASW’s collective response.