Children of Prisoners Europe

Our Mission

An estimated 800,000 children in the European Union are separated from an imprisoned parent on any given day. Yet few people are aware of the impact that a parent's incarceration can have on a child. Children separated from a parent in prison frequently experience multiple emotional and social difficulties associated with their parent's incarceration. They not only have to cope with the parent's absence and the disruption of the child-parent bond, but are also vulnerable to social exclusion, financial hardship, discrimination and shame. Children of Prisoners Europe (COPE) is a pan-European network which encourages innovative perspectives and practice to ensure that the rights of these children (as enshrined in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the European Convention on Human Rights) are fully respected and that action is taken to secure their well-being and healthy development.

The network is a membership-based organisation made up of non-governmental organisations and individuals across Europe and beyond, linked by a staff team based at its French headquarters.

Raising awareness among child-related agencies, prison services and policymakers to the specific needs of children of prisoners and promoting initiatives that take these needs into account, the organisation is seeking to: - Expand programmes that support the child-parent relationship and help minimise violence for children with an imprisoned parent; - Introduce the child's perspective throughout the criminal justice process, from arrest to resettlement; - Foster cross-sectoral collaboration among public and private agencies involved in supporting and making decisions about children of prisoners; - Obtain better information and greater visibility for prisoners' children and influence policy at the national, European and international level on their behalf; - Promote the exchange of initiatives, expertise and good practice for children with imprisoned parents; - Enhance the competence of professionals within the field.

Working to foster the promotion and provision of policies, frameworks and meaningful action on behalf of children affected by parental incarceration to protect their development and well-being, our aim is to ease the burden of the imprisonment of a parent on the child.