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<p>Ensuring that vulnerable children remain safe and protected is our top priority.
For children who have a parent in custody, their circumstances vary considerably and
therefore local agencies are best placed to determine what support is needed. This
may include early help, statutory social care services, or support for other needs,
such as mental health. A child’s need for support should be assessed individually.
We do not believe a prescriptive approach – such as regarding all children of prisoners
as children in need – is the right one. However, it is vital that all services consider
the safeguarding and welfare issues that may be faced by children of prisoners.</p><p>The
statutory guidance, Working Together to Safeguard Children (2018), is unequivocally
clear that anyone who has concerns about a child’s welfare should make a referral
to local authority children’s social care. The local authority and its social workers
then have specific roles and responsibilities to lead statutory assessments or enquiries
to determine whether the child is in need (section 17, Children Act 1989), or suffering
or likely to suffer significant harm (section 47, Children Act 1989).</p><p>We know
that attending education settings is an important protective factor for vulnerable
children. That is why we have ensured vulnerable groups, including children with a
social worker and children assessed as otherwise vulnerable by educational providers
or local authorities, can continue to attend educational settings. We are also providing
laptops and tablets for children with a social worker and care leavers, and those
in year 10 preparing for exams who do not already have such devices, to help children’s
social care services keep in touch and keep children safe, and to support remote education.</p><p>For
schools and colleges, the statutory guidance, Keeping Children Safe in Education,
sets out that staff should consider the additional needs of children with parents
in prison. The guidance highlights the risk of poor outcomes including poverty, stigma,
isolation and poor mental health. It signposts staff to the National Information Centre
on Children of Offenders website which provides specialist advice and resources to
support professionals working with offenders and their children, to help mitigate
negative consequences for those children.</p><p>We recognise the importance of supporting
and maintaining links between offenders and their families, when this is in the best
interests of the child. This is why HM Prison and Probation Service have been active
in responding to this need and providing support for the families and children of
those men, women and young people in their care. This includes the issuing of 900
mobile phones to establishments, piloting a video calling service, video messaging,
using social media to update families, issuing letters from senior prison staff to
prisoners’ families with information and updates on conditions, weekly bulletins and
updates from establishments, reassurance updates from healthcare and psychology teams,
and running art competitions for children of prisoners.</p>
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