UK Ban On Prison Visits Takes Toll On Prisoners, May Violate Children’s Rights

The children of prisoners in the U.K. have not been able to visit their incarcerated parents since March due to coronavirus restrictions, and lawyers say the children’s human rights are being breached by not having access to their parents for months.

Many are calling for the government to end the coronavirus prison visit ban. 

Prison visits were abruptly halted on 24 March to help slow the spread of coronavirus, according to The Guardian.

While this measure was meant to maintain the safety and health of prisoners, many say the restriction severely affected the children of prisoners. 

Children of offenders have not been able to see their parents in months. While many argue that prison visits are unsafe during this time, young children may not understand why they are not able to see their mum or dad for this extended period of time. Many families are worried about the toll this is taking on children. 

Some families are beginning to exercise their legal rights to end the breach of human rights that has occurred. Three families have sought legal representation because they say the strict rules on prison visits during the pandemic are not in the best interest of the children involved.

Legally, the lawyers say, ban on prison visits may breach Article 8 and the Children Act 2004, The Guardian reported. 

The lawyers have taken the first step in the legal process by filing letters before action with the Ministry of Justice.

Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons made rounds to prisons and found that many of the female prisoners stated their mental and physical health was “deteriorating,” according to the Independent. Inspectors are now asking for the restrictions on prison visits to be lifted. 

Prisoners may have lost many of their freedoms, but they still have human rights, and the children of the prisoners also have rights that are meant to be protected under the law. 

The Joint Committee on Human Rights has said incarcerated women still have protected rights to see their children and families, the Independent reported. The committee has collected confirmations of the effect on children in the form of stories. 

The committee has written a report that alleges that the government does not have accurate data on the number of incarcerated mothers who were banned from seeing their children, according to The Guardian. The committee is concerned about the human rights of the children. 

The committee’s report advises the following: 

• Temporarily releasing low-risk mothers and pregnant women
• Permitting children to attend socially distanced prison visits 
• Recommending asking all incarcerated mothers about their children in order to create a census

Mobile phones were given to some prisoners to allow them to continue contact with their children and families, The Guardian reported. Video contact has been limited to a small number of prisons. 

In the letters before action, the families’ lawyers say phone contact is not useful for children who are too young to talk, and they express their worry that the children not having face-to-face contact with their fathers during “the formative stages of their development” could have long-lasting effects.

According to the letters, which were seen by The Guardian, some of the stories involving affected children include that of a 16-month-old baby who “has had no visual or physical contact with their father for four months during the pandemic” and of “a disabled child with a shortened life expectancy.”

According to the coronavirus and prison guidance by the U.K. government, which was updated 14 July, some prison visits will now be allowed.

The guidance states that if it is safe, some prisons in England and Wales will allow visits.

The government recommends sending prisoners voice messages with the prison voicemail service, sending emails or writing to a loved one in prison.

The government notice also states 55 prisons are equipped with mobile phones and more video calling will be available soon. 

The charity Children Seen and Heard estimates that there are approximately 310,000 children of incarcerated parents, the BBC reported, thousands of whom have not seen their parents in months.

What is your opinion on the prison visit ban? Let us know in the comments.

Read More Lawsuit & Settlement News:

More Redundancies Expected: Know Your Rights

Home Office to Redesign Visa Streaming Algorithm After Complaints of Racism

Amazon Scam Calls Ask Consumers to ‘Press 1’

Member, Patient Information May Have Been Exposed in British Dental Association Breach