Children Visiting Prisons

Prison Service Rules require prisons to actively encourage prisoners to maintain meaningful family ties while they are in custody. This includes the provision, where applicable, of regular and good quality contact time with children.

Prison Governor also have duties to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, and, in a prison context, this will include balancing a child’s right to on-going contact with parents who are held in custody with the need to ensure any such on-going contact is safe and in the child’s, best interests.

The SoJPS has in place a range of measures to reduce the risks that certain prisoners, especially those convicted of, or charged with, offences against children, may present to children whilst in custody. 
Prison staff should receive training, briefing or guidance as appropriate in safeguarding and child protection. This training should be relevant and proportionate to their likely level of contact with children and families, so they can take appropriate action if concerns are raised during a visit.

The establishment should arrange specific safeguarding and child protection training - rather than safeguarding awareness training - for staff who supervise activities for children.

The SoJPS requires all of its staff to adhere to its child protection procedures and have an awareness of the Safeguarding Partnership Board’s guidelines.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Safeguarding Partnership Board and the SoJPS is in place to set out expectations on the SoJPS to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and co-operate with the Safeguarding Partnership Board. The MoU is based on The Jersey Children and Young People Law 2022 and Commensurate Statutory Guidance.

Whilst UK legislation is not directly applicable in Jersey and local legislation may be different in its interpretation and application, practitioners may refer to best practice guidance such as that contained in “Working Together to Safeguard Children.”

The section 11 duties, set out in Chapter 2 of this document state that prisons:

Have a responsibility to identify prisoners who are potential or confirmed ‘persons posing a risk to children’ (PPRC) and, through assessment establish whether the PPRC presents a continuing risk to children whilst in prison custody. Where an individual has been identified as a PPRC, the relevant prison establishment:

• Should inform the local authority children’s social care services of the offender’s reception to prison and subsequent transfers and of the release address of the offender;
• Should notify the relevant probation service provider of PPRC status. The police should also be notified of the release date and address;
• May prevent or restrict a prisoner's contact with children. Decisions on the level of contact, if any, should be based on a multi-agency risk assessment. The assessment should draw on relevant risk information held by police, probation service provider and prison service. The relevant local authority children's social care should contribute to the multi-agency risk assessment by providing a report on the child's best interests. The best interests of the child will be paramount in the decision-making process.

A prison is also able to monitor an individual's communication (including letters and telephone calls) to protect children where proportionate and necessary to the risk presented.

Arrangements reflecting the above are laid out in the SoJPS child protection policy, which is reviewed annually. Prisoners who are identified as presenting a risk to children are also managed through the Jersey Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements, which is split into three categories:

Category 1: All Registered Sex Offenders.
Category 2: Anyone serving a sentence of 12 months or longer for a violent offence. 
Category 3: Anyone else considered to pose a current risk of serious harm.

Children and families can maintain contact with a family member in prison in the following ways:

• By writing a letter (letters may be read by prison staff before being delivered);
• By receiving calls from the prisoner’s telephone (prisoners now have in-cell telephones to improve access);
• Through social visits.

Prisoners are not allowed access to social networking sites or mobile telephones while in custody (although it should be noted that the illegal use of mobile telephones does occur). Children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult when visiting a prison; however, in exceptional circumstances and with prior agreement, Governors may allow young people between the ages of 16 and 18 years to visit on their own. The maximum number of adults allowed at each social visit is 3, but there are no restrictions on the number of children. The prison should be informed if more than 3 children will be visiting, so that appropriate seating arrangements can be put in place.

Prison Rules require prisons to actively encourage prisoners to maintain outside contacts and meaningful family ties. This is integral to the prisoner's Right to Family Life as well as their rehabilitation. Visits are seen as crucial to sustaining relationships with close relatives, partners and friends and help prisoners maintain links with the community.

Prison Rule 52 (1) allows the Governor to prohibit a prisoner from receiving a visit from any person where, in the opinion of the Governor, it is necessary to do so in the interests of security or discipline or to prevent disorder or crime.

If a prisoner wishes to apply to have a visit from a child, they must add the child’s details to their visitor list and complete a Child Contact Application Form.

A register providing a record of applications for visits must be held on file. This record will become part of the prisoner's main record and will follow the prisoner on transfer. Each prison establishment should maintain a central record indicating which prisoners are subject to restrictions due to any risk they represent to children, details of which prisoners are allowed child visits or other contact and details of prisoners who have been refused child visits or other contact.

Prisoners who have been convicted of, or charged with, an offence against a child or who have a previous conviction for an offence against a child including offences of violence, sexual offences, neglect and abuse or who present an identified risk of harm (Risk to Children), will only be allowed on-going contact or visits following completion of a comprehensive multi agency risk assessment of the prisoner and a "best interests" assessment for the child in order to decide what, if any, form of contact is appropriate.

Contact includes correspondence, telephone calls and social visits.

In most cases the potential risk to children will be determined from the index offence or from previous convictions. However, a number of prisoners will be identified as presenting a risk because of their behaviour or actions whilst in custody.

Prisons must identify prisoners who pose a risk of harm to children and then complete a multi-agency risk assessment to determine what, if any, contact the prisoner will be allowed with a child(ren). Identified prisoners will be asked if they intend to request child contact; if they do this, the multi-agency risk assessment should be commenced.

The over-riding principle is that the child's welfare is paramount - and that any contact must be in the child's best interest.

The prison establishment should ask the parent of the child whether they support contact. The Children’s Services for the area where the child is living should be asked to ascertain the wishes and feelings of the child during a home visit. The person who has parental responsibility and is currently caring for the child must support any contact.

In cases where the parent does not support contact, the prison establishment should inform Children's Social Care Services of the parent's decision.

Where the child is Looked After, the Children’s Service’s view about the appropriateness of contact must be obtained in writing. The test is always whether contact is in the child’s best interest.

Whether or not Children’s Services (in Jersey the Minister for Children) shares parental responsibility, the views of the parent must also be included and taken into account.

In order for the prison establishment to undertake the risk assessment to determine what contact, if any, is appropriate, it must contact and gather information from a range of agencies:

1. The police in the child's home authority must be contacted and asked for any information on the child and the prisoner;
2. The prison based probation officer should be provided with the details of the prisoner’s application and, where a prisoner will be subject to licence supervision on release or has been recalled for breach of licence for the current offence, the home National Probation Service provider must be contacted and asked for information and comments. In addition, if the prisoner is a young offender and is supervised, Children’s Services in the child’s home area must be contacted;
3. A referral to the Children and Families Hub must be made, containing all the details of the prisoner and child, by the Prison Safe Custody Officer, which will be forwarded on to Children’s Services, who will allocate a social worker to undertake an assessment and provide a written report with recommendations on what level of contact is appropriate.

If visits are approved, then photographic ID or passport photos, which have been endorsed by the social worker, must be provided to the prison.

Subject to their age and level of understanding, the views of the child must be considered as part of the assessment. The Children’s Services will ascertain the views of the child during the home visit. The social worker should also identify an Appropriate Adult(s) as good practice who will accompany the child when visiting the prisoner (this might be a parent or family member).

The prison Safe Custody Officer will decide if contact is approved in the majority of child contact applications, however where a prisoner is identified as posing a risk to children, the Safe Custody Officer will complete a risk-assessment using the multi-agency information. A Unit Manager or above, will make the decision regarding contact using the available multiagency information. The decision must take into account the following factors: 

• The child's needs, wishes and feelings;
• The capacity of the parent to protect the child from significant harm;
• The prisoner's risk to the public;
• Pre-sentence reports;
• Previous convictions;
• Custodial behaviour and any other documentation highlighting risk.

The manager, in consultation with the Safe Custody Officer, should decide the level of contact that will be permitted. It should be proportionate to any risks identified; the best interests of the child should always be the overriding principle in making these decisions.

Contact restrictions should be incremental and one of the following levels will be applied:

• Level one: Full restrictions apply. No contact with any child is permitted and all correspondence and telephone calls will be monitored;
• Level two: Contact with a named child only via written correspondence. All correspondence and telephone calls may be monitored;
• Level three: Contact with a named child only is permitted via written correspondence and telephone. All correspondence and telephone calls may be monitored;
• Level four: No restrictions necessary. May have contact with a named child only via correspondence, telephone and visits. Routine sampling applies – reading of correspondence, listening to telephone calls and general observation in visiting area. This level of contact applies only to those children that the prisoner has permission to have contact with. All other children will be subject to Level One restrictions.

The decision should be communicated and explained to the child and their carer.

The level and frequency of monitoring will be proportionate to the risk identified. Monitoring should focus on whether the prisoner is attempting to contact children inappropriately and what references about children are made in general correspondence i.e. grooming or manipulation of a child or a parent.

Monitoring of prisoners who present a risk to children in the visits area is required to establish if appropriate contact is taking place between an offender and a child where child visits have been permitted. Other prisoners who present a risk to children and have not been permitted contact with a child must be supervised in such a way that contact is not possible.

It is necessary to take steps to prevent a child being substituted with another possibly more vulnerable child where visits take place. Prison staff monitoring calls, correspondence and visiting areas need to be vigilant and prevent any inappropriate contact where identified.

Identification or four passport style photographs will be required of each child and these should be updated annually or earlier if there is a significant change in a child’s appearance.

Where a decision has been made to restrict contact, the decision will be reviewed when there is reason to believe that circumstances have changed. Reviews can be made at any time on the initiative of prison staff or at the request of the prisoner. It is good practice to review decisions every 6 months.

Any decision to change the level of contact permitted must be based on what is best for the child. The child’s welfare is paramount at all times. The decision must take into account the views of the Police, Probation and Children’s Services, via the Children and Families HUB, where there is immediate risk of harm directly to the police (see Children and Young Person Safeguarding Referrals Process).

All prison establishments have procedures for prisoners who wish to appeal a decision to restrict contact or not to permit any contact at all with a child.

If the prisoner wishes to challenge the information held on file, the information provided by other agencies should only be disclosed to the prisoner with the agreement of the other agency.

Are you a Young Person with a Family Member in Prison? (Action for Prisoner's Families) Caritas Jersey has developed an innovative and effective approach to supporting the families of a prisoner. This approach provides a range of opportunities and support measures to help the innocent; to help the families of prisoners.