Imagine your parent was in prison this Christmas.
That’s the reality over 190,000 children in England and Wales will be facing.
Our Breaking Barriers service provides these children with support during one of the most traumatic times of their lives.
Our practitioners provide children with a safe space to talk, play and express themselves, enabling them to break down some of the barriers which may prevent them from maintaining positive ties with their imprisoned family members.
But we can’t do this without your support.
Here’s what your donation could pay for.
£10
could buy craft materials that enable a child with a parent in prison to express emotions that are too difficult to talk about.
£50
could pay for a bundle of books for children to read at one of our prison visitors centres.
£500
could fund a Breaking Barriers practitioner for one week.
Did you know…
In 2023/24, 186 children and young people benefited from support from our Breaking Barriers service to cope with having a close family member in prison.
An estimated 78% of the prison population have a child aged under 18, and 7% of children will experience their parent’s imprisonment during their time at school*.
(*Source: Ministry of Justice. Official Statistics in Development: Estimates of children with
a parent in prison (2024))
Having a parent in prison is known as one of the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), which can have a profound impact on a child’s future.
Get Involved
More on our Winter Appeal
Fundraise
Latest news
Winter Appeal events
Breaking Barriers
Ask Dylan
What’s prison like?
Fundraise
From bake sales to bungee jumping, you can fundraise for our Winter Appeal in a way that suits you. Take a look at our Fundraising page for some inspiration.
Latest news
Keep an eye out for updates on our News page about upcoming fundraising events, appeal milestones and stories from the children and young people our Breaking Barriers service has supported.
Winter Appeal events
We’ll be hosting a number of fascinating events in aid of our Winter Appeal, bringing you closer to the amazing impact our Breaking Barriers service has on children and young people with a loved one in prison. Head to our Events page, where we’ll be regularly uploading Winter Appeal events near you.
Breaking Barriers
Learn more about our award-winning Breaking Barriers service and how our expert practitioners help children and young people struggling to come to terms with the imprisonment of a loved one.
Ask Dylan
Head over to our Ask Dylan webpage to ask our animated friend Dylan a question about what it’s like to visit a loved one in prison, or take a look at some of the questions he’s answered already.
What’s prison like?
Watch our latest video to hear from an ex-prisoner, a prison governor and a member of the Ormiston Families prison visitors centre team on what life in prison is really like.
Dylan’s Story
“About a year ago I woke up to the sound of banging on the front door. It was pitch black outside and the loud noise frightened me. The door was broken down and I heard lots of shouting downstairs. It was the Police. They had come to arrest my Dad but I didn’t know what he had done wrong…”