THE Princess Royal was the guest of honour at a Worcestershire charity’s event to highlight its Families First project.
The main topic of the event was Families First, a service for children of prisoners. The event was attended by a range of stakeholders including schools, police, social services and local dignitaries.
The Princess met staff and stakeholders of the service and had a private meeting with service users in a separate room.
She heard from the Open University and Just Economics who partnered with YSS on research and from one of YSS’s practitioners.
The experience of children who worked with the service was captured in a moving exhibition of works produced by the children for other children, who are going through parental incarceration.
Families First was launched in 2020 in order to understand more about the issues that surround parental imprisonment; a taboo subject which is not spoken about by families, often through fear of judgement and consequences.
The service is seen as a natural extension to other services provided by YSS, namely in criminal justice and early help support for families in Worcestershire.
Catherine Kevis, CEO of YSS said: “312,000 children and young people experience parental imprisonment in England and Wales – an estimated 5,000 in Worcestershire alone – yet there is no statutory duty to follow up on their needs which often go unnoticed, sometimes for years.
“The effects of parental incarceration are far reaching, and have a clear impact on education, well-being and socialisation of the young people affected.
“One third of young people in the criminal justice system have experienced parental incarceration which makes a strong case for investing in prevention.
“We hope that the research we commissioned from the OU and from Just Economics will strengthen our case for prevention and early help so our services can continue.”
YSS provides community-based support for people who face difficult life challenges. The charity enables individuals and families to overcome obstacles, build their resilience and move towards an independent future.
The charity partners with a range of public and voluntary sector agencies to deliver its outcomes.
Visit www.yss.org.uk for more.
