Collective Punishment Campaign
Protecting children who have experienced parental imprisonment
The Collective Punishment Campaign was established in 2022 by young people with direct-experience of parental imprisonment. When someone goes to prison, it has a profound impact not only on them as an individual, but on their children and family. And though parental imprisonment is recognised as an adverse children experience (ACE), the state does not provide any automatic support to those who live through it.
An estimated 312,000 people are affected by parental imprisonment with profound implications for their physical and mental health, emotional wellbeing, and life chances.
The Collective Punishment Campaign came together to raise awareness of this vital issue: creating space for people with direct-experience of it to share how it has impacted their lives and to use that experience to shape the solutions to it.
Find out more about the experience of parental imprisonment and support Collective Punishment Campaign on Instagram (opens in a new tab)
The Collective Punishment Campaign was part of Breakthrough’s first ever Accelerator programme in 2023. We supported them to build relationships with key decision-makers at the London Violence Reduction Unit and the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC).
For the everyday person out there that has direct experience of an issue and wants to create change, Breakthrough are the perfect people to come to for help
— Jemmar Samuels, Founder, Collective Punishment Campaign