Forgotten Kids

Support and help to overlooked kids whose parents are in prison. They did not commit a crime, yet they bear punishment: separation from parent, economic and social drop of the family, fear and worries, uncertain future, mocking and stigmatization. Although there are 40,000 such kids in the Czech Republic, there is no systemic support or care, and little is known about their living conditions. Incarcerated parents have limited possibilities to care for their kids. High number of them experience weakening or breaking of family ties which leads to demotivation and higher risk of recidivism.

The children of prisoners are secondary and vulnerable victims with no access to targeted care. There are 40,000 children with a parent in prison in the Czech Republic. The children are emotionally deprived and suffer from family separation. They live in poverty and are stigmatised. This situation jeopardises their development as healthy young adults.

Forgotten Kids (“Zapomenuté děti”) helps children and their incarcerated parent strengthen family ties and solve problems. We work with children as their advocates and raise awareness to support their needs.

Forgotten Kids works with children of all ages who have a parent in prison. However, our target group is the entire family. We support maintaining the family’s relationship and the child’s welfare in and out of prison. We also provide public outreach to provide adequate resources and care for the children’s needs within prisons and further follow-up care.

The programme opens up a very difficult taboo. In addition to helping those in need, we raise awareness to the public on the needs of children of prisoners from the programme’s media coverage. This can contribute to systemic changes in the Czech Republic and improve the lives of these children.

Forgotten Kids can serve as a model for other organizations and the state. We also plan research, workshops, and publish guidebooks for professionals who work with the children of prisoners. We also share our experiences with organizations in the Czech Republic and around the world at international conferences.