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The Crucial Connection Program
Phil Dodds and Tamsin McGuin
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The Crucial Connection Program

• Sisters Inside is an independent community
  organisation, which exists to advocate for the
  human rights of women in the criminal justice
  system in Queensland, and to address gaps in the
  services available to them. We work alongside
  women in prison and with their families in
  determining the best way to fulfill these roles.
  They have identified the following facts from a
  survey in 2002
• 1,000 women move through the prison system per
  year.
• There were 350 women incarcerated in five prisons
  in South East Queensland at
  one time.
• 85 of these women were mothers.
• Each woman has an average of 2.5 children.
• 82 of these women were the primary carer.
• 44 of their children are in care of the
  Department of Families.
• An average of 2,125 children are effected per
  year.

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The Crucial Connection Program
The women in prison identified a need for a
program that would assist their families while
they were incarcerated. The Crucial Connection
program was developed to met the needs of young
people and their families. It began in 2001 and
continues as a voice for these young people and
their mothers.
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The Crucial Connection Program

• What is the Crucial Connection program
• Funded by FACS, Families and Community Services
  within the Reconnect Program.
• Supports young people aged 12 to 18 who have
  mothers incarcerated in a South East Queensland
  Prison and young women aged 12 to 18 who are
  themselves incarcerated in South East Queensland
  prisons.
• Assists young people to become more involved
  with
• Their families
• Employment
• Education
• Training and
• The community.

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The Crucial Connection Program

• The CCP provides a range of support to both young
  people and their families which are determined by
  their own unique circumstances.
• It is flexible in its delivery to meet the needs
  of young people.
• Meetings can take place in a variety of safe
  locations such as
• Homes
• Schools
• Sisters Insides office
• Other venues in the community.

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The Crucial Connection Program

• This program can assist young people in the
  following ways
• Arrange regular visits to mum in prison
• Transport to prison for visits
• Families mediation
• Connecting with programs that assist in finding
  employment
• Support to stay in school
• Training options
• Income support
• Accommodation
• Counselling
• Support

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The Crucial Connection Program

• Assistance given to parents, guardians and
  families
• Work things out with the young person
• Finding the best ways to talk things through
• Learning to live together when are thing become
  hard
• Learning to live apart but staying connected as a
  family
• Living apart but still communicating

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The Crucial Connection Program
What are the barriers that these young people
face that make them different from others? What
are the barriers that mothers face that impact on
the quality of parenting they are able to give to
their children while they are incarcerated?
What are the barriers that face workers from
assisting young people? Why are children of
prisoners 5 times more likely to offend
themselves?
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The Crucial Connection Program

• Barriers young people face
• Grief
• Uncertainty
• Low self-esteem
• Anger
• Suicide
• Drug and alcohol use
• Centrelink
• Growing up to fast
• Bullying
• Treatment of outside people
• Money

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The Crucial Connection Program

• Barriers that mothers face
• Dealing with the emotions of being separated from
  their children
• Making decisions regarding the placement and care
  of their children
• Maintaining contact with their children during
  their incarceration
• Reuniting with their children when they are
  released from prison.
• Limited ability to parent in the same way as they
  did before they were incarcerated

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The Crucial Connection Program

• Barriers workers face
• Contacting young people when mothers have been
  identified.
• Prison access
• Prison culture
• Geographical distances
• Prison protocol

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