Parents in prison in Albania

This article aims to contribute in increased interest and consideration for the effects of parental imprisonment on children by addressing new issues for social work practice with this social group. The purpose of the research was to address the lack of information that exists about the parents in prison in Albania and to provide an initial profile of their needs. The article presents a study that the author has conducted with 10 parents in prison, 5 men and 5 women parents in the Institution of the Execution of Criminal Decisions 325 in Tirana, Albania. The method has been that of qualitative research, based on semi-structured interviews. The article has reached in some findings and conclusions. The responses of participants indicate that having children may impact on the ways that many prisoners view their sentence. Many of the participants expressed concern about the effect that being in prison had on their relationship with their children. The lack of child-friendly visiting facilities in the men’s prison was repeatedly highlighted as an obstacle to maintaining contact with children. Other concerns included the changes that had taken place in children’s behaviour since the start of the sentence. These issues suggests positive sentence management programmes for parents in prison that aims to focus on issues relating to their children