No child left inside: Sending women to prison too often lays waste to families - Michael Gove should act to prevent a cycle of deprivation

Prison may or may not work for its inmates, but it seems unreasonable to suppose that it works for their children. Most of the women sent to British prisons – often for relatively minor, non-violent offences – are mothers, and, thus, some 17,000 children a year are victims of a criminal justice system that fails to take into account their needs and likely fates. No Sure Start programme in the world can compensate for the loss of a parent in this way, and the loss of maternal love and care is too often followed by homelessness and the uncertain comforts of the care system.