Q+A recently visited the Mothers with Babies unit at Auckland Region Women's Corrections Facility.
New Zealand has allowed babies up to six-months-old to live with their mothers in prison since 2002. Then, after special Mothers with Babies units were built across the three women’s prisons in 2011, children were allowed to stay until the age of two.
Groups such as Pillars Ka Pou Whakahou say the policy allows strong relationships between children and parents who are in prison to be maintained, leading to reduced reoffending rates and cutting intergenerational incarceration.
Read the full story and view the Q+A piece at Mother’s Day in prison with my baby: I'm learning and I'm growing (1news.co.nz)
