Falling through the cracks: mapping system responses for incarcerated mothers and their children

• In Event: Better addressing the needs of incarcerated mothers and their children: Transforming Corrections to Transform Lives

Abstract

Despite a range of government and non-government agencies providing support and services to mothers impacted by incarceration and their children, many ‘fall through the cracks’ between and across siloed service systems. A key issue driving this failure is that there is little to no clear understanding of how support agencies interact with each other, and the pathways that individuals commonly take through the system. Understanding these pathways is crucial to identifying levers for change that may support better outcomes for mothers and their children.

In this presentation we use stock-and-flow modelling to capture the complexity of the system by mapping the pathways of mothers moving through different criminal justice system phases in Queensland, Australia. Using this whole-of-system approach we explore how the criminal justice system impacts mother-child connectedness and the role of agencies in this process. This serves as the first phase of a larger project to identify specific intervention points where changes or programs would be best targeted to support mothers and their children. By improving pathway outcomes, the aim of this project is to break down intergenerational cycles of disadvantage and incarceration for mothers and their children.

Authors

• Lorena Rivas, Griffith University

• Brian Jenkins, Griffith University

• Janet Ransley, Griffith University

• Tara Renae McGee, Griffith University

• Susan Dennison, School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Griffith University, Queensland, Australia