Why some convicted moms live with their kids in prison

It’s a rarely used program—tough to qualify for and little-known—that allows children under five to live inside Canadian women’s prisons with their mothers. Taking a closer look at the institutional mother-child program, offers a glimpse we don’t often get into Canada’s correctional facilities.

Cristina Howorun, City News reporter and host and writer of the documentary VeraCity: Prison Moms, witnessed firsthand the impact the program was having on some incarcerated mothers and their children. “There was a real genuine care for this child from all of these women that surrounded him. It was really quite touching because a lot of these women, two thirds of women serving time in federal institutions, are moms,” says Howorun.

So who can qualify for this program? Is it better for some kids to remain with their mothers, even if it means living inside a correctional facility? And what is it actually like to grow up inside a Canadian prison?

You can subscribe to The Big Story podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google and Spotify.

You can also find it at thebigstorypodcast.ca.