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Prime minister David Cameron is pushing for change for babies born to mothers in jail.

New research has revealed that 100 babies spent time behind bars last year, and Cameron plans to rethink how pregnant women’s offences are treated, as well as how their babies are cared for. “It is absolutely terrible to think that some babies are spending the earliest months, even years, of their lives behind bars,” Cameron said.

Mothers in jail can apply for a place in a mother and baby unit (MBU), which is able to accommodate babies up to the ages of 18 months, and longer in exceptional circumstances. Some of these units have special sensory rooms so that babies can see colours, sights, sounds and nature, that they wouldn’t otherwise experience.

But Cameron is now pushing for alternative ways to deal with women offenders with babies, including “tagging, problem-solving courts and alternative resettlement units”.

The prime minister noted that babies born in jail are more likely to commit crimes themselves when they are older. “There are actually women in these prisons who were born in the same prison 20 years earlier, and then have ended up there later as criminals,” Cameron said. “Think of the damage done to the life chances of these children. It’s time to think seriously about whether this is the right approach.”

However, findings from the Ministry of Justice state that children under the age of 18 months are unaffected by their time in the prison environment. 

“Findings suggest that during the first 18 months of life the pressure of maturation tends to protect babies from low stimulation environments and development progresses normally,” a report ‘Applications and Admissions to Prison Mother and Baby Units’ from the MoJ said. “However, from the age of 18 months babies may be more sensitive to the stimulation of the environment they reside in. It is for this reason that MBUs have an 18 month age limit and separations should be planned to take place prior to reaching the age of 18 months.”