For children visiting a parent in prison, the experience can be daunting. Security procedures and unfamiliar surroundings can make maintaining a family connection difficult.
The Connecticut Children with Incarcerated Parents (CTCIP) Initiative at the University of Connecticut’s Institute for Municipal and Regional Policy (IMRP) is working to make those visits more welcoming. In partnership with the Connecticut Department of Correction (CTDOC), CTCIP has helped transform visiting areas at state correctional facilities with child-friendly furniture, books, toys, games, arts and crafts materials, fresh paint, colorful murals and designated play areas.
“Having child-friendly visiting spaces is important because, should a child want to visit their incarcerated parent, they deserve to have a safe space,” said Kate Mazzotta, CTCIP policy and research associate.
Why child-friendly spaces matter
Visiting a parent in a correctional facility can be stressful for children, who must navigate an unfamiliar environment. Creating a visitation space with a child’s vantage point in mind can help ease that stress and encourage more natural interactions between parents and children.
Research suggests that maintaining family contact during incarceration can help children preserve relationships with their parents and ease feelings of separation. Family visitation has also been associated with improved emotional well-being for incarcerated people and lower rates of institutional misconduct and recidivism.
“Child-friendly visiting spaces allow some sense of normalcy,” Mazzotta said. “Being able to play on the floor, do arts and crafts, and read together allows parents and children to bond and maintain or build their relationship.”
From indoor play rugs to outdoor playgrounds
CTCIP’s work with DOC facilities dates to 2019, when the initiative collaborated with the Office of Early Childhood to improve the visiting area at Cybulski Correctional Institution. Since then, work has expanded to 12 facilities statewide, ranging from furnishing child-friendly spaces with age-appropriate items to renovating waiting areas and visiting rooms.
At York Correctional Institution in Niantic, an outdoor playground installed in 2023 gives children the opportunity to play outside with their incarcerated mothers during visits. The project offers an alternative to the traditional visiting room and creates more opportunities for families to interact through play.
Other projects have focused on making indoor spaces more inviting and functional.
- At Carl Robinson Correctional Institution and Manson Youth Institution, improvements included furniture, children’s books, games, toys and wall décor.
- At Corrigan Correctional Center, renovations encompassed the lobby, waiting area and visiting room. The work included fresh paint, children’s furniture, a designated children’s area, arts and crafts materials and a mural completed in May 2026.
- At Osborn Correctional Institution, the project included painting, new furnishings and a partitioned children’s area, along with books, toys, games and arts and crafts materials.
- MacDougall-Walker Correctional Institution also received improvements to its visiting room and waiting area, including child-friendly furnishings and activity materials.
Additional improvements are planned or underway at other facilities, including Brooklyn and Cheshire Correctional Institutions and Hartford Correctional Center.
Murals painted by IMRP partners in collaboration with CTDOC help make the spaces feel less institutional, creating a more welcoming environment for visitors, staff and residents.
“Seeing the before and after of a space that we have worked on is a great accomplishment,” she said. “Knowing that we are putting our money towards helping kids and their incarcerated parent be able to spend time together is priceless.”
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For more information about CTCIP and its many initiatives, visit CTCIP.org