We were first introduced to Bethany at a prison clinic in July 2021. Bethany has four children. Her youngest, Megan, is a minor and lives with her paternal grandmother, Susan. Megan lived with her mother until she was three years old when her grandmother was awarded a Special Guardianship Order. Bethany’s motivation for her crime was to help fund her dependency on substances. Her substance abuse began at a young age but became exacerbated after her mother’s death in 2018, which caused her to develop mental health problems. Bethany has not had any physical contact with Megan since she was three years old. When we met Bethany in July 2021, she was having Court ordered telephone contact with Megan every eight weeks, which had been going very well. Bethany wanted to increase contact with Megan to develop their relationship.

We sent a letter to Susan informing her that Bethany would like to increase contact with Megan. Susan responded to Bethany’s request and our recent appointment, by stopping all contact between Bethany and Megan. We explained to Susan that the contact has been successful and it is essential for Megan to maintain a healthy relationship with her mother. We also outlined that Bethany should be receiving updates and photographs of Megan and asked for those to be provided. After overcoming initial resistance from Susan, we managed to facilitate contact between Megan and Bethany. Bethany now has regular telephone calls and exchanges letters with Megan. Bethany was also able to send a Christmas present and have an extra phone call on the 27th December 2021 to wish Megan a Merry Christmas. Bethany has worked hard in prison undertaking a cognitive behavioural therapy course. We continue to work with Bethany and hope for video calls to begin soon.

Not Beyond Redemption reinstated contact with Megan and allowed her to receive presents from her mum.