The Mothers’ Unit of Palma

The Mothers’ Unit of Palma (also known as “La Unidad de Madre de Palma de Mallorca”) is an open detention facility in Palma, in Mallorca. The Mothers’ Unit of Palma was founded in 2008 and is owned by the federal government of Spain, Ministry of Justice. This facility is unique because of its specific target group and its distinctive working approach. It is a facility where mothers can stay in detention along with their children to maintain the relationship between them. The idea is that a child should remain in the care of its mother, even if she is in detention, rather than being placed elsewhere. This facility provides a place where this is possible while the mother is serving her sentence. With this, they want to minimize the effect of detention on the relationship between mother and child and give the children a safe place to grow up.

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SMALL-SCALE

The Mothers’ Unit of Palma can accommodate 22 mothers with one or more children. When you enter The Mothers’ Unit of Palma, you first walk into the garden with a small playground and some benches. Each mother has their own apartment and can live in these apartments with her own child(ren) (space for two children). All these apartments are accessible to everyone and are located in the same hallway. Each apartment has a bedroom, a kitchen, a bathroom and a living area.

SMALL-scale

The Mothers’ Unit of Palma can accommodate 22 mothers with one or more children. When you enter The Mothers’ Unit of Palma, you first walk into the garden with a small playground and some benches. Each mother has their own apartment and can live in these apartments with her own child(ren) (space for two children). All these apartments are accessible to everyone and are located in the same hallway. Each apartment has a bedroom, a kitchen, a bathroom and a living area.

about

The Mothers’ Unit of Palma can accommodate 22 mothers with one or more children. When you enter The Mothers’ Unit of Palma, you first walk into the garden with a small playground and some benches. Each mother has their own apartment and can live in these apartments with her own child(ren) (space for two children). All these apartments are accessible to everyone and are located in the same hallway. Each apartment has a bedroom, a kitchen, a bathroom and a living area.

The Mothers’ Unit of Palma is a:

Open detention facility

for:

22 PEOPLE,
Women

Indicated principles:

Community-integrated, Differentiated, Small-scale

The Mothers’ Unit of Palma is a:

Open detention facility

for:

22 PEOPLE,
Women

Indicated principles:

Community-integrated, Differentiated, Small-scale

The Mothers’ Unit of Palma is a:

Open detention facility

for:

22 PEOPLE,
Women

Indicated principles:

Community-integrated, Differentiated, Small-scale

DIFFERENTIATION

The target group of The Mothers’ Unit of Palma are pregnant women and mothers with their children. Mothers can stay here from the age of eighteen and with children up to the age of three. However, in exceptional cases, children up to the age of six are also welcome. Women can stay here from the start of their sentence and the average length of stay is one to three years.

The Mothers’ Unit of Palma does not have a set schedule for its residents. Instead, residents are in control of their own program. The only mandatory activities are a certain wake-up time and being present for the counting moment three times a day. Besides this, residents choose how to fill in their schedule with education, work, sports, appointments regarding their integration, walks and other activities. Since the residents can move freely in the community, a lot of these activities take place outside the facility.

COMMUNITY-INTEGRATION

The facility is located on the grounds of a prison, half of which is a prison and the other half a halfway house. The prison is in a quiet neighbourhood, surrounded by many houses and stores. There is some interaction between the residents of The Mothers’ Unit of Palma and the community. The residents are free to walk around the community (when authorized by management) and use all the services there, such as social services, health care, shopping, etc. The facility also has a partnership with the local government regarding child care. However, this interaction only occurs in one direction. The facility does not give anything back to the community by offering volunteer work or certain services, for example.

Differentiation

The target group of The Mothers’ Unit of Palma are pregnant women and mothers with their children. Mothers can stay here from the age of eighteen and with children up to the age of three. However, in exceptional cases, children up to the age of six are also welcome. Women can stay here from the start of their sentence and the average length of stay is one to three years.

The Mothers’ Unit of Palma does not have a set schedule for its residents. Instead, residents are in control of their own program. The only mandatory activities are a certain wake-up time and being present for the counting moment three times a day. Besides this, residents choose how to fill in their schedule with education, work, sports, appointments regarding their integration, walks and other activities. Since the residents can move freely in the community, a lot of these activities take place outside the facility.

Community-integration

The facility is located on the grounds of a prison, half of which is a prison and the other half a halfway house. The prison is in a quiet neighbourhood, surrounded by many houses and stores. There is some interaction between the residents of The Mothers’ Unit of Palma and the community. The residents are free to walk around the community (when authorized by management) and use all the services there, such as social services, health care, shopping, etc. The facility also has a partnership with the local government regarding child care. However, this interaction only occurs in one direction. The facility does not give anything back to the community by offering volunteer work or certain services, for example.

Visited during the wish-eu project

The facility is located on the grounds of a prison, half of which is a prison and the other half a halfway house. The prison is in a quiet neighbourhood, surrounded by many houses and stores. There is some interaction between the residents of The Mothers’ Unit of Palma and the community. The residents are free to walk around the community (when authorized by management) and use all the services there, such as social services, health care, shopping, etc. The facility also has a partnership with the local government regarding child care. However, this interaction only occurs in one direction. The facility does not give anything back to the community by offering volunteer work or certain services, for example.
more information

the Federal government of Spain

The Mothers’ Unit of Palma

Report The Mothers' Unit of Palma

English report

Visited by VZW De Huizen (13-03-2023)

RESCALED

the Federal government of Spain

The Mothers’ Unit of Palma

Report The Mothers' Unit of Palma

Report

Visit

Visited by VZW De Huizen (13-03-2023)

WISH-EU

the Federal government of Spain

The Mothers’ Unit of Palma

Report The Mothers' Unit of Palma

Report

Visited by VZW De Huizen (13-03-2023)

RESCALED

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