9 August 2025, Tarnów (Poland) — Tarnów is a small town of about 120,000 inhabitants, located east of Krakow, an hour and a half by train. Its beautiful central square, lined with historic buildings and lively cafés, offers a glimpse of the town’s charm. The prison, situated in the town centre, looks much as one would imagine an old prison: a grey façade on the main street, with bars on the windows. Inside, however, it can offer three hours of colors, emotions, hopes and connections.
On Saturday, 9 August, Game with Mum & Dad (GWMD) returned to Poland for the third consecutive year, continuing its mission to strengthen and maintain family bonds for children with imprisoned parents through this particular meeting tool.
The 2025 edition, led by COPE member Probacja, welcomed 30 children and 36 imprisoned parents and caregivers at Tarnów prison for a day filled with sports and play. Families shared four hours of activities, beginning with a football match attended by special guests including:
- Filip Skubel, Director of the Penitentiary Office of the Central Board of the Prison Service
- Waldemar Radziszewski, Head of the Penitentiary Department
- Mariusz Krupa, Vice-President of the Małopolska Football Association
- Paweł Węgrzyn, football player and coach.
The presence of these institutional and high-profile figures is crucial for the long-term success of the campaign. Their participation helps raise awareness of children’s rights, reinforces the importance of family contact within the prison system, and signals strong institutional support, ensuring that initiatives like GWMD gain visibility and sustainability beyond individual events. It is no coincidence that this particular “meeting place,” Game with Mum & Dad—a project designed to mobilise prison facilities—has become a model adopted by an increasing number of countries under the coordination of COPE. Despite its simplicity, it is actually a project that employs a complex model, bringing together two separate worlds: the one outside the walls and the one inside, involving a wide range of participants, including the children with a parent in prison, the imprisoned people themselves, their families, prison staff and operators, local, regional, and national prison institutions, sports professionals, the media and more.
I think this is a brilliant initiative in a situation where one parent is in prison. A child’s joy is priceless, and it makes separation easier to endure — imprisoned parent
(photo © Paulina Bąbol)
Following the match, families gathered for a communal dinner and enjoyed a wide range of games led by volunteers from the Probacja Association, including soap bubbles, water tattoos, scarf games and face painting. To close the day, every child received gifts from the Małopolska Football Association, including backpacks and water bottles—small tokens that made the day even more memorable for children. One child captured the spirit of the day with a simple but important wish:
“Can we organise these types of events more often?”
The success of this third edition is the result of Probacja’s steady commitment to GWMD since it was first piloted in Poland in 2023. By investing in the programme year after year, Probacja has demonstrated how sustained leadership can bring real change. What began as a small initiative has now expanded into a national-level programme in 2025, embraced by prison administrations who have seen firsthand the positive effects on children’s wellbeing, families bonds and the wider prison environment.
Alongside Probacja’s dedication, institutional partnerships have played an important role in helping GWMD gain recognition. In November 2024, a cross-sectoral meeting co-hosted with the Jagiellonian University’s Scientific Circle of Re-socialisation Pedagogues brought together 53 participants from across the justice, prison and child rights sectors. While only one event, it helped raise awareness at the national level and encouraged dialogue about expanding GWMD to more prisons in Poland.
Game with Mum & Dad is an international initiative coordinated by Children of Prisoners Europe (COPE), inspired by the pioneering efforts of COPE member Bambinisenzasbarre, based in Italy. Since its creation in 2015, it has offered children and their imprisoned parents the opportunity to spend meaningful, playful time together, breaking through the barriers of the prison environment. By doing so, the program safeguards children’s rights, supports their emotional wellbeing and fosters a greater understanding of their unique needs among prison staff and society at large.
Poland’s growing embrace of GWMD is a testament to its ability to create systemic change. For the children and families who took part this August, however, the meaning was more immediate—an afternoon of joy, closeness and the hope that such moments can become routine within prisons.
