Children Heard and Seen founder Sarah Burrows, who started the charity in Oxfordshire in 2014, is Lorraine's Woman of the Year Trailblazer. How to help.
Sarah Burrows, who founded the charity Children Heard and Seen in Oxfordshire, has won Lorraine’s Woman of the Year Trailblazer Award. She was named the winner live on ITV’s Lorraine on 7 October.
She set the charity up from her kitchen table in 2014, the charity says, after seeing that children with a parent in prison were often overlooked and left without the support they needed. It began in Oxford and its office is now in Eynsham.
More than 200,000 children are estimated to experience parental imprisonment each year, according to the charity, and there is still no national system for finding them and making sure they get help.
Speaking on the programme, Sarah said:
“I think children with a parent in prison are one of the most invisible groups in this country.”
What the charity does
Children Heard and Seen offers specialist one-to-one support, volunteer mentoring, peer groups and activities. The aim, it says, is to help children build confidence, form trusted relationships and meet others who share the same experience.
In Oxfordshire it runs regular family activities at Hill End, as well as creative sessions and other chances for children and families to get together. Its group activities page also lists online groups, from arts and crafts for under-10s to a Minecraft group, and separate support for the parent or carer at home.
A national day on 25 November
The award comes a month before the National Day of Children with a Parent in Prison on 25 November, which the charity established in 2025. This year’s plans include an event in Parliament and the launch of Hear My Voice, a film about children’s own experiences.
The charity hopes Sarah’s win will lead more people, particularly schools and professionals, to notice children affected by parental imprisonment and help them reach support.
How to get support or volunteer
- Families can contact Children Heard and Seen directly about its groups and activities.
- Specialist one-to-one support needs a referral from a professional and is a paid service.
- Volunteers are wanted. The charity describes itself as “a very small team” for which volunteers are “a key and valuable asset”. Roles on its volunteering page include face to face and online mentoring, helping on residentials and activity days, online group work, admin and fundraising.
To get in touch, email info@childrenheardandseen.co.uk or visit childrenheardandseen.co.uk.
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