By Anita Bonfiglio (researcher, L’Altro Diritto), Maria Cristina Frosali (researcher, L’Altro Diritto) and Sofia Ciuffoletti (coordinator, L’Altro Diritto).
In Italy, the number of mothers imprisoned with their children has more than tripled in less than two years, reaching its highest figure since 2019. This increase appears to be linked to the 2025 Security Decree, which made the suspension of sentences for pregnant women and mothers of infants discretionary, raising concerns about prison overcrowding and inadequate care.
As of 31 August 2026, there were 32 detained mothers with 37 children living with them in Italian prisons. This is the highest figure recorded since 2019 and marks a clear reversal of the downward trend observed in previous years. According to recent data, the number of children living in prison with their mothers has more than tripled in less than two years: there were 10 at the end of 2024, 26 at the end of 2025, and 37 by 31 August 2026.
This increase appears to be connected to the measures introduced by Decree-Law No. 48/2025, adopted in April 2025 and later converted into Law No. 80/2025. Among other significant changes, the reform abolished the obligation for judges to suspend the execution of sentences imposed on pregnant women or women with a child under the age of one. Under the new provisions, suspension is no longer mandatory but discretionary. Judges may also order that young mothers or pregnant women be placed in low-security institutions for detained mothers (Istituti a custodia attenuata per detenute madri, ICAMs).
As noted in our commentary on this Decree-Law, this provision was expected to increase the female prison population and may further undermine the already inadequate level of healthcare available to mothers and children in prison. Recent figures are consistent with these concerns. Of the 37 children living with their mothers in prison facilities as of 31 August 2026, 31 were reportedly held in ICAMs in Turin (“Lorusso e Cutugno”), Milan (“San Vittore”), Venice (“Giudecca”) and Lauro. Although ICAMs are less prison-like than ordinary prison nursery sections, they remain part of the penitentiary system and do not offer the same level of autonomy as protected family homes.
The limited availability of alternatives outside the prison system remains a central concern. Italy reportedly has only two protected family homes allowing detained mothers, or mothers under house arrest, to serve their sentences with their children in a setting outside the prison system – one in Rome (“Casa di Leda”) and one in Milan (run by the association Ciao). This scarcity risks making placement in ICAMs, rather than genuinely non-custodial alternatives, the main practical response for mothers who are not granted suspension of their sentences or other alternatives to detention.
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The European Prison Litigation Network (EPLN) and its members and partners monitor developments in domestic prison law across Europe and provide concise analyses of the most significant changes affecting prisoners’ rights at national level. These updates are intended to support practitioners in identifying emerging European trends, drawing on comparative experiences, and strengthening their legal practice and advocacy in defence of prisoners’ rights.
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