What Happens to the Family Left Behind
When someone is arrested, sentenced or sent to custody, the story that gets told is usually about them. What rarely gets told is what happens to everyone left standing outside the prison gates.
The partner who now has to explain to their children where mum or dad has gone. The mother who doesn’t know how to arrange a visit, let alone how to talk about it with her own community. The young person who becomes withdrawn, ashamed, and cut off from the support that could have caught them earlier.
England and Wales currently has a prison population of over 85,000 people. Every one of those numbers represents a family navigating a system that was never designed with them in mind and for families from ethnic minority backgrounds, that system can feel even harder to access, understand and trust.
This is exactly where Himaya Haven CIC comes in.
Who Is Himaya Haven?
Himaya Haven CIC is a Birmingham based organisation working with ethnic minority communities to support families of loved ones in custody or prison. In their own words, they believe families should be able to access appropriate and timely support at every stage of the criminal justice system, from the point of arrest through to release.
Himaya Haven is also a tenant at iSE’s Women’s Enterprise Hub in Birmingham, based alongside a growing community of founders and organisations building meaningful impact across the region. Since launching, the organisation has been recognised with the 2019 High Sheriff of West Midlands Recognition Award, was shortlisted for the National Diversity Awards 2022, and was a finalist for Charity of the Year at the British Muslim Awards 2023.
The Gap Nobody Was Talking About
Himaya Haven didn’t start as a business plan. It started with one family who didn’t know where to turn.
After a loved one was remanded in custody, that family found themselves isolated, distraught and unsure how to access help, unable to even explain the process to their own wider family. When Himaya Haven’s founders spoke to others in the community, the same story kept repeating. People felt ashamed. People felt like they had failed. Many didn’t understand something as basic as how to arrange a prison visit.
That gap in understanding is what led to the Hidden Victims course, launching in September 2026. The course is CPD accredited and built for frontline professionals and community advocates, equipping them with specialist knowledge of the criminal justice system so they can properly support families and individuals from ethnic minority backgrounds. It exists to close a gap that has left families experiencing separation, prison leavers rebuilding their lives, and vulnerable children and young people without the informed support they need.
Inside the Hidden Victims Course
The course runs as three one-day programmes, each building on the last:
- Prisoners – navigating the criminal justice system through a culturally sensitive lens, covering systemic bias and structural inequalities, the psychological and physical impact of custody, barriers to accessing adequate support, and strategies for addressing intersectionality.
- Families – developing the cultural and social competencies needed for collaborative working, including communication skills, collaborative problem solving, and identifying implicit and explicit bias.
- Community Integration – advocacy, systemic change and working inclusively for better outcomes, covering the role of advocacy in the justice system, the drivers for policy reform, and engaging stakeholders effectively.
Online sessions are also available alongside in-person delivery. To find out more, register, or check pricing, contact Himaya Haven at info@himayahaven.co.uk.
What People Are Already Saying
Himaya Haven’s existing work speaks for itself:
“Everyone at Himaya Haven are extremely supportive and helpful. Feels like another family support network. Thank you!”
“This organisation is excellent. I’m so glad I have come across them. They’re very supportive, helpful and show so much understanding and kindness. I can’t thank them enough!”
What’s Next for Himaya Haven
Himaya Haven’s coffee mornings for ladies in Birmingham return in September, after pausing over the summer holidays, giving women in the community a space to connect. Longer term, the organisation plans to roll out the Hidden Victims course across England, extending the reach of their work well beyond the West Midlands.
Why This Matters for the Social Economy
Housing, business support, funding and skills all get talked about as the building blocks of a stronger social economy. Family stability rarely gets the same airtime, but it belongs in that conversation too.
When a family is supported through a crisis like imprisonment, the ripple effect reaches further than one household. Children stay in school. Parents stay connected to work and community. People who might otherwise disengage entirely stay reachable, and that is exactly the kind of resilience the West Midlands social economy depends on.
Himaya Haven’s work is a reminder that impact doesn’t always look like a product or a pitch deck. Sometimes it looks like someone finally having the number of a person who understands what they’re going through.
Support Organisations Like Himaya Haven
Himaya Haven CIC is based at iSE’s Women’s Enterprise Hub in Birmingham, part of a wider community of social enterprises and founders we support with free business advice, events and connection across the West Midlands.
Work in schools, support families, or work within the criminal justice system? The Hidden Victims course is built for you. Register your interest or find out more by contacting info@himayahaven.co.uk, or visit www.himayahaven.co.uk.
To find out how iSE can support your organisation, visit www.i-se.co.uk or email info@i-se.co.uk.