Introducing Our Weekly Insight Series: Join Us on Substack
At Unseen Victims CIC, our mission has always been to shine a light on the often-hidden impact of incarceration — not just on the person serving time, but on the families, friends and entire support network left behind. Today, we’re thrilled to announce an exciting new development: we’re launching our own weekly newsletter on Substack at @unseenvictims123. At the very core of our project is the importance of REAL LIVED EXPERIANCES and promoting the value of using this exchange of knowledge to approach the stigma, challenges and difficulties faced when supporting a loved one on a journey through the UK Criminal Justice System.
Why this matters
For almost a decade, we’ve been working side-by-side with loved-ones of incarcerated people — offering emotional and practical support, advocacy, guidance and a voice to those who often feel unheard. This is YOUR platform, this YOUR opportunity to have a voice and let YOUR experiences be heard. Whatever you submit can be completely anonymous if you wish to remain so.
Our Substack newsletter gives us a fresh and powerful platform to:
- Share real stories and lived-experience: The voices of families impacted by incarceration often go unseen — we want to change that.
- Deliver expert commentary and updates: From weekly summary letters to ministers, to policy shifts in the criminal justice system, we’ll provide timely unpacking of what such changes mean for you and your loved ones.
- Encourage community-dialogue and understanding: We’re building an inclusive space where those with lived experience and those who support them can engage, reflect and act.
- Showcase positive initiatives: Whether it’s our “Family Days Out” campaign (100 free National Trust and Chester Zoo tickets), our “1000 Steps” awareness campaign, or our grassroots support network in Cumbria — we’ll use this space to spotlight the good, the needed and the possible.
What to expect
Every week, we’ll publish a short-to-medium length article on Substack covering issues such as:
- How visiting policy changes at prisons affect family-visits and contact time
- The financial burden of maintaining relationships across distance and cost of transport
- Insight on early-release schemes and how families are navigating the aftermath
- Personal reflections and guest posts from those living it
- Practical tips and support resources for families seeking to maintain contact or rebuild after release
- Invitations to join our campaigns and community events
How you can get involved
- Subscribe to our newsletter at @unseenvictims123 — it’s free and you’ll receive each issue direct into your inbox.
- Share it with family members, friends or professionals who work with families of the incarcerated — this is a space for all voices to connect.
- Engage: we welcome guest posts, questions and letters. If you have lived experience as a loved one or supporter, we’d love to hear your story and publish it.
- Get active with our campaigns: Keep an eye on each edition for updates on our “Family Days Out”, “1000 Steps” campaign and weekly advocacy letter-writing to ministers. Coming soon, we will relaunch or “Don’t Be daft, Lad” Christmas Campaign 2025.
Let’s grow the conversation
One of the hardest parts of being a loved one of someone in prison is feeling alone. At Unseen Victims, we believe that when we bring our voices together, when we share our stories — we begin to challenge the stigma, lighten the load and provoke meaningful change.
This newsletter is more than an article-dump. It’s part of our strategy to amplify the voices of those impacted by incarceration, embed their experience into policy conversations and build a community of support, visibility and resilience.
So please – subscribe, share, participate. Let’s make this platform a space where no voice is left unseen.
Together we can shift the story from isolation to solidarity ❤️💪💫⚖️
— Emma Wells BSc (hons), Founder, Unseen Victims CIC
www.unseenvictims.org.uk
