Who we are
Find out more about who we are and what we do
125 years of transforming lives
On 16th September 1898 the first meeting of the Catholic Prisoners’ Aid Society (CPAS) was held. We wasted no time in getting down to the business of supporting prisoners, people with convictions, their children and families.
125 years later, our name has changed more than once. Yet our mission remains the same. We continue to support the children of prisoners and champion their right to a happy, healthy family life and a bright future. We continue to support both men and women in prison, and on release. And we support prisoners’ families, in all their diverse shapes and sizes.
We now deliver services in more than 60 prisons thanks to the many thousands of people who have made Pact what it is today, and whose legacy lives on in our work.
Pictured: Cardinal Bourne, Pact president from 1903 – 1935
Watch the Pact story
The Pact Story was created for our 120th anniversary and follows the charity’s journey from its first beneficiary, the ‘Child Roots’ all way through to the modern day.
Although much has changed in the 125 years that Pact has been in operation, our mission and values have remained largely the same.
Our vision is of a society in which justice is understood as a process of restoration and healing, in which prisons are used sparingly and as places of learning and rehabilitation, and in which the innate dignity and worth of every human being is valued.
