A/HRC/11/8 page 15 82 per cent in Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)39 and 85 per cent in Australia.40 They are more frequently than men the heads of single-parent families. Only limited statistics exist globally about the number of children living in prison with their mother, despite the fact that many States (but by no means all) permit children to stay with their mothers until a maximum age. This varies widely between nine months and six years.41 44. There is a lack of information on availability, quality, adaptability, attendance and supervision of education for such children.42 The very few evaluations of the educational quality of nurseries within prisons that do exist have shown that there are considerable differences between them in the provision of learning materials and toys. They show also that, in some cases, the level of personal care (toileting and diapering) is poor, although social interaction and language activities are often of good quality.43 Welcome and innovative programmes are increasingly being implemented. For example, the inclusion of early stimulation programmes that have proved to have long-term positive effects on children living in poverty generally involving children, parents and the community are being transferred to the prison complex where children are detained alongside their mothers,44 and very recently to young couples sentenced to community alternatives to imprisonment.45 45. In most countries, there is a legal mandate for the provision of preschool education for children living in prison, but in practice there is no implementation owing to a shortage of economic and human resources (lack of trained teachers and transport, no coordination between responsible bodies and limited awareness of children’s rights).46 39 Sepulveda, M.A., López, G., Guaimaro, Y. (2003), “Mujeres en prisión: una revisión necesaria”, in Visiones sobre el Crimen y Castigo en América Latina, Revista el Otro Derecho No. 29, ILSA, Bogota. 40 Kilroy, D., “Understanding the Queensland women in prison report: a detailed analysis” (2006), available at www.sistersinside.com.au. 41 Robertson, O., “Children imprisoned by circumstance” (2008), Quaker United Nations Office. 42 Belsky, M. and Finoli, M., “El acceso a la educación de los niños que viven con sus madres en contextos de encierro” (2008), Asociación de Derechos Civiles: Programa Educación. 43 See Jimenez, J. “The quality of educational attention received by children living with their mothers in Spanish prison” (2005), Psychology in Spain, vol. 9, No. 1. 44 SENAME, “Residencias para protección para lactantes de madres internas en recintos penitenciarios” (2008). Available at www.sename.cl. 45 Galera, L., “Niños con sus madres en prisión: retos educativos”. Available at www.redlece.org/biblioteca. 46 Sepulveda, M.A., “Mothers and children living in prison” (2008). Document written for the Quaker United Nations Office.