The Council for Penological Co-operation (PC-CP) is the expert committee of the Council of Europe responsible for reviewing and revising standards and principles in the field of execution of custodial and non-custodial penal sanctions and measures.
It contributes to the Council of Europe’s role as an important standard-setting organisation and a platform for the exchange of experience and professional inspiration. The Working Group is composed of 9 elected members who are renowned experts in the prison and probation field. The Committee holds once a year a Plenary meeting with representatives of the 46 Council of Europe member States. Read more »
Promoting more humane and socially effective penal sanctions
Serious overcrowding and increasing proportions of older and women detainees in European prisons
The Council of Europe’s newly released 2025 annual penal statistics on prison populations (SPACE I), show that many European countries are failing to address the serious prison overcrowding they face. In many others prisons are close to full capacity following an increase in their prison...
19 May 2026
Education in prison: the Council of Europe updates its Recommendation to account for recent developments
8 April 2026
Alternative sanctions to imprisonment: Council of Europe publishes 2024 annual survey
6 November 2025
Prison and probation: Kraków Conference explores how to move away from the overuse of penal sanctions
24 September 2025
The 30th Council of Europe Conference of Directors of Prison and Probation Services (CDPPS) was held in Kraków (Poland) on 24 and 25 September 2025
25 September 2025
Increasing overcrowding in European prisons
18 July 2025
