A recent report published by the Family and Childcare Trust has suggested that fathers are being “side-lined” by early years providers.
The report was submitted as evidence for the Parliamentary Inquiry on Parenting and Social Mobility on 23rd March. One of the key findings is that fathers are an “underused” resource in early years child development and that parenting support is “often designed with mothers in mind”.
To better engage with fathers and address the issue, the report recommends a flexible and genuinely inclusive approach to parenting support programmes. It also recommends that early years services should be encouraged to actively engage fathers by promoting activities that are accessible to fathers.
The report goes on to suggest that the instigation of a UK-wide “fathers and children” reading campaign should to be designed, funded, and promoted, by national government.
Chair of the Parliamentary Inquiry on Parenting and Social Mobility, Baroness Claire Tyler, said: “We want to see any incoming Government encourage early years services to actively engage fathers by promoting activities that are accessible to them...”
She added: “Effective parenting has a bigger influence on a child’s life than income, class or education, and for too long fathers have been woefully neglected by local and national government in the narrative about children’s early development. This needs to change.”
Find out how to keep parents involved in their child's day, using Dayshare.