A TASKFORCE of councillors is to be established to monitor child protection services in Aberdeen following criticism from government inspectors.
The “child protection and corporate parenting governance forum” is to be established after last year’s damning reports from the Social Work Inspection Agency (SWIA) and HM Inspectorate of Education (HMIE).
The panel, to be made up of 10 councillors and a social work official, will be chaired by council leader Kate Dean, to underline its importance, and will meet four times a year.
Councillors will be asked to rubber-stamp the plans at tomorrow’s full council meeting.
Independent councillor Marie Boulton last month moved that the local authority establish the panel as a matter of urgency, in the wake of failings identified by inspectors.
November’s HMIE report, published amid national furore at the tragic death of Baby P in London despite 60 visits from social work staff, found that youngsters in Aberdeen were being left in high-risk situations without the protection they needed.
Action plans to address the findings of SWIA and HMIE have now been sent to the government agencies in advance of reinspections later this year.
Far-reaching changes to the way social work is provided in the city have been overseen by programme director Philip Cotterill, a troubleshooter recruited to overhaul the department following the SWIA report last May.
He said in a report to tomorrow’s meeting that the new taskforce would “provide governance and oversight of the effectiveness” of the council in the delivery of services to children.By Calum Ross
Published: 10/02/2009
A TASKFORCE of councillors is to be... more
Joel Lombard carries a stack of photographs, half an inch thick, in his billfold. In one, a ten-year-old boy leans over a hockey stick, grinning proudly in his bright red jersey. In another, a seven-year-old grips her soccer ball. These are Lombard's children, and over the past two years he has spent just under $30,000 in a custody battle to make sure he remained in their lives.
"I'm a great dad," Lombard says emphatically, his hazel eyes bright, as he sits in a booth at a greasy spoon in Inver Grove Heights. "I might be a bad business owner or a bad husband, but I'm a great dad."
When Lombard and the children's mother, Carol, decided to divorce two years ago, he was certain that the negotiations over the kids would go smoothly and result in a 50-50 split. He was shocked when his ex said she wanted sole custody.
Lombard's lawyer advised him not to move out of the house because that might disadvantage him in the fight. So Lombard lived in the basement for 11 months, until a judge awarded both parents equal time with the kids and ordered Lombard to move out.
But the struggle wasn't over. Lombard's ex-wife requested a custody evaluation from Washington County. The result was the same: equal time with the kids for both mom and dad. Next came a divorce trial, where the custody issue was finally settled.
Ultimately, Lombard got what he wanted. But he's not happy about how much time—and money—it cost him. "All you're doing is pissing away a college fund," Lombard says of dads who go through protracted legal fights over their children. "If he wants 50-50, he shouldn't have to fight for it. Because that's what's best for the kids."Joel Lombard carries a stack of photographs, half an inch thick, in his billfold. In... more
Earlier this month a court in Toronto, Cananda, transfered full custody of three daughters ages 9 to 14 to their father after a long-term parental alienation campaign by their mother. She had worked for years to brainwash them to hate their father. Judge McWatt of the Superior Court of Justice found that this constituted emotional child abuse and banned the mother from all further contact with the children except for counselling programs, including a program to help the children recover from parental alienation syndrome.
Parental alienation involves the systematic and frequently repeated denigration of one parent by the other and blocking of access to the parent who is the target of denigration. This is more than the unfortunately common occasional badmouthing during or after a divorce. While any badmouthing by one parent of the other parent in front of the children is detrimental, occasional negative comments are not enough to constitute parental alienation. This is especially the case when the parents making such mistakes recognizes them as such and try to avoid repeating them, respects that the children should have involvement of both of their parents in their lives, and complies with court orders involving visitation, custody, and contact.
Parental alienation is a form of emotional, verbal, and psychological abuse against children. Courts in multiple countries, including the United States and Canada, have consistently viewed parental alienation as child abuse. The way it has been handled has varied widely, however. Some courts have wrongly sided with the alienating parent. Others have shown unending tolerance for the alienation campaign. In both scenarios, the courts are directly contributing to child abuse.Earlier this month a court in Toronto, Cananda, transfered full custody of three... more
And it seems the adoptive parents neglected to mention the fact to authorities or indeed to anyone. Hey, a child goes missing for ten years; it's the type of thing anyone could overlook, right?
But check this out:
The boy's biological father, Irvin Groeninger II, also expressed regret. The Indiana trucker was divorced when authorities took Adam and his siblings from their mother's home after alleged abuse. He says he was cleared of any wrongdoing and tried to get custody of his children, but child welfare officials terminated his parental rights.
"Basically, I have lost him twice," Groeninger said.
So it's another case of the state's dogged determination to separate children from their fathers. The parents got divorced and she got the kids. She abused the children badly enough that Adam was taken from her by the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitative Services. That agency then did what similar ones so often do - ignore the fact that there's a father who claims to be qualified to care for his son. They do that in order to place the boy in an adoptive home.
Now, set aside for a moment the fact that the department may have earned money for the state by placing Adam for adoption instead of handing him over to his father.
What also happened here is that, by forcing adoption on a child who didn't need it, the department denied adoptive parents to some child who did. Every single day in this country, there are far more children who need to be adopted than there are qualified adoptive parents (only about 50,000 "stranger" adoptions occur in this country each year).
So the current emphasis on adoption at any cost is worse than you think. It deprives fathers of their children, sure, but it also deprives needy children of adoptive parents.
In this case it looks worse still. When a child has been missing for ten years, what do you think happened?
Thanks to "Tex" for the heads-up.And it seems the adoptive parents neglected to mention the fact to authorities or... more
On Jan. 1, Massachusetts adopted new child-support guidelines that will likely raise the amount paid by non-custodial parents, usually fathers.
Are the new guidelines excessive and unfair, as a lawsuit charges? Or were the old guidelines too stingy? How much child support is enough? How much is too much?
Fathers & Families, a Boston-based advocacy organization, says the payments under the new guidelines are excessive. Non-custodial parents, usually fathers, who must now make increased payments could be forced to work long hours or move to a distant community to find housing they can afford.
They will have less time to spend with their children, and may be left with a much lower standard of living than the custodial parents.
Fathers & Families immediately filed a lawsuit challenging the new guidelines.
In a press release announcing the guidelines, Massachusetts Chief Justice for Administration & Management Robert A. Mulligan said that the guidelines "address the dual goals of predictability and simplicity," and "will ensure the well-being of children across the state."
The issues raised in Massachusetts are echoed in other states, where child-support guidelines often seem, to fathers, to be unrealistically high. And to others, unrealistically low.
Dr. Ned Holstein, a physician and public-health consultant and the founder of Fathers & Families, says the guidelines will likely create a castle-and-a-shack situation-with the custodial parent living in relative comfort and the non-custodial parent struggling to afford minimally adequate housing.
"We believe that what's best for children is a two-condo solution, instead of a castle and a shack," Holstein said when I called to ask him about the lawsuit. In other words, the custodial and non-custodial parents ought to have similar standards of living. And both homes should be comfortable for the children.
Holstein's lawsuit-thrown out of federal court earlier this month, and now headed for state court-makes technical arguments about whether the adoption of the new guidelines was legal.On Jan. 1, Massachusetts adopted new child-support guidelines that will likely raise... more
DCRally2009/Family Preservation Rally is a culmination of parents, grandparents, and extended family members coming together to celebrate the most precious gift of our lives and that is the gift of FAMILY .
DCRally2009/Family Preservation Rally is to focus on overcoming the societal pressures that interfere with family and its relationships. DCRally2009/Family Preservation Rally will celebrate Motherhood, Fatherhood, and Grandparenthood as we appeal nationwide for the recognition, respect and protection of this most sacred gift.
The children of our great nation are our future…We must strengthen the family and its relationships for the sake of our future.
Join us at the Lincoln Memorial July 18-19 2009.
We look forward to DCRally2009/Family Preservation Rally to celebrate the greatest gift of all….FAMILY!!!DCRally2009/Family Preservation Rally is a culmination of parents, grandparents, and... more
CALGARY - Cops wrongly charged a Calgary dad with sexual abuse after his ex-wife coached their three-year-old daughter's complaint, a $900,000 lawsuit claims.
And the lawyer for the dad says his client has now effectively lost his daughter since the mom has taken her to their native China.
"He may have lost the child forever," lawyer Robb Beeman told the Sun yesterday.
Beeman said police should have done a more thorough investigation before charging his client with sexual assault two years ago.
"It's one of those situations where if the police had done even a cursory exam, the warning bells should have gone off big time," Beeman said.
His client's statement of claim says the man was charged after the three-year-old gave a statement that was coerced by her mom and a friend of the mother's.
The two women "repeated a series of propositions to (the girl) suggesting (her father) had engaged in sexual conduct," the court document alleges.
"(They) threatened punishment and promised reward in an obvious effort to compel (her) to repeat and adopt these propositions." The statement was made in Mandarin in the presence of a Chinese-speaking police officer.
"It's very obviously coached," Beeman said of the girl's statement. He said police should "know better than to let the friend of the mom do the questioning."
At one point during the interview, the friend, who was like an aunt to the child, told her if she didn't talk to police they wouldn't play with her any more, Beeman said. The lawsuit seeks damages for pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life and loss of reputation among others.
A statement of defence disputing the unproven allegations in the claim has not yet been filedCALGARY - Cops wrongly charged a Calgary dad with sexual abuse after his ex-wife... more
(WHAS11) - A father says he's been stripped of his parental rights and now he's taking bold steps to get the word out about his case.
James Rhoades says he fathered a child with a woman he had an affair with. But since she's married to someone else, the courts won't recognize Rhoades as the dad. So now he's putting up billboards asking for help.
In the heart of St Matthews shopping district you'll see a billboard with a toddler looking down at you.
James Rhoades says the toddler is his son and he's doing everything he can to see him again.(WHAS11) - A father says he's been stripped of his parental rights and now he's taking... more
The new Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines went into effect January 1. They are causing substantial increases in child support in almost all cases. Many payors will see increases of “only” 20%, but some will see a tripling of their child support order, even when they are poor and the recipient is wealthy. In high income cases, the child support order for one child could exceed $50,000 per year.
We are bringing a lawsuit in state court to stop the new Guidelines. We need your financial gifts to sustain our legal expenses. When we went to federal court on January 5, there was an outpouring of gifts, and we need you to rise to the occasion again by clicking here.
How much money is legitimately needed to support a child? Far less than the Guidelines require, in many cases. If a recipient and payor earn the same amount, when all factors are taken into consideration, the recipient will enjoy a standard of living almost double that of the payor. This holds true throughout the broad range of middle class incomes.
For details, see The linkThe new Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines went into effect January 1. They are... more
A MAN staged a rooftop protest on top of Ashton police station to campaign for the right of dads to see their children.
Glen Macfarlane, 33, clambered on to the roof at 6am on Friday armed with a flask of tea and a placard which read ‘Please Help’.
It sparked a four-hour stand-off as officers tried to talk him down, but the dad refused to budge and demanded to see social services chiefs.
Mr Macfarlane, a self-employed joiner, wanted to highlight calls for improved access rights for fathers.
He claims to have suffered months of frustration over visits to his young son and said he was left with no option but to take such drastic action.
Mr Macfarlane, of Corporation Road, Denton said: "I took my ladder and scrambled up at 6am. No one noticed. Eventually I shouted ‘Good morning’ to a policeman. He glanced up and froze. He ran inside to raise the alarm."
Emergency services were called along with a family liason officer and later a member of social services who agreed to talk to him. Mr Macfarlane, who is estranged from the tot’s mum, has since been in contact with Matt O’Connor, the founder of pressure group Fathers 4 Justice, for advice.
He said: "I can’t begin to explain how horrible it was to be in that situation but when you have been driven to such lengths, it seems like the only option left."
He came down just after 10am and was arrested for causing a nuisance to the public and emergency services.
But the charges were later dropped and he was given a police caution instead. He added: "I’m not proud of what I did. I’ve never been in trouble before, but I have no regrets."A MAN staged a rooftop protest on top of Ashton police station to campaign for the... more
Investigators: Trial could lead to loss of grandchild forever
SEATTLE -- The fate of a 3-year-old girl taken from her family and placed in foster care a year ago is about to be decided by the court system.
Last month, the KING 5 Investigators brought you the heartbreaking story of an Enumclaw toddler who was taken away from the only stable home she'd ever known and put in foster care.
AnneMarie Stuth of Enumclaw doesn't come into her granddaughter's empty room very often. Seeing her things is too painful.
“It’s a part of your heart and life gone,” said Stuth.
AnneMarie and her husband Doug helped raise their grandchild for the first two years of her life. Their daughter had the baby at 16 and needed their help.
“She was the center of our world," said AnneMarie.
The teen mom and her baby moved away from the Stuths when the child was 9 months old. Moving out didn't go well: A doctor found the teenager let the baby get dangerously thin.
KING
A judge is expected to rule on the fate of Doug and AnneMarie Stuth's grandchild, pictured here. She is now 3 years old.
Child Protective Services was called in and placed the child with the grandparents. They were seen as model caregivers: They didn’t have criminal histories, they both had good jobs and they rearranged their entire schedules so the baby didn’t have to be in daycare full-time.
A court appointed child advocate wrote several glowing reports about the job the grandparents were doing. He wrote, “(the baby) continues to thrive in the home", and "she's fortunate to have her grandparents as a safety net."
"We'd do anything for her," said Doug. “Our granddaughter always came first. She’s a little baby. She needs someone to protect her and take care of her and that’s what we did.”
But when the baby was two, the Stuths fell out of favor with the system.
The child's court advocate and state workers told the court the grandparents were selfish, hyper-critical, and undermined their own daughter's parenting.
The judge ordered they were no longer a placement option for the child.
The baby went into foster care.
The Stuths were devastated. They got reports that the little girl was distraught at daycare.
"She cries for me," said Doug. “You have no idea (how hard it is)."
The Stuths attended a trial Tuesday in juvenile court in Seattle. The state is trying to terminate the young mother’s parental rights. Through a witness, the assistant attorney general said the teenager wasn’t mature enough or motivated enough to care for her daughter.Comments 144| Recommend 64
Investigators: Trial could lead to loss of... more
On Super Bowl Sunday in 1999, the year Adam Herrman went missing but no one reported it, one of his aunts says she saw the 11-year-old chained to a bathtub faucet at his Towanda mobile home.
It looked like he had handcuffs on, said his aunt, Kim Winslow. Winslow, now 48, said it was the last time she saw Adam.
Other close relatives of Adam's adoptive mother, Valerie Herrman of Derby, say they saw her abuse him over the years and that he was forced to sleep in a bathtub. In at least one instance, a relative reported alleged abuse to authorities.
Butler County sheriff's officers plan to bring in search dogs and ground-penetrating radar to help solve the mystery of what happened to Adam Herrman.
The Wichita-Sedgwick County Exploited and Missing Child Unit received a tip about a month ago that the child had not been seen for nine years.
Detectives are investigating the case as if Adam were dead, even though they can't rule out that he is still alive, Butler County Sheriff Craig Murphy said at a news conference Monday.
Warner Eisenbise, the Wichita attorney representing Herrman and her husband, Doug Herrman, Adam's adoptive father, said, "I firmly believe that they are innocent and had nothing to do with his death, if in fact he died."
But Eisenbise conceded that it is possible that the parents could be charged with failing to report a missing child.
Murphy released a fourth-grade picture of Adam, who authorities think disappeared from Towanda in the summer of 1999 when he was 11 or 12. Murphy asked the public to call with any information.
Relatives say Valerie Herrman, who is in her early 50s, had told them over the years that Adam was taken back into state custody. Recently, the adoptive parents have said through their attorney that Adam ran away and they did not report it.
Law enforcement agencies are bringing in search dogs from other states, Butler County sheriff's Detective Sgt. Kelly Herzet said.
"We're asking for all the resources we can ask for on this case," Herzet said.
Family members' accounts are in the linkOn Super Bowl Sunday in 1999, the year Adam Herrman went missing but no one reported... more
EL DORADO, Kan. – The Kansas parents who failed to report their 11-year-old adopted son missing nearly a decade ago are "people of interest" as authorities search for him nationwide, a sheriff said Monday.
Investigators only recently learned Adam Herrman was missing and are focused on finding him, Butler County Sheriff Craig Murphy said. Adam was 11 when he disappeared in 1999 from a mobile home park in Towanda where he lived.
Authorities would not say whether they believed Adam, who would now be 21, is alive. "We are working it as if it is a death — but we are not leaning one way or the other," Murphy said.
Doug and Valerie Herrman adopted Adam at 2 1/2 years old, and he had been in foster care before that. The parents have not been arrested or charged with any crime, and Murphy said no charges would be filed while investigators focused on the search.
The family's attorney, Warner Eisenbise, said his clients did not harm the child. He said the Herrmans are innocent of any wrongdoing other than not reporting their son missing, which is against Kansas law.
"He was a problem child. He ran away frequently to the point of exasperation," Eisenbise said. "My clients feel very guilty that the last time he left they didn't make an attempt to locate him. Every other time, the police were called or he wandered back. They assumed he found one of his siblings or went back to his biological parents."
Murphy said investigators have not confirmed whether Adam had a history of running away. The family has cooperated with investigators, he said.
The Herrmans now live in the Wichita suburb of Derby, in neighboring Sedgwick County.
Adam was homeschooled when he disappeared, Eisenbise said.
Murphy said a search of the empty lot where the family's mobile home once stood gave investigators one answer they sought, but he did not elaborate other than to say no human remains were found.
Murphy's office did not receive a missing persons report until contacted recently by Sedgwick County's exploited and missing children's unit. He declined to say who tipped them off. It was not clear exactly when they learned of the boy's disappearance.
Investigators have not found any confirmed data on Adam's whereabouts since 1999.
Murphy asked the public for help and issued a plea to the missing boy himself: "If Adam Herrman is alive out there — and he would see this — I would ask him to contact us immediately."EL DORADO, Kan. – The Kansas parents who failed to report their 11-year-old adopted... more
(1) One in six men will be a victim of domestic abuse in their lifetime.
One in four women will be a victim of domestic abuse in their lifetime.
This is a ratio of 40% men : 60% women.
Walby, S. and Allen, J. (2004) Domestic Violence, sexual assault and stalking : Findings from the British Crime Survey. Home Office Research Study No. 276. London : Home Office
(2) Currently two in every five (43%) domestic abuse victims are men.
The British Crime Survey (2006/07) figures can be seen in the link provided above(1) One in six men will be a victim of domestic abuse in their lifetime.
One in... more
This article was written to address the immunity claims made by those hired, elected or appointed to serve children in our legal system when they are sued for outrageous acts. This article argues that since the passage of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (“The Mondale Act”) false claims of child abuse have wrecked havoc on American families. In order to understand the claims for immunity made by doctors, social workers and attorneys who mis-serve children, this article provides a discussion of immunity and its operation in our law. Following a historical overview, this article describes the various claims to immunity from suit made by government officials, prosecutors, law enforcement personnel, guardians, appointed counsel, social workers and various private parties. For the purpose of illustrating how immunity claims may be addressed, this article presents an actual account of a Michigan case concerning issues of Guardian ad Litem immunity. It is the express position of this author that people who chose to aide or represent children must do so competently and professionally or not at all.IMMUNITY BROKEN
ABSTRACT
This article was written to address the immunity claims... more
My parents divorced when I was 2 years old. Because I was so young, I cannot remember anything of how the divorce actually felt at the time. But 12 years later, I am quite content with my life and my parents. Unlike many divorced couples with children, neither parent has primary custody of me, but rather, I switch between my parents' houses every other day, spending roughly equal time with my mother and my father.
When I describe the system to other kids, many of them gape at me and are absolutely baffled. "How I can stand my life being so crazy and confusing?" they ask. Others frankly say that my parents are weird for not doing some kind of every-other-weekend deal. I always respond by explaining how after all this time, the routine seems like normal and isn't confusing at all and that I would honestly not have it any other way.
I believe that I am a significantly more stable person because I get to see both my mom and dad so frequently. I don't think that my relationships with either of them would be as loving and open as they are, if I even switched houses every week, because for me at least, seeing both parents every day makes me closer with both of them. They both always know what's going on in my life, and there isn't that awkwardness of having to explain to one what happened during a week where they weren't part of my life. I have had a more "normal" experience growing up, in that seeing Mom and Dad each day is sort of like the experience someone would have living with married parents and seeing them both all the time.
It's definitely an essential component of my happiness as a person that my parents have found a way to be friends even though things didn't work out between them during their married life. After the divorce, no one would have blamed my parents if they never wanted to talk to each other again. But Mom and Dad rose above the anger they felt for each other, and focused on the 2-year-old daughter they had. They made what I believe is undoubtedly the right choice, by arranging it so that both of them would be able to see me daily and, when around me at least, acting in a friendly manner toward each other. Eventually, after a while of being friendly, they actually became friends. Now I might even venture to say that they are among each other's best friends.My parents divorced when I was 2 years old. Because I was so young, I cannot remember... more
"Prosecutors said the trove of tapes came to light after medical experts hired by two convicted defendants belatedly discovered videotapes in their cases and concluded they contradicted medical findings that sexual abuse had occurred.
"In those cases the new evidence proved crucial — one conviction has been overturned, and the second is in jeopardy...
"Though prosecutors downplay the significance of the tapes, experts for the defense say the videotapes could make a huge difference in child sex-abuse cases that rest heavily on medical evidence. Sometimes the allegations come years after the alleged incidents, making the search for physical trauma like scars, tearing or notching on the hymen or anus that much more challenging.
"Additionally, in many cases children recant their accusations before trial — so medical evidence is even more critical."
Agustin Uribe’s conviction for sexually abusing a 5-year-old girl was overturned by California’s Sixth Court of Appeals last year. Why? The San Jose Mercury News reports that the hospital at which the girl was examined maintained a videotape of the examination which showed that no abuse had occurred. Read the story here.
Now it develops that the hospital has some 3,000 newly-found videotapes of similar examinations in child abuse cases since 1991. As you might expect, defense attorneys in pending and closed cases are seeking access to those tapes.
So far we don’t know what was on the tape in the Uribe case that caused his conviction to be overturned. We also don’t know what, if anything, other tapes will reveal, but we should know soon. One defense attorney has already brought up the specter of the McMartin Pre-School case in which blatant fraud was used to accuse teachers of the most bizarre acts of child sexual and physical abuse. The methods used in that case to elicit false allegations from very young children have become the standard for what not to do in determining whether a child has been abused.
The Mercury News article suggests that Mary Ritter, coordinator of the Center for Child Protection at the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center may be at the center of this controversy. An expert witness in a second case has said that his review of the videotape "clearly contradicts Mary Ritter's conclusion" that sexual abuse occurred.
These videotapes have the potential to overturn a great number of abuse convictions. That’s important enough, but they also may open a window on the ways the children in those cases are treated by authorities. Were they allowed to tell their stories honestly? Or were they manipulated into telling falsehoods by adults bent on incarcerating the accused at all costs?"Prosecutors said the trove of tapes came to light after medical experts hired by two... more
WICHITA, Kan. — A homeschooling mother whose daughter was removed from their home following a mistaken truancy report was jailed for contempt Friday after refusing to say where the 14-year-old has been since fleeing state custody in October.
Bambi Baker-Hazen said she was invoking her right to protect her daughter, Ashton Baker, from what she called abuse in the state's child welfare system. The girl had spent 47 days in the Wichita Children's Home before running away Oct. 6.
Baker-Hazen told Sedgwick County Juvenile Court Judge Tim Henderson that when she tried to return Ashton to the home, the girl threatened to jump out of the car. She said Ashton had lost a lot of weight and had burns on her arms allegedly inflicted by other children at the home.
"She was hysterical, upset," Baker-Hazen testified. "She said she could not take it anymore."
Baker-Hazen said Ashton is safe, but she repeatedly refused the judge's admonitions to answer questions from deputy county prosecutor Ron Paschal about the teen's whereabouts.
More in linkWICHITA, Kan. — A homeschooling mother whose daughter was removed from their home... more
13 November 2008
Children’s Minister Beverley Hughes today announced a ‘Think Fathers’ campaign to dispel the myth that dads are the ‘invisible parent’. Research the Government is publishing today shows that public, health and family services across the board need to go much further in recognising and working with fathers.
Kick-starting a debate at the Family and Parenting Institute, Beverley Hughes wants to build up the expectation of fathers’ involvement within public services - from birth, through children’s centres in the early years and in schools - and within society more generally.
With research showing that children who grow up with strong father figures are less likely to get into crime, take drugs; grow up with mental health problems or struggle to form relationships, the Children’s Minister announced that the Government will be working with the Fatherhood Institute to look at how to better support dads and encourage them to play an active role in their families.
To push forward the debate on active fatherhood, the campaign will:
- For the first time to bring together employers, children’s services, practitioners and voluntary organisations to look at what more can be done to give dads the support they need
- Publish a ‘Think Fathers’ guide to help children’s services to improve the way they work with dads
- Hold a ‘Think Fathers’ summit to encourage public services, professionals and the voluntary sector to look distinctively at fathers – not just generically at parents
- Launch an online ‘Dads Dialogue’, with fathers, mothers and children creating a user-generated collection of views, feelings, anecdotes and memories about fatherhood, family policy, challenges and successes.
Beverley Hughes said:
“All children need active and engaged fathers and we must do all we can to make sure they get one. Today I want to start the debate about what we can all do to help get dads more involved. The ‘Think Fathers’ campaign is a fantastic start and over the coming months I am looking forward to building up a coalition who can help us drive this forward including Government, the Fatherhood Institute, practitioners and children’s services.
“Together, we can bring home the messages to families, public services and the voluntary services that parental responsibilities should be shared equally among parents and we can reverse the outdated and out of touch assumption that dads a bolt-on family accessory – nice to have but not essential.”
Editor's Notes
This press notice relates to 'England'
Research published today entitled ‘How Fathers can be Better Recognised and Supported through DCSF Policy’ is available from www.dcsf.gov.uk
