The Fatherhood Institute

New research by Newcastle University has called for clinical guidelines to be developed to give mental health support to expectant fathers in the run-up to and shortly after becoming dads. Academics concluded that: "It is clear that fathers require equal emotional and practical support to mothers during this period, and therefore it is important that future tailored support is provided and that fathers are not considered a ‘forgotten entity’.” We need maternity, health visiting, and other family services to systematically engage with fathers and take them seriously as caregivers - to help them look after themselves and by extension their families. Our 'looking out for dad' campaign aims to improve the health support fathers receive - physical and mental. 👉 Discover our campaign and get involved: https://lnkd.in/eazUg_46 The i paper recently published an opinion piece written by Emma Barnett featuring this research and calling for a systematic overhaul to let dads in. "They’re ready, and they deserve our love and care too." 👉 Read here: https://lnkd.in/dSD-4Rk8 #menshealth #fatherhood #perinatalmentalhealth #newdad #lookingoutfordad

Already thinking about, and planning for, Christmas? This Black Friday, you can get 10% off all our merch! Why visit our Fatherhood Institute shop? 🎁 Our comfortable, certified organic cotton t-shirts and totes are practical, everyday items that make great gifts (or indeed a little treat for yourself!) 💷 Save money on gifts for loved ones this Christmas with this time-limited offer 🪴 Our eco-friendly pieces are printed on demand with water-based inks and shipped in plastic-free packaging, reducing waste 🌟100% of profits from our shop go to our campaigns, for which we receive no funding Perfect for getting ahead on Christmas shopping whilst feeling good about your purchases AND helping us spread the word about our campaigns pushing for better support for fathers. 👉 Head over to our shop and use the code TAKE10 at checkout: https://lnkd.in/enr8HJDu ❗Offer expires at midnight tomorrow (29th Nov) #fatherhood #campaign #support #donate #merchandise

How can organisations support all employees in balancing the multi facets of caring, with career growth, regardless of gender? Join Thriving Talent's LinkedIn Live with our friend Ian Dinwiddy of Inspiring Dads Ltd to discover practical insights for building a workplace where caring and career coexist. ⏰ Thursday (28th) at 11am 👉 Register to attend here: https://lnkd.in/eaFkM65C 👉 Learn more about what we're doing as part of our 'fathers at work' policy work stream: https://lnkd.in/eZYcADqS 👉 Discover our #6weeksfordads campaign and get involved: https://lnkd.in/emp7ZG3e #genderequalityatwork #flexibleworking #parentalleave #careergrowth #linkedinlive #fatherhood

🎊Introducing our 'six weeks for dads' campaign short film🎊 The UK's statutory paternity offer is the least generous in Europe, and one of the worst in the developed world. Britain's fathers - and their families - deserve better. That's why the Fatherhood Institute is campaigning for fathers to have the right to a minimum of six weeks' well-paid statutory leave within their baby's first year, at 90% of earnings. 👉 Learn more about our campaign and get involved: https://lnkd.in/emp7ZG3e Our new film, in collaboration with Media Trust and The Mercers' Company, features real fathers sharing their experiences of paternity leave, and how beneficial six weeks were / would have been for them. We've entered our film into the Smiley Charity Film Awards so head on over to watch the full length version and to give us your vote! 👉 Vote for us now: https://lnkd.in/ec3Shh2Y 🌟We don't receive any funding for our campaigning - please help us continue building momentum for change by becoming an FI supporter or making a donation: https://lnkd.in/epbMA69c #6weeksfordads #paternityleave #parentalleave #fatherhood #newdad #timewithdad #campaign #policychange #competition

❓Childcare support is expanding – have you checked your eligibility? The Government are expanding childcare support, with eligible working parents now entitled to the following: ⚡Child aged 9 months up to 3 years: 15 hours of childcare per week for 38 weeks per year (increasing to 30 hours from September 2025) ⚡Child aged 3 - 4: up to 30 hours childcare per week for 38 weeks per year ⚡School-aged children: more wraparound childcare  places now available (which you can pay for using Tax-Free Childcare or Universal Credit Childcare) 👉 Check what support you're eligible for: https://lnkd.in/gTUgSsp ❗To use your hours from 1st January, you need to apply by 31st December - visit gov.uk to apply for your code and then share it with your childcare provider *to continue receiving the government support, you will need to reconfirm your details every 3 months on your gov.uk account We're pleased to see the Government taking early years education and childcare seriously, and beginning to address the many problems affecting the sector. Whilst this is not a one-stop solution, additional childcare support will help tackle the persistent 'mother as primary caregiver, father as main breadwinner' model which remains the norm in many UK families - often out of obligation (due to the current parental leave system) rather than choice. 👉 Access our FREE 'sharing the earning and caregiving' factsheet: https://lnkd.in/eESGeqmD Early Education and Childcare Coalition #childcarechoices #childcare #fatherhood #earlyyears #nursery #familylife

The average maternity leave at full pay offered by UK higher education institutions is 18.2 weeks - the equivalent for paternity leave is just 2.3 weeks 🧠 This headline finding from Clare Matysova's 2023 research demonstrates that the higher education sector in the UK, although offering an enhanced paternity leave package for dads comparative to other sectors, continues to equate a 'better deal for mothers' with longer and better paid maternity leave rather than a reduced gap between mothers' and fathers' access to paid leave for parenting. Clare Matysova sent FOI requests to 117 UK higher education institutions in 2023, asking them for details of their leave offer for parents. What else did she discover? 👉 Delve deeper into the data by reading our summary of Clare's findings: https://lnkd.in/eFyFAS52 👉 Prefer a video explainer? Watch our Meet the Experts interview with the researcher: https://lnkd.in/eTezKxPr 🌟 Our campaigns rely on donations from our supporters, people like you, as we do not receive any funding. Help us keep the momentum for change goingby donating today: https://lnkd.in/epbMA69c Advance HE HESA: Higher Education Statistics Agency Independent Higher Education Universities UK Higher Education Policy Institute Office for Students The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education #fatherhood #newdad #paternityleave #employeebenefits #employeerights #6weeksfordads #parentalleave #timewithdad #genderequalityatwork #highereducationuk

Most men become fathers at least once in their lifetime. But fatherhood remains largely unexplored by our health services: a lost opportunity to improve engagement with men. ❗One of the key changes our 'looking out for dad' campaign is asking for is an NHS health-check for all fathers - delivered by GP practices and promoted to new dads by maternity services. This would explore key conditions and behaviours that have been shown to impact on men’s own health and that of their loved ones. We're calling on the Health Secretary, The Rt. Hon. Wes Streeting MP, to include fathers in his plans for a Men's Health Strategy which he promised earlier this year, back in March. We could be doing so much better for families, by building dads into our health systems. Add your name to our open letter to help us show the Government it's time for change. 👉 Sign our open letter now: https://lnkd.in/es_EEmwv 👉 Discover our #lookingoutfordad campaign and get involved: https://lnkd.in/eazUg_46 Men's Health Forum Global Action on Men's Health Men and Boys Coalition #fatherhood #newdad #menshealth #menshealthstrategy #perinatalmentalhealth #familyservices #healthservices #nhs

This International Men's Day we're celebrating the positive impact that fathers bring to their families and communities. We've sent a briefing - 'A New Deal for British Fathers' - to all MPs ahead of Thursday's (21st Nov) IMD debate in parliament, highlighting our three main asks to transform life for UK dads: 🍼 A substantially better statutory paternity offer 👉 Learn more about our 'six weeks for dads' campaign: https://lnkd.in/emp7ZG3e 🍼 Health checks for new dads 👉 Learn more about our 'looking out for dad' campaign: https://lnkd.in/eazUg_46 🍼 A Fatherhood Champion in every local authority We've also published a new blog, arguing that if Labour want to stop young men drifting towards the parties of the right, it should make reform of fatherhood policy and services a key priority. 👉 Why a better paternal health offer is key for Labour: https://lnkd.in/eSdugS3x Fatherhood is a key rite of passage for most men, and it’s time to do more to recognise its importance and support men through it. 👀 More on this to come... #internationalmensday #menshealth #6weeksfordads #lookingoutfordad #parliamentarydebate #policychange #fatherhood #perinatalmentalhealth

Men in England and Wales are having children much later in life than was the case 50 years ago. 🧠 Office for National Statistics 2023 birth data for England and Wales show that: Men aged 30-34 are now 4.1 times more likely to father a child than men aged 20-24 Fathers' average age was 33.8 - that's a year older than was the case in 2013 (mothers' average has also risen, to 30.9 years) Compared to 1973, a man aged 20-24 is 3.9 times LESS likely to father a child, while conversely, a man aged 40-44 is 1.7 times MORE likely to do so 💡 These figures help explain a marked fall in the birth rate, which in 2023 stood at 1.44 per woman over a lifetime - the lowest since records began, and well below the 'replacement level' (the rate needed to ensure the 'natural' replacement of the country's population) of 2.08 per woman. ❓What can explain this shift? Are we having children later in life for financial reasons? Are we choosing not to have children, or to have fewer of them? If so, why? Is biological infertility playing a role? 👉 Check out this interesting BBC article that explores some of these factors: https://lnkd.in/dqriRwna 👶 For those men who ARE having babies, we need to improve the health support they receive, and make health services more father-inclusive. 👉 Learn more about our 'fathers & health' policy work here: https://lnkd.in/eaEGbu4b 👉 Discover our 'looking out for dad' campaign and get involved here: https://lnkd.in/eazUg_46 #fatherhood #fertilityrate #malechildlessness #ageing #reproduction #birthrate #menshealth *Access the ONS data here: https://lnkd.in/efYJ92Cr

📣 CALLING ALL FATHERS 📣 Are you a father who believes in our cause with a little bit of time to spare to share your experiences and ideas? Join our Dads Panel to help us plan our future strategy and contribute to our advocacy. We’re not a fathers’ organisation, but dads are at the heart of what we do. We take your experiences, viewpoints and perspectives very seriously, and our Dads’ Panel offers a way for interested dads from all walks of life to help inform our work. Our first meeting will take place soon, on the 26th Nov, so make sure to sign up today. 👉 Learn more and register your interest: https://lnkd.in/diNz7d46 Learn more about the campaigns we'd like to hear your thoughts on: 👉 Six weeks for dads: https://lnkd.in/emp7ZG3e 👉 Looking out for dad: https://lnkd.in/eazUg_46 #fatherhood #timewithdad #getinvolved