The UK ranks in the bottom four of a “groundbreaking” new index measuring parenting leave, the gender pay gap and other equality issues, a study revealed.
Sweden was top of the 21-nation “family friendly” league table, with only Switzerland, Austria and Japan below the UK, according to an analysis by the Fatherhood Institute.

Survey from Talking Talent highlights that nearly half of fathers would take advantage of new extended paternity leave regulations

Duncan Fisher, author of Baby’s Here! Who Does What?
Don’t end up with one parent doing all the caring and the other doing all the earning unless you really cannot avoid it.

FSB launches new flexible working report proposing major reforms to childcare and maternity leave
The Government must reform statutory maternity and paternity pay to give small businesses certainty over employee’s family leave, the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) said in a new report today.

Once labour starts, it’s generally considered advisable for the mother to stay at home as long as possible: if she rushes into hospital early, more medical interventions during the birth usually follow. Fathers are very important at this point: research by the University of Worcester found that they can be very influential as to whether mothers head straight for hospital or hang on at home.
This survey (which follows one carried out by these same researchers to look at women’s experiences of early …

Has pregnancy made you rethink your career? I was speaking to a journalist from a national baby magazine about this yesterday. She asked me about the numbers of mums who were looking at changing career post baby, and I said that the majority of women who have a serious rethink … even if many decide that going back to work is the only option available due to contracts or financial commitments.

Survey reveals that 4 in 10 fathers don’t take paternity leave because they can’t afford it
Some employers still deny fathers their rights to paid leave
The charity Working Families has launched a new campaign to raise fathers’ awareness of their rights to paternity leave and to encourage employers to “top up” statutory pay to full pay for the two weeks of leave.

Antonia Chitty of Family Friendly Working says, “We welcome the Governments plans to allow dads to share part of mums maternity leave. This will give dads a chance to play a greater role in parenting and share care. It is a good move for flexible working too, and acknowledges that in some families mum is the main breadwinner.”
Family Friendly Working would like to see the proposed plans for longer leave for mums upheld, as well as better paternity leave for dads.

Imagine falling pregnant and not having to worry about how you will live on one income, and how soon you would need to go back to work in the baby’s first year, writes Karen Miles of Motherhood – Career and Identity.
Imagine not having to put your unborn child’s name on a day care waiting list in hope they will be accepted in a years’ time? And how about not worrying about how you will cover child care costs if your child is accepted?
Imagine not being treated as an uncommitted worker …

PLANS to allow parents to share a year’s paid maternity leave have been shelved by Lord Mandelson after complaints from businesses, as reported in The Sunday Times
Dads will be losing out on the chance of six months’ paid leave to look after a baby, allowing mothers to return to work early. Ministers also promised to extend paid maternity leave from nine to 12 months.
The plans were seen as a key plank of Labour’s family-friendly agenda, giving parents more flexibility on who looked after the children. They would also have …