Commenting on ‘Testing Times’, a new Centre for Social Justice report about fatherhood, Jane Robey, CEO of National Family Mediation, said:
“This report rightly shines a light on the importance of fatherhood in improving childhood outcomes. Whilst it recognises the need to strengthen relationship support services, it doesn’t properly address the importance of fully involving fathers in genuinely shared parenting after separation or divorce.
“Divorce and separation becomes a reality for many thousands of parents every year, and a focus on the value of the father’s role should not be allowed to diminish in these circumstances.
“Sensible agreements over shared parenting duties are often pivotal to the child’s future wellbeing. Our experience shows that people who are prepared to take joint responsibility for the child’s future, and to make parenting agreements on that basis – rather than bowing to the clarion call of litigation – work better together after separation. This brings huge benefits to the child who has initially been caught in the middle of a separation storm. And agreements that help separated parents move forward in relation to finance and property issues help them avoid the poverty trap that litigation encourages.
“We continue to press the government to push the promotion of family mediation up the agenda because ensuring more and more separating couples mediate not litigate will improve the quality of active fatherhood, and childhood outcomes to boot.”
The Centre for Social Justice report can be found in full using this link.
