Men as carers

1. Men as carers A presentation by Kenny Spence & Colin Chisholm Men In Childcare: December 8th 2003 Edinburgh

2. Political Will Men In Childcare has had their approach to recruiting men into childcare endorsed on a local and national level in Scotland. The Scottish Education minister at our conference last year gave the following endorsement to the project

3. A career in childcare can be the right choice for men and women, Education Minister Cathy Jamieson said when she announced extra funding to support workforce training. Ms Jamieson was speaking at Men in Childcare’s Conference last year, where she stressed that children would benefit if care settings were more representative of society. She Said: "Children should have a variety of role models when they are growing up. If childcare and early education remain completely female dominated, children lose out on the contribution men can make and men lose out on a fulfilling career. The Way Forward

4. "Men in Childcare recognise the importance of diversity as well as skills in the workforce - I would like to see more men working in childcare to help counteract the view that this is somehow ‘women’s work’. "I want to see the best possible quality of care for children throughout Scotland. To allow for further expansion and development of the early years workforce, I am making available an additional £2.4 million to local authorities from 2004 onwards. The Executive plans to write to authorities giving examples of areas that the funding could be used for. One area which will be highlighted is improving the diversity of the workforce. The Way Forward

5. Who are the men who care for children ? • Fathers • Partners • Extended Family • School Teachers • After School Care • Early Years • Foster Care

6. Children could benefit because of a male perspective, men and women are different More gender balanced staff group different ways of looking at issues Fathers could benefit because they have someone to relate to and may feel more at ease Are there benefits from having men in childcare?

7. Many children now grow up in one parent household and maybe don’t meet a man until Secondary School Half of all marriages now end in Divorce Male children often are told they are like the absent father no good, this can leave a sense of no self worth Male children like to run jump play fight in day care setting this is often not encouraged We celebrate differences culturally yet often not about gender. Equal opportunities Issues for children

8. Research done suggests fathers often find family centre’s and nurseries too feminine and not male friendly Men often feel they are having difficulty parenting without requiring reinforcement Woman with bad experiences benefit from meeting safe males In Scotland unmarried men have no automatic parental rights Parents

9. Regular discussion with staff teams working with pre fives suggest that more of a gender balance would facilitate different approaches It sometimes provides opportunity to see different perspective both sides of an argument men are different Staff Groups

10. What are the inhibitors to more men working in Early Years ? • Perceptions • Structure of training • Pay • Isolation • Lack of Support • Political Will • Fear

11. Challenging Perceptions • Positive career advice to boys in schools • Improvement in pay • Change title ‘nursery nurse’ • National advertising • Policy support for the practice of employing men • Men won’t work in childcare unless invited

12. What has our approach been Since January 2001the project has been responsible for childcare training for over 170 men since . They have come from all walks of life, from Bank Managers to Bus Drivers and from Banff to the Borders. Very few having ever worked in childcare and the vast majority thinking they never could.

13. What have we done differently, We haven’t changed the qualifications. But we have changed the way training is delivered We haven’t improved the salary. But we are hoping that will happen soon We haven’t improved working conditions. But we have introduced support

14. Why the success? We directly aimed our advertising at men We responded quickly We were able to speak to them at each and every stage of their training We provided support We were able to provide a complete pathway of training We built good relationships with colleges

15. Isolation Vs Support • Mentors • Face to Face support • Telephone support for Students • Meetings with College Lecturers • Financial support for full time students • All course fees met

16. Advertising Media versus leaflets Daily or weekly Other forms of advertising Radio Website

17. Structure of Training • Intro Course 2 hours per week accredited • N.C. full time, part time or fast track both of which are 2 evenings per week • H.N.C. full time or part time 2 evenings per week. Weekend and holiday placements • Making choices 2 Saturdays

18. Courses Male Students on Childcare Courses at Scottish Colleges 2002-2003 No college had more than three male childcare students, and some had none Results (Sex Ratio) total students 2,331 male students 37 proportion of male students 1.5%

19. Courses (Excluding MiC) Scottish College childcare studies Male Students HNC 8 NC 14 SVQ 12 Intro 3 total 37 men

20. Courses 2003-2004 Men in Childcare Students 9 HNC 20 NC 30 Intro total 59 men

21. www.meninchildcare.com www.meninchildcare.com