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ENGAGING FATHERS WORKSHOP

ENGAGING FATHERS WORKSHOP. Adrienne Burgess Bournemouth September 2010. SIMPLE CHANGES CAN BE EXTRAORDINARILY EFFECTIVE ! In Australia, Fletcher (1997) reports fathers almost flooding into schools when specifically invited In Grantham, Lincolnshire (2009) two health visitors

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ENGAGING FATHERS WORKSHOP

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  1. ENGAGING FATHERS WORKSHOP Adrienne Burgess Bournemouth September 2010

  2. SIMPLE CHANGES CAN BE EXTRAORDINARILY EFFECTIVE! • In Australia, Fletcher (1997) reports fathers almost flooding • into schools when specifically invited • In Grantham, Lincolnshire (2009) two health visitors • conducted a comparative study in which one continued to use • the standard letter about the primary birth visit (“Dear parents”) • while the other used a new father-inclusive version • (“Dear new mum and dad”). With the standard letter • 3 out of 15 dads attended’ with the father-inclusive letter • 11/16 dads attended.

  3. “Maturity of engagement” with fathers Raikes et al (2005) found fathers almost three times as likely to engage with parenting support/education when the service had reached “Stage 5” In “maturity” in engaging with men: Stage 1: Nearly exclusive focus on the mother-child dyad. Staff engage with a few fathers and only talk about the father if the mother raises the topic. Stage 2: Importance of fathers’ impact on children begins to be recognised. Father-involvement occurs primarily through male-only activities (e.g. “fathers’ groups”)

  4. “Maturity of engagement” with fathers (cont.) • Stage 3: The service: • develops a conscious policy to include fathers • enrols fathers alongside mothers systematically • specifically informs fathers about the service; and • encourages fathers’ involvement in a range of services. • Stage 4: The service • times home visits to meet fathers as well as mothers; and engages thoroughly with fathers during visits • encourages fathers to articulate their own goals and develop family goal plans with mothers. • attempts to meet with fathers more regularly • consistently involves fathers in parent-leadership activities

  5. “Maturity of engagement” with fathers (cont.) • Stage 5: The service • has an agency-wide commitment to attracting/involving fathers • employs and trains a father-involvement co-ordinator • consistently viewsfathers as co-parents • views programmes as being as much for fathers as for mothers • adjusts service delivery to meet the needs of working fathers/mothers • helps both mothers and fathers to reflect on how each father contributes to his child’s health and development. • discusses fathers regularly (and includes them wherever possible) in case-conferences • programme leaders commit to ongoing critical and reflective self evaluation on engagement with fathers.

  6. “Maturity ofengagement” with fathers (cont.) • Stage 6: The service • provides the whole team with father-involvement training and includes this in induction • holds all staff responsible for engaging with fathers (in job descriptions, supervisions, performance-evaluation etc.) • has appropriate strategies to engage with non-resident fathers • is aware of the different needs of other different types of fathers – e.g. young fathers, fathers in families grappling with disability etc. • signposts fathers effectively to appropriate services, and works with those services to ensure fathers are welcome/assessed • where such services do not exist, lobbies for these • not only gathers details about fathers but assesses their needs holistically • works with both parents on relationship issues OR signposts to couple support OR lobbies for couple- services • N.B. No “Stage 6” agency has yet been identified/evaluated

  7. £10.00 Order from www.fatherhoodinstitute.org OR 0845 634 1328

  8. Think Fathers Guide - practical know how for services • Think Fathers Champions - services, commissioners, policymakers, employers etc who are committed to supporting father-child relationships. Register by emailing champions@fatherhoodinstitute.org • Dad Test - self assessment framework • Champions Plus subscription service, including detailed online Dad Test Logbook, support from Regional Development Officers, 10% discount on all products & services

  9. The Six Dad Test Commitments • Leadership • Team • Environment • Marketing and communication • Recruiting fathers • Monitoring and evaluation

  10. Please register as a Champion: champions@fatherhoodinstitute.org

  11. NATIONAL CONFERENCE 11 November 2010 London ‘ENGAGING FATHERS AS PARTNERS’ DELIVERING FOR FAMILIES IN THE ‘BIG SOCIETY’ http://www.fatherhoodinstitute.org/index.php?id=3&cID=1116 or 0845 634 1328

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