Dr. Rita Chawla -Duggan – Dept. of Education

1. Faculty of Humanities and Social Science Celebrating Fatherhood Fathers’ Friday – a case study B&NES Conference June 13 2013 Dr. Rita Chawla-Duggan – Dept. of Education Dr Susan Milner- Dept. of Politics, Languages and International Studies

2. Faculty of Humanities and Social Science Why engage fathers? • Research – early FI and later outcomes • Policy – engagement • Social trends/context • Absence/invisibility • This case study and its benefit

3. Faculty of Humanities and Social Science Fathers’ Friday • Aims – child development, contact, networks • Settings • The evaluation and its methods

4. Faculty of Humanities and Social Science Current issues Settings and stages of engagement Reflection and relationships The need for building networks

5. Faculty of Humanities and Social Science We promoted it through the group (the parent group) ..that was already running. We planned to do it like that , because dads were already in a group .(CC) The schools have done it as a day, whereas we saw it as a way to have an event that went on rather than one day. (CC)

6. Faculty of Humanities and Social Science • Reflection and relationships • It made me realise how badly we interact with dads. It’s made us reflect on what we’re saying to them and how we’re delivering it (Nursery) • It helped us to improve our relationship with the dads that come anyway, not develop new relationships. (CC)

7. Faculty of Humanities and Social Science • Limits – opportunity for support; the need for networks • Contention : by involving fathers in activities which previously were seen to belong to the mother’s domain, child care and educational settings have the capacity to support families which can enhance child outcomes. Children themselves form part of this process.

8. Faculty of Humanities and Social Science • The future? • Policy - partnerships • Research - wider context • Practice – outside interest .

9. Faculty of Humanities and Social Science http://youtu.be/_YAjv3xyhJE