Policy and Politics
DfE backs new family friendly initiative
Nurseries and children's centres will be encouraged to pledge to make their services more family-friendly as part of a new project by the Family and Parenting Institute, backed by the Department for Education.
Those who take part in the Family Friendly initiative will undergo an audit outlining their current family friendliness, before signing a universal pledge to improve their services. The FPI will feed back their progress to families and use the information to create a service improvement model.
Speaking at the FPI's lunchtime reception at the House of Commons last week, where children's minister Sarah Teather, 
(pictured), reiterated the Government's commitment to families, new FPI chair Christine Farnish said, 'Families have told us that all too often they must adapt to the shape of public services, rather than services adapting to meet their needs.
'Rather than a burdensome inspection regime or box-ticking exercise, Family Friendly will be a positive scheme, win-win for organisations and families.'
Another of the organisation's projects for 2011 is Families in the Age of Austerity, which will see the FPI flag up to policy makers the impact welfare, tax and benefit reform, and the changing public landscape is having on families.
Under the same theme, they will publish a Family Friendly Report Card later this year to award the UK school-style grades in areas of family policy.
The Family Friendly Report Card was launched last year to inform Government on how to help families thrive (News, 12 July 2010).
