The recent Government parenting strategy, somewhat naively, tries to re-engage absent fathers with their children. Ideas include dads-only parents evenings at school, or asking dads to attend courses on the role of the father.
These suggestions are hardly realistic in most cases, and there are many children who are far safer without any interference from their father. One certainly does not want to provide some dangerous men with more excuses for interfering.
But it is true that children do far better if they have a kind and committed father in the family. A report by the Equal Opportunities Commission, published last month, found a significant increase in emotional and behavioural difficulties among those children whose dads had not taken time off work when they were born or who had not adapted their working hours to have more time with their kids. Of course, the effect is more likely to derive from the positive attitude of the fathers who were prepared to make an effort, rather than from the actual number of hours in the home.
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