Bake a cake and put out the bunting. Shared parental Leave (SPL), the family-friendly policy that allows parents to share 50 weeks of leave when a child is born, is four years old today! At some point in the near future, there could be a second reason to celebrate as the leave may get a much-needed shake up.
You know when you do something that leaves you feeling all positive and makes you feel hopeful for the future? That’s how I feel having just returned from the Side By Side fatherhood conference in Canada.
Shared Parental Leave is a funny old thing (SPL). When it was introduced, I had high hopes new dads and mums would instantly see the benefits and leap at the opportunity to spend time with their offspring following the arrival of a baby. It quickly became clear the introduction of SPL in the UK was going to be evolutionary, not revolutionary.
I want you to think of the world of business and commerce. I’m not talking small and medium sized businesses, I mean big companies from UK PLC, those in the FTSE 100. I’m now going to set you a challenge. Can you name one male figure from the world of big business who has taken a period of shared parental leave following the birth or adoption of a child? You can’t? Me neither.
I can’t pretend otherwise, it took me a long time to come around to the idea of both International Women’s Day and International Men’s Day. I found them to be slightly vague concepts and at times the debates they have created have been off-putting.
Mary Curnock Cook, Former UCAS chief executive officer, addresses delegates at the Creating Positive Futures Conference.