|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
You are in: UK | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|
Tuesday, 30 November, 1999, 03:19 GMT
Helping hand for parents
Support for parents and families
A new Home Office-funded organisation has been launched to help parents with the "increasingly difficult" task of bringing up their children.
The National Family and Parenting Institute aims to provide a range of information services for families, as well as collating information from parents themselves about the support they need. It will also advise government and policy makers. The independent charity will work in partnership with a number of other organisations "to make the case for families and family support" and to "enhance the value and quality of family life". It is the first time that a single organisation has taken on such a role. Chief Executive of the NFPI Mary MacLeod told BBC News Online: "There is a great deal of good work being done already, but it is patchy and not everyone knows where they can find services that are appropriate to them.
"We will be carrying out a mapping exercise to show where these organisations are, and we will also be looking to put organisations in touch with one another."
The information will then be pulled together into a national database for parents. Then, if parents, or professionals enquiring on their behalf, want to know what facilities are available in their area, they will be able to find out. The database will also highlight what facilities are missing and need to be put in place. The NFPI is using data it commissioned from MORI as the basis for its first areas of investigation. The poll found that "positive parenting" was regarded as important by 70% of people. The same amount of those interviewed said that parenting was a learned, rather than an innate, skill. But only 50% thought that British society encouraged the skills required to raise children.
Speaking at the launch of the charity, Home Secretary Jack Straw said: "The government is strongly committed to supporting families and children. "I very much welcome the launch of the institute and look forward to working with them in the future. "By being a strong and independent voice it will play a crucial role in creating a more family-friendly Britain."
|
|
See also:
 Top UK stories now:
Links to more UK stories are at the foot of the page.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Links to more UK stories
|
 |
|
^^ Back to top News Front Page | World | UK | UK Politics | Business | Sci/Tech | Health | Education | Entertainment | Talking Point | In Depth | AudioVideo ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To BBC Sport>> | To BBC Weather>> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- © MMIII | News Sources | Privacy ~RS~a~RS~international~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~25~RS~)
|
E-mail this story to a friend