Letter: Missing fathers

Growing Up in Scotland (GUS) is a significant source of information about family life.

But the publication of the most recent set of results from year five (your article, 7 June) highlights the fact that a key dimension is missing from this study of the lives of 14,000 children growing up in Scotland.

For instance, in the GUS report on change in early childhood and the impact of significant events, the section on separation includes information on whether mothers find another partner, and on whether the likelihood of separation is higher among mothers who are younger, have no qualifications, are cohabiting, or when the birth had not been planned.

None of this information is presented for the fathers in these families. In a table headed "Characteristics of Parents", only the mother's details appear.

Growing Up in Scotland is an important piece of research, which will be used to plan services for parents and children for decades to come.

Families Need Fathers Scotland is concerned that continuing reference to "lone parents", "lone mothers" and "single parents" is missing the chance to explore the influence of fathers and how they contribute to the upbringing of their children often against institutional obstacles.

We are concerned, for example, that reform of housing benefit may make it more difficult for a father to argue that he needs an extra room for his children to "stay over". Without that his contact is likely to be reduced.

With 11 per cent of the families in the GUS study experiencing parental separation in the first five years of their lives, and parental separation significantly associated with a higher likelihood of income poverty and poor maternal mental health, we need to consider the whole picture in order to find the best ways of improving outcomes for these children.

Ian Maxwell

Families Need Fathers Scotland

Broughton Place

Edinburgh