More men needed in caring careers

Government plans to expand childcare, including the ambitious extended schools programme, will fail unless more men are drawn into caring careers, the equality watchdog said yesterday.

A report by the Equal Opportunities Commission said men and boys at school were increasingly interested in working in childcare, but that only 2% of workers in the sector were men.
According to the EOC's research, one in four men would consider working in the childcare sector, and a similar number of boys showed an interest.
The commission said the government's plans to open all schools from 8am to 6pm, which will require an estimated 163,000 new workers by 2010, depend on recruiting more male staff. A government recruitment drive for childcare workers has included efforts to attract men, but there are no formal targets. Children will also benefit from a more diverse workforce, the EOC says, as they will be exposed to a wider range of positive role models.
A Mori survey found that more than three-quarters of parents support bringing more male childcare workers into the profession.

The commission says there are three main barriers to recruiting men. The first two are low pay and poor terms and conditions, which women have been obliged to put up with for years, and the third is the perception that childcare is “women's work”.
The EOC also argues there is too little information for boys on caring careers and apprenticeships, despite what it says are high levels of interest.
Jenny Watson, the acting chair of the commission, said: “Boys need to be given careers advice and support to attract them into childcare, and allowed to make their choice of career without the bias and prejudice of others shaping their decision.
But in the longer term, the status of the profession needs to be raised.”

You may download a copy of this report in Acrobat format HERE

Lucy Ward
20 July 2005

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,3604,1532038,00.html

home / Previous viewpoint