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A one-stop research and practice community for supporting young dads and their families

For young dads, researchers and professionals who are invested in co-creating a more authentic view of young fatherhood and celebrating the valuable role young dads play in supporting their families.

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Sign up to our network for the chance to submit to one of our regular video questions or learn more about how you can get involved in our research. We'd love to hear your stories and examples of good practice.

Or, simply come back and visit us again to stay up to date with the latest news and research about young dads and father-inclusive support.

Featured briefing paper

Wave One: Exploring the impacts of Covid-19 on young fathers

Early analyses of our findings from Wave One of interviews from the study. We explore the impacts of the Covid-19 crisis on young fathers and the professionals who supported them.

Briefing Paper One: Negotiating ā€˜earningā€™ and ā€˜caringā€™ through the COVID-19 crisis: change and continuities in the parenting and employment trajectories of young fathers

Briefing Paper Two: From social isolation to local support: Relational change and continuities for young fathers in the context of the COVID-19 crisis

Briefing Paper Three: Supporting at a distance: the challenges and opportunities of supporting young fathers through the COVID-19 pandemic

Toolkit front cover

Featured page

Being father inclusive

A major aim of our study is to promote the benefits of father-inclusive practice among professionals in different sectors.

Read on
Illustration Catherine Fortey

From our partners and young dads

ā€œ[daughter]'s almost two-year-old. She came up the house and she actually really liked it. Preferably my house is the best place for her to, for the contact to be, if Iā€™m honest, 'cause we just buy toys for her all the time. Weā€™ve got a lovely garden that she can play in, lovely, big, and weā€™ve got a sandpit in there. Weā€™ve been buying loads of things for her to play with to keep her occupied.ā€

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Nathan, 21
I was 17 when I had my child

ā€œ[Speaking about support of young fathers] Weā€™ve done a lot of kind of advocation and representing them, a lot of the time thereā€™s involvement with statutory services. They donā€™t have the care of the young person, the careā€™s provided by the state or the mother, so weā€™ve attended lots of meetings with the young person to offer additional support and facilitated contact where necessary and offered just general emotional wellbeing, support, improving robustness and resilience, encouraging them to have as amicable relationship as possible.ā€

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Housing Charity

ā€œAnd I suppose it goes back to what we were saying before about behaviours, maybe the education side of stuff and the fact that men arenā€™t involved in those early conversations, you know, whether it is, I know theyā€™re invited to come along to bumps to babies but I donā€™t know whether we go into the detail around some of that brain development side of stuff and things like that. Maybe that is the thing that really would change things. You know, if you were given all of that information about what happens to a child as they grow, in a scientific way, as easy to understand as possible, could be the thing that impacted on behaviour in the home.ā€

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Children's Charity

ā€œIf your childā€™s with the mother, like your relationship with her depends on your relationship with the child, innit. Thatā€™s what I realised a lot, like you can try and be bitter, you can try and be this, be that, but itā€™s just gonna push you further away from your child, innit.ā€

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Jackson, 21

ā€œI wanna fight for more stuff for dads. Like I do wanna have that extra support for new dads or even existing dads that we donā€™t get now 'cause weā€™re still important too although obviously the mum does need the majority aā€™ the care because obviously of the after care and the birth. But like the dads take it extremely hard as well. And obviously with having no support I think it increases the rise of mental health.ā€

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Simon, 31
I became a father for the first time at 20. I am now a dad of 3.

ā€œI think both a mother and father combined, itā€™s communicating and both being on the same page of whatā€™s best for your child or children, and for both, itā€™s just being there 100% for them and not, like, putting yourself first, itā€™s, you know, putting the childā€™s interests first... ā€

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Jock, 33
I was 23 when I had my child

ā€œWe need to be including, we need to not [just] be focusing on mum and child [ā€¦] Thatā€™s a great focus but dad ā€¦ dadā€™s not invisible, dad needs to be in the picture as well because thereā€™s research that shows you the effect it has on children and families as a whole when dad isnā€™t in the picture, so services need to be changing the way in which they work so itā€™s more inclusive.ā€

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Children and Families Support Organisation

ā€œCause I think a lot of the time, some of young people who end up having children have been through the care system or support systems and they can feel quite judged or labelled by organisations and itā€™s breaking the cycle and breaking them out of that to feel empowered to be able to take stuff back, thatā€™s the real interest to me. So, itā€™s about getting support right, as in being there and giving advice and guidance and all them things that we can do, but also making sure that we are doing with people as opposed to people.ā€

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Children's Charity

ā€œOne of the most successful projects we ever did was an informal dadsā€™ group, and it used to be on Saturdays [ā€¦] they did what they wanted, they used to do things like breakfast, and they would have breakfast together and talk about dad stuff and where they were taking their kids. And that group was always really well attended because there was never an agenda. They were never judged. They were just there together.ā€

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Children and Families Support Organisation

ā€œ...the whole stay at home dad thing is not something to be ashamed of, you know, if youā€™re a dad and you wanna take your daughter out for the day, or you wanna take your kid out for the day on your own, well why is that frowned upon, why canā€™t you take your child out for the day ā€

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Toby, 26
I was 24 when I had my first child.

ā€œOhā€¦patienceā€¦compassionā€¦tolerance, a whole boatload aā€™ that!ā€Æ Honestly, I like a whole lot of life.ā€Æ Sacrificeā€¦compromise, yeah I think, yeah I think they, they would be the, the big, the five, I feel, I think that was five, they would be the main.ā€Æā€

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Ben, 31
I was 20 when I had my child

ā€œWeā€™re currently in touch with social services for two [dads] because they donā€™t understand why they canā€™t see their children because they havenā€™t been informed by social services, their partner. So thereā€™s a massive communication breakdown with those young men, so thatā€™s the main focus of what weā€™re dealing with at the minute.ā€

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Young Fathers' Support Organisation

ā€œitā€™s stillā€¦theā€¦sense of judgement I get from other people when they find out that I have a child.And they say, ā€˜oh how old is sheā€™.I say, ā€˜oh sheā€™s tenā€™. And they say, ā€˜oh how old are you?ā€™. Like you donā€™t need to know that....I know exactly where that thought process is going, you know. Itā€™s like, ā€˜oh you look really young and youā€™ve had a kidā€™. Itā€™s like, ā€˜yeah I know, I was there!ā€™ā€

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Ben, 31
I was 20 when I had my child

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