The Parents Promise
by James Evans, Head of Professional Education at OurFamilyWizard
On the 26th January, 2023, Emma Nash and James Evans of The Family Law Language Project were in attendance for the launch of The Parents Promise initiative. James and OurFamilyWizard are members of The Positive Parenting Alliance and have worked with a variety of organisations to contribute towards this project. Hosted in The Houses of Parliament, this new scheme ‘helps parents make a positive commitment to their children today, in case of relationship breakdown tomorrow.’ Speaking at the launch were James Hayhurst (the founder of The Parents Promise Alliance), Sir Andrew McFarlane, Siobhan Baillie MP, Mustaf Faruqi (Head of Employee Relationships at Tesco) and behavioural psychologist Rory Sutherland.
This important initiative has been introduced into the HR policies of many large-scale companies including ASDA, Vodafone, Metro Bank and NatWest. As Sir Andrew stated at the event, “The immediate emotional impact of relationship breakdown is all consuming. It hits a parent at work just as at any other time.” It is therefore crucial that organisations and practises acknowledge the significant of The Parents Promise and strive to introduce this to their companies. The language used by parents when going through divorce or separation can often become volatile, emotionally charged or inconsiderate. The Parents Promise reminds the parents that their language and the focus of their efforts during this process must always have the child’s best interest at heart, and to recognise that the child is always the priority during the family breakdown.
The Parents Promise challenges corporations and asks that the following HR Initiatives are implemented:
- Recognising separation as a ‘life event’ in HR policy so that those experiencing separation feel recognised and know they can access support.
- Ensuring parents going through a separation have access to flexible working to enable them to manage school and childcare pick-ups and drop-offs whilst they reconfigure their family setups.
- Giving employees access to, and pointing them towards, emotional counselling during this period.
- Giving employees signposting, and access to, separation support services so that parents can have the guidance and support that they need to separate in the most compassionate and child-focused way.
If you would like to find out more about The Parents Promise and introduce this initiative to your workplace, you do so here: https://theparentspromise.org.uk/
For more information about The Family Law Language Project, or to arrange a free training session on the use of Language in Family Law for you and your team, please get in touch via our website: https://www.thefamilylawlanguageproject.co.uk/contact
James Evans, Head of Professional Education at OurFamilyWizard.
