The final item of business today is a members’ business debate on motion S4M-10546, in the name of Gordon MacDonald, on Dads Rock, international What’s On 4 junior award winner 2014—gosh. The debate will be concluded without any question being put.
Motion debated,
That the Parliament congratulates Dads Rock, Scotland’s only network of free playgroups for dads and kids, which won the Most Outstanding Baby and Toddler Group at the International What’s On 4 Junior Awards; notes that the international annual awards, now in their eighth year, celebrate the best children’s activities, classes and party providers in the UK, Ireland and Australia; congratulates Steve Leslie of Dads Rock on winning the Most Outstanding Community Group Volunteer for Children or Families award; understands that nearly 90,000 international votes were cast by parents and carers, including from the Edinburgh Pentlands constituency, and considers that this is a fantastic achievement for a small charity that was only established in 2012.
17:01
I welcome to the gallery the members of Dads Rock and the group of dads who have come along for the debate. I declare an interest, as I am an unpaid trustee of the charity.
Dads Rock was formed in my constituency in 2012. Before we recognise the achievement of this small charity, we need to understand why it was necessary to start it in the first place.
In Scotland, more and more fathers are sharing or fulfilling the primary care role, which has resulted in a groundswell of recognition of the importance of working with dads to allow them to spend more time with their kids. The Working Families organisation has said:
“Fathers want to spend more time with their children, and are doing more of the direct care for them. Research suggests that this desire for more time with their family is widespread, with 82% of full time working men saying they would like this.”
The Fatherhood Institute has said that
“A substantial number of fathers are now full- or part-time ‘home dads’ ... Among fathers of under-fives, 21% are solely responsible for childcare at some point during the working week”
and
“43% of fathers of school-aged children provide care before/after school”.
A recent study by the Equality and Human Rights Commission found that 60 per cent of parents said that fathers should spend more time with their children. The research shows that higher direct involvement from dads leads to more positive outcomes for our children.
That is just some of the background to why Dads Rock was founded by two Edinburgh fathers, who came together to start something to help others and have fun with their kids at the same time. No equivalent service in Edinburgh was offered for fathers by the local council. Dads Rock was started to fill that gap and is now the only free weekend service that makes space for all sorts of dads, granddads and male carers to come and play with their children and develop a network of support from other fathers.
The founders had a good understanding of what dads wanted, as they were dads themselves, and they came up with a winning combination. A free musical playgroup fed into many people’s love of music and allowed dads to know that that common bond would make it an inviting place to come without judgment or pressure.
Over time, the Dads Rock team found that dads wanted more outings with their children, so it has increased the number of free outings, which has given dads the confidence to discover new places such as the national galleries or a city centre farm in a relaxed way to have fun with their kids and speak to other dads.
Dads Rock has now been going for two years. It is amazing to see the need for such an organisation grow. It has recently launched a Glasgow playgroup to support more families and it is working in partnership with the award-winning PEEK—possibilities for each and every kid—project in Glasgow, which provides vital street play for children.
Dads Rock has also built formal and informal relationships with a wide variety of organisations such as Fife Gingerbread, local midwifery and social work teams, the Pilton community health project, one parent family support, Stepping Stones Edinburgh, the Broomhouse Centre, the violence reduction unit and Whale Arts, to name but a few. It has also reached out to local schools and nurseries, had referrals from several social work teams, and worked with local health agencies to deliver specific messages on male health.
The feedback from all that activity clearly indicates that the Dads Rock service has had a positive impact on parents from a resilience point of view, improving attachments between children and parents, and expanding their social circle to allow new friendships and relationships to develop. Dads Rock is about promoting positive images of fathers and highlighting that dads want to be seen as being just as vital to their children’s upbringing. To get that message across, Dads Rock has built relationships with councillors, MSPs and the Scottish Government. Its influence is such that the Minister for Children and Young People herself opened one of its playgroups.
Dads Rock has become an advocate for dads and families and it has helped them have a voice at a local and national level. Dads Rock now sits on the Scottish Government’s fathers advisory panel as well as its young father panel and the Edinburgh council play forum. Through its success it has become an advocate for others to refer to; for example, the Scottish Government, the Scottish Book Trust and MSPs have all approached Dads Rock asking for assistance in engaging with dads.
That level of engagement and the development of the charity resulted in it winning one of its first awards in 2013 when families voted for Dads Rock to win a local parenting magazine award, called the parents choice award. Then, in June this year, the Dads Rock team was nominated for two national awards organised by the What’s on 4 little ones website. The awards were for the most outstanding toddler group and for the most outstanding volunteer. More than 90,000 votes were cast for all the nominees and Dads Rock was up against well-known national organisations but, despite that, it became the only dads group that went through to the final and one of the few groups representing Scotland.
One of the volunteers, Steve Leslie, had been nominated by local dads for the most outstanding volunteer award. Every week, he gave his time free of charge to set up the playgroup and pack everything away at the end of a hectic session; he served on the board of Dads Rock, produced CDs of the Dads Rock members singing with their kids and generally helped out where necessary. The Dads Rock delegates attending the event were astounded to win in both categories and, in true Dads Rock style, they led the 150-strong attendees in a singsong of “We will rock you”.
Congratulations to the Dads Rock team for all their hard work, and thanks to the families who voted for them, but especially thanks to the dads and their children who have made Dads Rock the success that it is.
17:08
I thank Gordon MacDonald for securing the debate. Hopefully, it will be less controversial than our discussions earlier this afternoon.
I was delighted to hear that Dads Rock has won an award for the most outstanding baby and toddler group. It is hard to believe that Dads Rock was established only two and a half years ago, yet it is already an international award winner. It is great to see some of the Dads Rock people in the public gallery.
I extend my congratulations to all those who have been involved in getting Dads Rock off the ground and in ensuring its huge success, as it expands its network of free musical playgroups across Scotland and more dads and more children have access to the Dads Rock experience.
I first came across Dads Rock when it contacted me to help with its search for a playgroup venue in Dunfermline. The Dunfermline group started up in June 2013 and I persuaded my husband to go along with my two youngest children. I have to admit that he was really reluctant to go along—I virtually had to push him through the door—but he must have enjoyed it as he has been going along ever since. My four-year-old son delights in singing the Dads Rock signature tune, “We will rock you”, at the top of his voice all the time.
The Dunfermline group has since been facilitated by Dads Rock Fife co-ordinator Bruce Henderson, who has done a fantastic job working with Dads Rock Edinburgh and getting the group off the ground, reaching out to dads from all backgrounds and keeping the children entertained. Bruce has now moved on to facilitate Dads Rock in Buckhaven and he is working on a new group in Abbeyview, which it is hoped will be launched next month.
The dads who met at Dads Rock Dunfermline have now started their own free playgroup, Dunfermline Dads, and, like Dads Rock, it is going from strength to strength. More dads are attending every week and they have even started up their own five-a-side football team as well.
For most mums, having a baby opens up a new social circle. From buggy walks to baby massage and from playgroups to bookbug sessions, there are lots of opportunities for mums to make new friends and meet other mums who are going through the same experiences. However, as Gordon MacDonald highlighted, becoming a dad for the first time can often be difficult, especially for younger dads, those without family support and the increasing number of stay-at-home dads with primary caring responsibilities. Many dads simply find the whole experience quite isolating, and that is where Dads Rock comes in. It is more than just a playgroup. It is a unique place where dads can speak to other dads about “dad things”, find invaluable peer support while playing with their children and be supported to be the best parents they can be.
Fife Gingerbread has successfully used the Dads Rock model to work with teenagers and more vulnerable parents, and that work is especially beneficial in extending further support to dads outwith the formal playgroup setting. It is more costly, but it offers huge rewards, and it is vital that the work continues to be supported. Longer-term funding is crucial if new groups are to be developed and the Dads Rock model is to be extended into more communities to reach more dads, granddads and male carers.
Culture is also a challenge. The project workers to whom I have spoken on the ground tell me that, in many of our communities, dads can be a bit reluctant to come forward and when they do it takes them a wee while to get involved in the storytelling and especially in the singing. Reaching out to more vulnerable dads is especially challenging, particularly where dads had a difficult time when they were young or where other personal challenges make it difficult for them to develop secure bonds and relationships with their children.
That is why the partnership work is so vital, as it breaks the mould, encourages positive interactions and relationships between dads and their children, gives dads the extra support that they need and recognises that dads are central to the family equation and play a vital role in their children’s upbringing. The results are more creative play, better relationships and a better, happier future for both dad and child. That applies in the pre-school years, when children start school and when children become parents themselves.
I conclude by once again congratulating Dads Rock on its achievements so far. I hope that it continues its brilliant work in reaching out to more dads from all backgrounds across all our communities, helping to ensure that we really do get it right for every single child and helping with the goal that members throughout the chamber have of building a better and brighter future for children, dads and families right across Scotland.
17:12
I thank Gordon MacDonald for bringing the debate to the chamber. It is important that we celebrate what fathers are today, in the 21st century. One reason why I know a bit about Dads Rock is that it came to the Equal Opportunities Committee when we held an inquiry into fathers and parenting. I was pleased to be part of that inquiry and I shared some of my experiences with some of the members of Dads Rock.
Like Gordon MacDonald, I have to declare an interest, as I was a single father for more than 10 years. Groups such as Dads Rock are now providing great support for people like me. Let us not forget that more than 3 million children live in a single-parent household, that 23 per cent of households with dependent children are single-parent families and that about 8 per cent of single parents—about 136,000—are fathers. I was not on my own, and single fathers are definitely not on their own.
What so impressed me about Dads Rock, and the reason why I am so delighted to celebrate it today, is that it is so much in advance compared with some other groups. The Equal Opportunities Committee visited other groups; I went to see one in Aberdeen, in the region that I represent, which was more focused on fathers who have some other problems as well as looking after their children. I recognise the approach that Dads Rock takes. The T-shirts that the Dads Rock representatives in the gallery are wearing are fantastic; they look great, and the name is so important.
What I mean by that is that, as Dads Rock said in some of the evidence that it gave us, dads are perceived as the rock in families but in fact, as I know for myself, just like mothers, fathers have times when they need support. They are no more rocks than mothers are and it is very important that, in 21st century Scotland, we recognise that fathers need help as well.
Fathers and mothers need maximum support. Particularly in today’s society, in which gender is still stereotyped, fathers not only need support but need to come out of the darkness. They are not visible. Fathers are not as seen as mothers and it is important that we change the attitudes of people around us.
Dads Rock is doing a fantastic job. I refer again to its T-shirts. They have the visual effect of saying, “We are dads and we are proud to be fathers. We want to be seen, just like mothers.” Vulnerability is important. We may be seen as a rock inside the family and as a big part of the family, but that rock is fragile as well and needs as much help as possible.
Dads Rock is a fantastic idea. The idea that more and more such groups are growing throughout Scotland makes me proud to be in the debate and to celebrate the fact that we are fathers. We do not celebrate the role of fathers enough. We need to celebrate it a lot more. I remember that, at school, mother’s day was always a special day and, somehow, father’s day was a lesser day. We need to address that. We need to shout from the rooftops the contribution that fathers make.
As I said, I am delighted to speak about the role of fathers in society today. Members should believe me that, just like mothers, fathers need all the support that they can get. I recognise Dads Rock, which is encouraging fathers to be all that they can be.
17:17
I also thank Gordon MacDonald for the debate and welcome the dads to the gallery, T-shirts and all.
Dads Rock deserves commendation for its group award for the most outstanding baby and toddler group as well as board member Steve Leslie’s individual award for the most outstanding community group volunteer for children or families. That is an impressive haul, given the fact that the awards celebrate the best of children’s activities and classes from throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia and were decided, as Gordon MacDonald said, after a massive 90,000 votes were cast.
Playgroups have a special and important role in early childhood education. Many provide a wider range of equipment and activities than some children may have access to at home, such as sand, water play, arts and crafts and making and listening to music.
Like many other groups, Dads Rock is free, which allows many families to access the service. It is able to provide that service free because of its own fundraising efforts. I am pleased to say that, only last Saturday, it raised £1,400 at its annual fundraiser.
In addition to its Saturday play sessions, Dads Rock runs a rock academy, which allows children and dads to learn together and demonstrates the organisation’s understanding of the importance of parents interacting with their children’s first learning experiences. We heard much from the previous chief medical officer about how beneficial early attachment is between parent and child.
Attending a playgroup has multiple benefits not only for children but for parents. The exposure to new experiences and the emphasis on learning through play encourages children to develop skills such as interacting confidently with other children, learning to explore the world around them and to solve problems. The groups also enable parents to meet other parents and to participate in their child’s early education, and give them a place to discuss concerns, experiences and development. Parent-led playgroups are invaluable in affirming parents’ role in their children’s early education.
As members said, Dads Rock was founded by two fathers who understood the importance of playgroups in supporting parents and enabling parents and children to learn together and who were dismayed to find that in Edinburgh there were no groups run by dads for dads. I represent the Highlands and Islands and I can say that Dads Rock is well ahead, given provision in my region. Perhaps the founders can come to Inverness and beyond, to show people how it is done. If there is a need in Edinburgh, there is a need in every part of Scotland.
Dads Rock’s vision is
“For a Scotland where dads are seen as being equally valuable and vital.”
That is great. It is disappointing that that is not always the case.
This is a matter for another debate, another day: I hope that dads’ access to their children following separation from their partners can be looked at more sympathetically in future. I can honestly say that not a week passes without a dad somewhere in the Highlands and Islands asking me whether I can do something to enable him to see his child. It is rare that I can do anything.
When the Equal Opportunities Committee took evidence in March it received several submissions. Allan Reddick, a dad of two, told the committee about being the only dad in the room when he took his daughters to activities such as dance classes. He said:
“Nobody speaks to the dad ... Dads feel out of place and think, ‘I shouldn’t be here. This isn’t for me.’”—[Official Report, Equal Opportunities Committee, 6 March 2014; c 1851.]
We heard about the research of Dr Gary Clapton, from the University of Edinburgh, and we heard that
“The value of positively involved fathering is incontestable and proven”.
I speak from experience, as Christian Allard did, when I say how much children need fathers and how difficult—indeed, often impossible—it is for a single mum to fill the gap. Dads Rock deserves praise for its commitment to learning through parent-child interaction and play and for the support that it provides to fathers. I thank Gordon MacDonald. I wish that dads rocked not just in Edinburgh but throughout Scotland.
17:22
I thank Gordon MacDonald for bringing this debate to Parliament, and I thank the members who have stayed here to show their support for Dads Rock.
It is nice to be able to welcome Dads Rock to Parliament again. I have been delighted to hear of its success and I congratulate it on winning internationally recognised awards.
As Gordon MacDonald said, Thomas Lynch and David Marshall created Dads Rock back in 2011 because they strongly believed then, as they still do, that dads can and do play a vital role in the upbringing of their children. I wholeheartedly support that view.
I know that most dads want to be fully involved in their children’s lives from day 1. I also know that, at times, some organisations and sectors, including schools, general practitioner surgeries, playgroups and parent and toddler groups, unintentionally make dads feel unwelcome or excluded. As, I am sure, Dads Rock advocates, it is time that that changed.
More and more dads are taking a principal role when it comes to raising their wee ones, often supported by organisations such as Dads Rock. My experience reflects that. I am lucky enough to have unwavering support from my husband when it comes to caring for and raising our wee boy, Angus. I will no doubt have that support when the next one comes along. I can confirm that this bump is a baby, and not the result of a poor campaign diet.
We know instinctively that fathers play an extremely important role in their children’s upbringing. We need to do all that we can do to support and encourage fathers’ involvement right from the start—from pregnancy through to birth, to the early years and beyond. I was at a Sense Scotland conference earlier this year, and one of the most beautiful things that I heard was how a father’s voice can get through to the baby in the womb much more easily than a mother’s voice can, because of the man’s deep bass tones. That is a lovely way in which a father can be involved in their partner’s pregnancy. We must encourage dads to get involved, from pregnancy and right through the child’s upbringing.
In our wide-ranging consultations of fathers and professionals across Scotland during the development of our national parenting strategy, we heard that many fathers did not feel engaged, valued or encouraged to be active and involved parents. What a waste that is. As a result of what we heard in the consultation, the parenting strategy that we launched in October 2012 acknowledged that fathers undeniably should be closely involved in their children’s lives at every stage.
As we continue to implement the strategy, we are working with a number of partners to look at how we can make services relevant and better able to involve fathers more positively in their children’s upbringing. We are looking at how the strategy fits with fathers and what we need to do listen effectively and respond positively to what dads want and need. I know that that is of particular interest to Christian Allard, given his personal interest and his work on the Equal Opportunities Committee.
Through that work, we plan to continue to ensure that services such as health and education and the third sector make dads feel welcome and included. For example, we are working alongside Children in Scotland to look at ways in which our public bodies can ensure more equal treatment of dads when it comes to parenting responsibilities. We are funding organisations such as Fathers Network Scotland to deliver practical support to people and organisations at the front line, who work every day with fathers and families in Scotland.
Working closely with Fathers Network Scotland, we co-chair the national fathers advisory panel, which meets throughout the year to consider how fathers can contribute to the development of policy and practice across the Government. We are constantly looking at how we can better engage dads; most recently, members of the panel have been helping us to restyle our “play talk read” website and our family information service website to ensure that they work in a way that speaks to dads.
That work is all very positive and there are many people and organisations who are working hard to meet the changing needs of families and fathers in Scotland, but we need to go further. We all need to think more broadly about how we portray fathers and how we can improve our interactions with them—how we celebrate them, which Christian Allard spoke about in his speech. Positive messaging about fathers is critical. The media, marketing, social norms, public attitudes and public services all have a role to play.
As Gordon MacDonald, Mary Scanlon and Christian Allard all said, good relationships and positive social networks are as important to fathers as they are to mothers. Indeed, I heard just today of a dad who has set up a new dad and toddler group in Barrhead, supported by the early years collaborative in East Renfrewshire, because he really wanted to provide an opportunity for local dads and their children to meet up, socialise, make new pals and support one other. Cara Hilton spoke of potential projects in Fife. Who knows? Perhaps the Highlands will be the next place on the map, as Mary Scanlon hoped for in her speech.
We need to see more such new initiatives supporting Scotland’s fathers and their children, and we will continue to work with members of the fathers advisory panel, including Dads Rock and Fathers Network Scotland, over the next few months to map the delivery of support groups for dads across the country. That will mean that we will better understand the provision and consider what else needs to be done to fill the gaps, encourage participation and widen access.
However, tonight’s debate is about celebrating Dads Rock and congratulating it on winning the most outstanding baby and toddler group category at the international What’s on 4 junior awards. It really is a great and much deserved achievement for such a young charity. Now in their eighth year, the awards celebrate the best activities, classes and party providers from all over the UK, as nominated and voted for by some 90,000 parents and carers. Congratulations also to Steve Leslie for winning the most outstanding community group volunteer for children and families. What an inspiration Steve is for us all. From across the Parliament, we want to say very well done indeed.
As Gordon MacDonald said, I have had the pleasure of visiting Dads Rock and I was fortunate to attend the opening of its Granton project. I was struck by its sense of fun and its dedication to promoting positive images of fatherhood.
As others have said, Dads Rock was set up by dads for dads, and its playgroups are positive, enjoyable and rocking places to be on a Saturday morning. Just as Cara Hilton’s husband and children enjoy themselves at Dads Rock in Dunfermline, my husband and my wee boy enjoyed themselves when they came with me to visit the project in Granton. I do not know whether Cara has had the chance to sing “We will rock you”, but I was glad that the boisterous singing drowned out my poor attempts at joining in. It was certainly incredible fun, and my husband and wee boy loved their time there—albeit that it was just a short time on a Saturday morning.
Dads Rock took part in the second learning session of the early years collaborative in the Scottish exhibition and conference centre in May of last year. That was a memorable occasion, not least because it had 800 people on their feet singing “If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands”. There was also a serious side to Dads Rock’s participation, in that it shared how, uniquely in Scotland, it brings fathers and children together for fun, music, messiness and—most important—bonding and attachment.
Members should not just take my word for it. Feedback from the dads themselves is much more worthy of mention. Among their comments are that
“Saturday mornings are always about Dads Rock.”
“Saturday mornings are now daddy and daughter day”
and
“I look forward to Saturdays so I can catch up with other dads, and I feel comfortable speaking about dad/male issues with others.”
When asked to sum up Dads Rock in a few words, dads said that it was “a one-off”, that
“there’s nothing else like it,”
and that it is
“Unique, good laugh, good guys, great kids.”
Of course, someone else said that it is simply “rocking”.
I again thank Gordon MacDonald and the other members who have contributed to the debate. I also want to warmly thank Thomas, David, Steve and the rest of the team at Dads Rock for their continued and unstinting commitment to Scotland’s children and their fathers, and I wish them every success for the future.
Thank you, Presiding Officer.
Thank you, and congratulations.
Meeting closed at 17:31.Previous
Decision Time