First Class Male

In an article about the role that male play (or more often do NOT play) in bringing up children Colin and Brian Spence brother Kenny discuss how they encourage men to take a more active role in child care. This article comes from Nursery World

by Joyce Reid 25 Nov 2004

A Scottish project set itself the task of increasing the number of men working in childcare. Joyce Reid finds out how the campaign wooed them into the sector

If you walk into a nursery setting in Scotland to be greeted by a male early years worker it's highly likely that Men in Childcare got him there.

Since January 2001, Men in Childcare has been responsible for encouraging more than 130 men into childcare training. They have come from all walks of life - from bank managers to bus drivers and from Banff to the Borders. Very few had ever previously worked in childcare, or even thought that they could.

The project was set up to increase the numbers of men working in the early years sector. It has been astonishingly successful. When Kenny Spence, manager of the project, discovered in 1998 that in the Greater Pilton area of Edinburgh there were more men working in childcare than had ever been the case, he set up a network to recruit more.

The Pilton Partnership, a local organisation, agreed to provide support while Telford College provided places on the National Certificate in Childcare and Education course. In January 2001, funding was given by the Edinburgh Childcare Partnership for a co-ordinator's post. At that time four men were working in child and family centres in Edinburgh - there are now 13.

Two years ago, Cathy Jamieson, then Scotland's education minister, announced £2.4m extra funding to local childcare partnerships to expand and develop the early years workforce, with an emphasis on increasing the workforce's diversity. This was seen as a positive endorsement of Men in Childcare's approach.

Ms Jamieson said, 'Children should have a variety of role models when they are growing up. If childcare and early education remain female-dominated, children lose out on the contribution men can make and men lose out on a fulfilling career. I would like to see more men working in childcare to help counteract the view that this is somehow "women's work".'

Invitation only

At Men in Childcare's conference 'A Man for All Reasons', held in Edinburgh last month, co-ordinator Colin Chisholm said further funding from the Scottish Executive had enabled them to commission courses in Dun- dee, Glasgow and Falkirk, as well as an existing Edinburgh course (see box).

Mr Chisholm told the conference that he was aware that various unsuccessful attempts had been made to encourage men into childcare and that men in the west of Scotland, particularly, were too "macho" to consider a career in childcare. So why has the Men in Childcare approach been so successful?

Mr Chisholm is quite clear about it. 'Men won't come unless they are invited,' he says. 'We target them by saying, "Children need men too".'

This point is borne out by the work the project has done with its European partners. Mr Spence explains, 'One basic certainty is if you campaign, men will come. But once you decide it is no longer an issue and stop campaigning, the men stop coming. It doesn't continue with its own momentum. There are examples of this from Denmark, Sweden, Belgium and Norway.'

Representatives from those countries told the Edinburgh conference the same story - men will not come into childcare unless they are invited. A research programme running in Denmark has found that for men to feel comfortable in their new role, they have to carve out their own niche and feel they are bringing a masculine dimension to a feminine profession.

Norway is the only other country apart from Scotland running a concerted campaign. There was a consistent campaign for ten years and in 2001, Norway reached its target of 20 per cent of all childcare workers being male. However, they then stopped campaigning for two years and the percentage levelled off at 6 per cent. A year ago, the campaign re-started and numbers are back to 8 per cent.

Men in Childcare's approach is to target men directly. They looked at what inhibits men from working in early years. 'Fear is high on the agenda,' says Mr Chisholm. 'For men to go to the pub and say they have decided to work in childcare is a brave move. But the more men who become involved, the more it becomes acceptable as a career. There is also lack of support and the isolation of being the only man in the class.'

So, advertising is aimed directly at men with big press advertisements stating, 'Children need men too'.

Mr Chisholm and Mr Spence respond quickly, having found that a quick turnaround has been effective. They also speak to the men at every stage of the training. 'Kenny and I go to the introduction course and meet the guys on the first evening,' explains Mr Chisholm. 'Kenny tells them about the pitfalls as well as employment prospects. We are always on the end of the phone and anyone can call us. We have mentors in place, students with two years more experience than the new guys. We build good relationships with the colleges and with the students.'

Men in Childcare commissions the training as well as recruiting the men. Mr Spence says, 'A number of colleges have told us that they have gone for European Social Funding to attract more men, but they basically hoped that in some way men would come on to the same course for women. They were not putting the welcome mat out.'

Different perspective

Derek Thomson saw Men in Childcare's advert shortly before his 30th birthday, when he was considering a career change. 'I have lots of nieces and nephews and was always told I was good with children,' he explains. 'I found the introduction course very interesting, finding out what was really involved in looking after children. I felt really comfortable with the guys in the class. I don't know if I would have thought of going straight into a class of women.'

Mr Thomson completed his HNC in June and is now working as a nursery officer in Edinburgh's children and family centres. 'It's brilliant and there are lots of opportunities,' he says. Mr Thomson has found his colleagues and the parents to be supportive, even if some were a little wary at first.

There are many advantages to having men working with the under-fives. Children benefit from the male perspective and a gender-balanced staff has a different way of looking at issues.

Many children now grow up in a one-parent household and may not meet a man in a caring role until secondary school. Boys can benefit from having male workers who are more familiar with their way of play fighting. Having both male and female workers often provides the opportunity to see different perspectives.

A recent MORI poll found that 90 per cent of parents said they would be happy to have men involved in childcare. Research has shown that fathers often find nurseries too 'feminine' and not very male-friendly. They like having someone with whom they feel more at ease and who they can relate to. Male childcare workers can also help fathers with any parenting difficulties and women who have had bad experiences with men can benefit from meeting men in a caring role

Page Last Updated: 4 March, 2010

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