When we list employers in our What Gap? Directory, we require them to show they have or are actively developing, parent-inclusive policies. But, what are parent-inclusive policies? In short, they are policies that make it easier for parents to enter and participate in the workforce.

You may be asking yourself why parents are entitled to special treatment over someone without children? The answer is simple: when someone requires a little extra help to do their job, it is the company’s responsibility (sometimes legal, always moral) to provide it for them. 

Parent-inclusive policies allow parents to progress their careers, particularly mothers, who are statistically far more likely to leave the workforce if they are unable to juggle work and family. Plus, parent-inclusive policies benefit companies too, which see increased loyalty, reduced absenteeism and higher employee morale.

If you’re looking to make your company more parent-friendly but don’t know where to start, here are some ideas to help you:

1. Equal parental leave for both parents – offering equal amounts of leave for both parents not only gives secondary carers (usually fathers) the chance to spend quality time with their children, but it also prevents women from being seen as a “maternity leave risk”. This in turn helps companies move towards gender parity in the workplace.

• Flexible working – this includes being allowed to work from home and being flexible with working hours. For example, working from 7am – 3pm instead of 9-5, or from 9am – 3pm and then 7pm to 9pm, which would allow parents flexibility if they need to school pick ups or to care for children in the evenings.

• Returnships – a returnship is a guided transition back to work, where the employee is mentored and supported in their first few months back after work after taking time out of paid employment to care for children.

• Emergency childcare – having a roster of emergency childcare providers (day cares, nannies, babysitters etc.) means you can help parents with childcare in the event their regular arrangement falls through. For example if their child cannot attend daycare due to sickness or if their nanny calls in sick. 

• Childcare benefits – this encompasses a range of things, including offering childcare subsidies as a perk, providing on-site childcare or reserving spaces at a nearby daycare for use by your employees.

• Parent-friendly recruitment processes – many parents cannot prepare for an interview at short notice, therefore providing ample notice for interviews levels the playing field between those with and without children.

• Parenting on the CV – parents who have taken time out of paid employment to care for children may feel disadvantaged by the gap in their CV. Encouraging parents to include parenting on their CV and acknowledging the value of this enables more parents to enter the workforce. This is, of course, at the core of the What Gap? Mission.

• Make part-time and job-share roles available – offering alternatives to full-time work enables more parents to juggle work and family

• Promote parents in part-time roles – it is one thing to offer part-time work, it is another to offer proper promotional prospects to those in part-time roles. People in part-time roles should still have the opportunity to progress their career, rather than stagnating

• Work events during working hours – work events are a great opportunity for networking and team-building but when they take place in the evening parents may be unable to attend due to childcare responsibilities. Work events during work hours means a higher likelihood everyone can attend.