Children of working mothers suffer ‘no ill effects’
Working mothers who feel guilty about leaving their children could be reassured by the latest research from Bristol university.
Having reported earlier in the summer that children of working mothers suffer no psychological ill effects, the team at Bristol has now claimed that a child’s cognitive development – how well they can read, write and speak – is also largely unaffected, even when a mother works full-time.
It is one of the first times in Britain that children’s school assessments have been compared against maternal employment. The researchers looked at the employment of the mother within the first three years of a child’s life and then followed its development through to the age of seven.
However, researchers have warned that one group can be seen to suffer “significant ill-effects”. They are children under the age of 18 months who are looked after for free by a friend, relative or neighbour while their mother works full-time.
The report is based on the experiences of 12,000 children born in 1991 and 1992, who make up the Children of the 90s study.
The report’s authors, Paul Gregg and Liz Washbrook, claim that despite the generally positive news for women who chose to return to work – that’s 67% of mothers with children under a year old – their findings reveal the need for employers to be more family-friendly, and for cheaper and better childcare.
They claim that policies which encourage flexible and part-time working practices, or enable mothers to remain at home for longer after a birth could minimise the negative effects, as could policies affecting paternity leave and working patterns for fathers.
Research earlier this summer from the Centre for Policy Studies suggested that nearly half of working women with young children would prefer to stay at home were it not for financial constraints.
