Older and lower-qualified parents get less advice on parenting

Advice on parenting is less likely to be accessed by fathers,
older parents and parents with lower qualifications, a new Home
Office survey has found.

These parents were also less likely to want more advice and
information on an aspect of bringing up their children.

Less satisfaction with the parenting advice available was
reported by parents with disabilities, lone parents and parents who
live apart from their children.

Although there were lower satisfaction rates with advice
services among ethnic minority parents, this was found to be due to
higher levels of deprivation and single parenthood in this
group.

However, Chinese parents were less likely than white parents to
have had regular practical help from family and friends with their
children.

And Asian parents had a lower awareness of the advice on offer
than white parents.

Parents with qualifications below A level accessed advice less
often than the more qualified, and were less likely to know where
to find it.

The survey of 15,655 parents in England and Wales – which
included a large cohort from minority ethnic groups – asked
about the quantity and quality of both formal advice on parenting
and informal sources of information and practical help.

89 per cent of parents were satisfied with the quantity and
quality of parenting advice.

Survey at: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs04/rdsolr4804.pdf