Parents & carers support and less than full time working

The Parents, Carers and Less Than Full-Time Working Group is part of the School of Public Health People & Culture Committee. Our aim is to support colleagues with parental or caring responsibilities, as well as those working part-time or flexibly, to ensure they feel valued, included and able to thrive across the School.
 
Our focus is on strengthening the practical and cultural support available to colleagues before, during and after family-related leave. We seek to promote inclusive working practices that enable a healthy balance between work and personal responsibilities, and to create opportunities for colleagues to share experiences, build networks and contribute to positive change in our working culture.

Current priorities

• Strengthening peer connection and mutual support for parents, carers and colleagues working less than full-time.
• Taking an evidence-informed approach to understanding staff experiences and identifying opportunities to enhance support, policies and working practices.
• Improving the experience of preparing for and returning from family-related leave.
• Promoting flexible and inclusive approaches to workload planning, meetings and career development.
• Creating more opportunities for family-inclusive engagement and community-building across the School.

The group is led by Jess Billins, Department Manager for IDE and a parent of two. We work collaboratively with colleagues across the School to help shape initiatives that are practical, supportive and sustainable.