# Families Need Fathers

Families Need Fathers - Both Parents Matter (FNF), founded in 1974, is a registered charitable social care organization in the United Kingdom that offers information, advice, and support to parents whose children's relationship with them is under threat during or after divorce or separation, or who have been alienated or estranged from their children. FNF also advocates for shared parenting, more time for children with their non-resident parent, and stronger court actions when a resident parent defies court orders requiring them to allow their children a relationship with the other parent. The organization's goal is that children of divorce or separation should not lose the love and care of one of their parents.

## Mission

In the United Kingdom, roughly one-third of children of separated parents have no contact with their father, and the organization is primarily concerned with maintaining a child's relationship with both parents during and after family breakdown.
The majority of the charity's work is to provide relief, assistance, guidance and support to parents and other close family members hoping to stay in touch with their children after divorce or separation. It is aimed at the further emotional development of children whose parents have separated by encouraging shared parenting arrangements. The organization also seeks to study problems associated with children who are deprived of a parent, and to promote an understanding of these problems among family, legal professionals and policy makers.

## History and organization

Families Need Fathers was founded in May 1974 by child psychiatrist Alick Elithorn and financial consultant Keith Parkin as an organization to campaign for equal parenting time after divorce, and for increased contact between a child and its non-custodial parent. The organization became a registered charity in 1979, and was able to hire staff in 1992. As the organization grew in the 1990s, previous employees founded several new organizations with similar missions, such as Parents Forever Scotland, the Association of Shared Parenting, Dads After Divorce, and Fathers4Justice. In 1994, the Cheltenham Group was formed by FNF, Dads After Divorce and Parents Forever Scotland in an attempt to form a coalition of parenting organizations.
In 2008, FNF launched projects under the slogan "Both Parents Matter" and this strapline was added to the charity's logo in 2013. By 2010, the organization had 51 branches across the United Kingdom and a network of 300 volunteers. It has since continued to advocate for shared parenting in the media, the House of Commons and the family justice establishment, while continuing its work as a social care organization.
Jon Davies was the chief executive from 2006 to 2010. The Current CEO is Sam Morfey and the current chair is Paul O'Callaghan.
In 2009 guidance produced by Families Need Fathers came under criticism for giving the impression that they might have emanated from, or were approved by, the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF ) or Cafcass.
On October 12th, 2024, the members of Families Need Fathers voted 91% in favour of the Special Resolution to change the charity's name to "Both Parents Matter"

## Parental support work

In 2016, Families Need Fathers received around 25,000 calls to its Helpline, around 5,000 visitors to local meetings, and 185,000 unique page views to its website.

## Shared parenting advocacy

The organization advocates for shared parenting, whereby the children live substantial amount of time with both of their divorced or separated parents. They base their advocacy on scientific studies showing that shared parenting is in the best interest of children, citing research by Malin Bergström, Robert Bauserman, Richard Layard, Judith Dunn, Rebekah Levine Coley and Bethany L. Medeiros, among others.