By Linzi Ladlow (University of Lincoln and SPA Family Policy Group). Image credits: Sense about Science.
Keywords: Evidence Week, parental leave, family policy, gender equality
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This summer, members of the Social Policy Association’s Family Policy Group took part in Evidence Week in Parliament, sharing our parental leave research with MPs, peers and parliamentary staff. Funded and supported by the SPA, our participation involved working with Sense about Science to develop a policy briefing, produce a video and prepare for discussions about how evidence could influence policy reform.
Led by Anna Tarrant and Linzi Ladlow, our team included Alison Koslowski, Sung-Hee Lee, Patricia Hamilton and Naomi Finch. Together, we drew on our research with families and international evidence to explain how low pay and restrictive eligibility limit access to parental leave and opportunities to share care.
Our central argument was that parental leave should be recognised as a public investment in families, children and the workforce. We called for higher statutory pay; dedicated, well-paid, non-transferable leave for fathers and partners; wider eligibility for self-employed parents and those in precarious work; and a simpler system. These recommendations build on our Social Policy and Society article examining Labour’s early approach to reform, discussed in more detail in our accompanying blog.
How Evidence Week works
Evidence Week creates opportunities for researchers, parliamentarians and the public to discuss the evidence behind policy decisions. It forms part of Sense about Science’s wider work as an independent charity promoting the use and scrutiny of evidence in public life. Through public questions to parliamentarians, research briefings and training for parliamentary staff, the programme supports people to examine how evidence is used in policy.
The research briefings offer short, focused exchanges with MPs, peers and their staff, who can hear directly from researchers and discuss findings relevant to their work. Our contribution focused on the impacts of uneven parental leave on parents and the economy.
Preparing to share our research
Before the event, we received training and guidance from Sense about Science’s Evidence Week team. Their policy engagement training covered how evidence is used in policymaking, what policymakers need from researchers and how to prepare an impactful policy briefing.
The preparation helped us understand what to expect in Parliament and how to make our research as accessible and useful to parliamentary audiences as possible. We focused on connecting the evidence to current policy discussions and identifying specific recommendations supported by our findings.
We drew together a broad evidence base across the group’s research, setting out the policy context, research aims and findings, key messages and policy implications. This provided the basis for our briefing, video and three-minute pitch, helping us communicate both the research and our proposals for change. Our briefing paper, “Closing the Parental Leave Gap”, and video also provide resources for returning to the evidence after the event.
Discussing the evidence in Parliament
The week opened with a reverse select committee hearing where members of the public questioned parliamentarians about the evidence behind policy decisions. A subsequent reception and panel discussion focused on science diplomacy and the relationship between research and international cooperation. Our main contribution was our briefing session, where we were one of six research teams in the room. Parliamentary visitors moved between teams, heard the research evidence, asked questions and took away briefing papers.
Before the event, the Sense about Science team provided contact details for MPs with interests relevant to our briefing, whom we invited to attend, and contacted MPs on our behalf. Knowing who had signed up allowed us to learn more about their interests and prepare for the discussions. Other MPs and peers visited without booking, and we used Parliament’s “green card” system to request meetings with our own constituency MPs.
We spoke with MPs, peers, parliamentary aides and a journalist. Although we had prepared a three-minute pitch, the exchanges generally developed into conversations, shaped by visitors’ questions about the research and our recommendations. Different political perspectives and approaches to family policy made for thoughtful, productive and sometimes challenging discussions. Among our visitors were MPs actively working on parental leave policy as part of the government’s review. We discussed evidence directly relevant to their work, while their questions prompted us to explain our recommendations in greater depth. These exchanges also gave us opportunities to consider how our proposals were understood from different political perspectives and how they might be implemented in practice.
For us, presenting our research in Parliament offered valuable insight into its day-to-day workings and the evidence parliamentarians need. We were able to bring families’ experiences into these discussions and draw on our different studies and expertise to respond to questions. Working together in this setting demonstrated the value of the group’s collective approach, while giving us experience of communicating our research to those involved in shaping and scrutinising policy.
The conversations also opened up opportunities for further engagement. Some MPs asked us to send them our briefing, and Sense about Science shared a list of those who had engaged with us and encouraged follow-up discussions. Participation also led to media engagement, including a BBC interview. We hope to build on these connections to inform parental leave reform and develop ongoing relationships with policymakers.
Image credits: Sense about Science
Continuing the work of the Family Policy Group
As explained in a previous blog, introducing the Family Policy Group, we established the group to create a space for collaboration and critical discussion about the policies that shape family life. Our interests extend beyond policies explicitly labelled as family policy, including housing, employment and social security.
We are grateful to the SPA for funding and supporting our participation, to the Sense about Science team for their guidance, and to everyone who discussed the evidence with us.
The group is led by Anna Tarrant and Linzi Ladlow. We welcome anyone interested in joining, including researchers and those working with families in policy and practice. Please contact lladlow@lincoln.ac.uk or atarrant@lincoln.ac.uk for more information about the group.
About the author
Dr Linzi Ladlow is a Leverhulme Early Career Fellow at the University of Lincoln and co-leads the SPA Family Policy Group with Professor Anna Tarrant.