Fathers using public services that support families are to receive a special Dad guide, with Gorillaz-style illustrations.
The "Dad Pack", funded by the Department for Education and Skills, and published by Fathers Direct, covers pregnancy, birth, work, relationships, money, health, benefits, legal rights and responsibilities, plus playing with and praising children.
The pack meets Government guidance, requiring thousands of Children's Centres, maternity units and nurseries to provide effective support to dads. Until now, these services have mainly offered support to mums. More than 10,000 copies have already been ordered, mainly by Children's Centres, for Fathers' Day (June 18)
Research from the Equal Opportunities Commission, showing that today's fathers of the under fives typically do one third of the parental childcare, has prompted a major rethink of family services.
The Pack includes comments from Arsenal striker Thierry Henry on being present at his daughter 's birth ( 'I've won stuff in my life. Nothing can beat that.') There are also comments from other celebrity fathers including Nelson Mandela, Lenny Kravitz plus the children of famous fathers such as Bob Marley and Mohammed Ali.
Duncan Fisher, chief executive of Fathers Direct, the National Information Centre on Fatherhood, said: "We are at last seeing proper information for modern dads, written in men's language, using contemporary images of men and covering the issues men are concerned with. We're glad public services like it and are providing it for fathers."
Beverley Hughes, the Children's Minister, writing in the Guardian on 1 February, after issuing the new guidance for Children's Centres, said: "If fathers are now looking after children - including small babies - for lengthy periods of time, fathers need the same skills and knowledge that we have traditionally expected mothers to have. And this means services which support parents should be geared up for supporting fathers as well as mothers."
• Fathers Direct is the national information centre on fatherhood, an independent charity founded in 1999 to promote close and positive relationships between men and their children. It publishes the awarding-winning site www.fathersdirect.com and provides training, conferences, guides and briefings on fatherhood.
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