Fear of being a 'bad parent' rife among families

A survey of 1,000 parents commissioned by family support charity Home-Start UK found 67 per cent of respondents said being called a “bad parent” was the most offensive criticism they could receive.

The YouGov poll also revealed 74 per cent of parents felt it was important to be recognised as a “good parent”, while 37 per cent said they felt under pressure to be a “perfect parent”.

Kay Bews, chief executive of Home-Start, said families’ fears were being influenced by the media’s focus on poor parenting.

“The huge level of media interest and reporting on bad parenting and the repercussions in society, such as children’s thuggish behaviour, young people not in work and truancy in schools, make it easy for people to say things like: ‘What are their parents doing?’” she said.

“All parents want to do as well as they can in this important role, and probably always have done, but the pressures today are increased in terms of expectations,” she continued.

“They have to aspire to greater things for their children – such as school exams, league tables and being at the ‘right school’.

“Children are subject to peer pressure – such as only having the latest trainers with the right logo.”

Bews said even feeding children healthy meals could put pressure on parents, as knowing what was a healthy choice “changes by the day”.

“Such emphasis on the parent’s vital role is natural, but nevertheless is hard to cope with if you are a parent with low income, health issues or if you are alone,” she said.

The most common definition of bad parenting given by the survey respondents was “not giving your child emotional support”.

Parents also said bad parenting could be measured by how much quality time they spent with their children, whether one child was favoured over another and swearing in front of their children.

Only one per cent of respondents said not being able to afford toys or hobbies was a sign of pad parenting.