The document, The Coalition: Our Programme for Government, outlines the plans of the new government. But the pledges made regarding support for families are largely a regurgitation of the Conservative's pre-election manifesto.
Plans include putting funding for relationship support on a stable, long-term footing and making sure couples are given greater encouragement to use existing relationship support. The government has also pledged to investigate a "new approach to supporting families with multiple problems" and will encourage shared parenting from the earliest stages of pregnancy. This will include the promotion of a system of flexible parental leave.
Duncan Fisher, director of Kids in the Middle, a coalition of family charities, welcomed the plans. He said there are a lot of existing resources for relationship support that are currently underused by public services.
"We need to make children's services places that can pull in existing community services," he added. "There are some examples where this is already happening, such as where Relate works in schools to identify where relationship support is needed for parents of pupils, but this kind of thing is not happening enough."
