Daily roundup 1 September: Flexible working, disability charity, and union merger

Two out of five low-paid young parents who ask for flexible work arrangements are "penalised" as a result, according to a TUC survey. The BBC reports that the trades union body said a survey of 1,000 parents found they are given fewer hours, worse shifts and some have lost their jobs. About half of low-paid young mums and dads are struggling to manage work and childcare, it said.


National disability charity Contact a Family has rebranded to Contact. the charity said it has overhauled its identity both on and offline in order to "reach more families with disabled children sooner and to highlight the breadth of work it does". Amanda Batten, chief executive of Contact, said: "We found that our old name was confusing and acted as a barrier to some families with disabled children, stopping them from finding out about how we can help."


The largest education union in the UK comes into force today following the amalgamation of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers and the National Union of Teachers creating the National Education Union. The union said that, with more than 450,000 members, it now represents the majority of teachers and other education professionals.


Last winter's vaccine reduced the risk of flu by 66 per cent in children, according to Public Health England, up eight per cent on last year. The BBC reports that it is the best result since 2013, when children first received flu vaccinations. In adults aged 18 to 64, the vaccine reduced the risk of flu by about 40 per cent.


Children of mothers with insomnia fall asleep later, get less shut-eye and spend less time in deep sleep, new research has found. The Daily Mail reports that this is not true for fathers who struggle to sleep, which is thought to be due to mothers typically spending more time with their children and therefore having a greater influence on their sleep habits, a study found. Researchers from the universities of Warwick and Basel analysed 191 children aged seven to 12 and their parents.