News roundup: Disabled young people, birth parents' rights, and men in childcare

Disabled young people are systematically excluded from sharing their views on the services they rely on, research has found. A study conducted by 16 disabled young people concluded that decision makers did not seek their opinions in the planning and delivery of education, health and leisure provision. “If more services took account of young disabled people’s views in decision making we would have better and more effective services,” said Rebecca, one of the young researchers. “Currently young disabled people are not having the opportunity to have their say and this needs to change.” To tackle the issue, the group has produced recommendations for government and local service providers.

Birth parents who wish to maintain contact with children that have gone into care or been adopted will only be granted access in exceptional circumstances, the Times reports. Legislation included in the Children and Families Bill will give courts the power to stop birth parents contacting children through Facebook or other social media websites. Martin Narey, the government’s adoption adviser, told the newspaper that too often contact was maintained for the benefit of the birth parents and not for the child.

Early years leaders must challenge gender stereotyping and provide positive male role models to encourage more men into the profession, a study has suggested. Research conducted by Nottingham Trent University questioned a group of 18 male early years trainees and 13 male primary school head teachers. They found stereotypes were deterring males from entering the profession, including the fear that men can be perceived as threatening to some young children and risk being accused of indecent behaviour. Krishan Sood, senior lecturer at Nottingham Trent University, said: “Stereotypes, perceived or real, of gender inequality, homophobia or identity need to be challenged and addressed by leadership in organisations”.

Character and resilience are the “missing link” in social mobility, a group of politicians, educationalists and community leaders have claimed. Citing research by The Prince’s Trust, the all-party parliamentary group on social mobility said developing character and resilience helped young people prepare for adulthood. The research found young people from a less affluent background were twice as likely to feel as though they had “already failed in life” if they failed an exam. “Your achievements in life shouldn’t depend on the wealth of your parents but it is clear that this is still the case in today's Britain,” said Labour MP Hazel Blears. “We must act to break this link and if we are serious about tackling social mobility, we need to start the conversation now about how we develop character and resilience for future generations.”

A three-year-long project to tackle female genital mutilation in the UK has been announced by a group of charities. The Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, Trust for London, Comic Relief and Rosa, the UK Fund for Women and Girls, will invest £1.6m into the initiative, which will target certain sections of the community, such as older women, religious leaders, men and policymakers to raise awareness of the problem. Today is Zero Tolerance Against Female Genital Mutilation Day.