Each year in the UK between 150,000 and 200,000 parental couples separate (Parental Separation: Children's needs and Parents' Responsibilities UK Government report, 2004).

Around 90% of separating couples make their own arrangements by which both parents maintain contact and an active relationship with their children. The other 10% are settled through the courts (HMG Green Paper, Parental Separation: Children's needs and Parents' Responsibilities, 2004).

Where parents reach private agreements on contact 82% of resident parents and 88% of non resident parents are either satisfied or very satisfied with the arrangements (Office of National Statistics).

Where courts have been involved with contact arrangements 61% of resident parents and 35% of non resident parents are either satisfied or very satisfied with the arrangements (Office of National Statistics).

In around 35% of contact cases that reach the courts one parent was concerned about the safety of their child when in the care of the other parent (HMG Green Paper, Parental Separation: Children's needs and Parents' Responsibilities, 2004).

60% of court applications for contact are initiated by fathers (HMG Green Paper, Parental Separation: Children's needs and Parents' Responsibilities, 2004).

Most parents who turn to the courts for contact are granted it. About 1% of applications for contact are rejected (HMG Green Paper, Parental Separation: Children's needs and Parents' Responsibilities, 2004).

One in ten lone parent households is headed by a man. This means something like 140,000 households in England and Wales (2001 census).

6.4 million (30%) of the 21.6 households in England and Wales contain children (2001 census).

Of the 6.4 million households containing dependent children 3.8 million (58%) were married couple households, 0.7 million (11%) were cohabiting couple households, 1.4 million (22%) were single parent households and 0.5 million (8%) were "other" households (includes households which more than one family and/or where grandparents or lodgers etc would be counted as additional to the main family) (2001 census).

Parenting patterns are changing: In the mid 1970s fathers of children under 5 averaged 15 minutes per day on child related activities, by the late 1990 that had increased to an average of 2 hours (HMG Green Paper, Parental Separation: Children's needs and Parents' Responsibilities, 2004).