TCCR leads call from prominent academics, parliamentarians and voluntary sector leaders for greater investment in relationship support
72 prominent academics, parliamentarians and voluntary sector leaders have called on the Government to increase investment in relationship support services to tackle family breakdown.
In a letter published by The Telegraph on Monday 14th September 2015, the signatories wrote:
"The Government recognises family breakdown is a root cause of poverty and the importance of strong relationships for a thriving society. However current levels of relationship breakdown cost the country an estimated £47bn, with just £7.5m currently available for prevention.We know we live in straitened times but funding must be commensurate to the scale of the problem – there is an increasing demand for support, yet many cannot afford services. So we are calling on the Government to treble preventive funding to £22m.This would be enough to invest in interventions we know make a difference, help boost children’s life chances and send a signal that couple relationships and marriage provide a vital underpinning to our lives.Family instability can have a devastating effect on mental and physical health, workplace productivity and reoffending rates, and children’s educational attainment. The Government rightly recognises that working through relationship difficulties can deliver significant savings to the public purse. However this work must be properly resourced".
The list of signatories is as follows:
Susanna Abse, Chief Executive, Tavistock Centre for Couple Relationships
Caroline Ansell MP
Graham Allen MP
Graham Alton, Chief Executive, Changing Futures NE
Reg Bailey CBE, Chair of the Bailey Review on the Commercialisation and Sexualisation of Childhood
Professor Jane Barlow, Pro-Dean (Research), Warwick University
Amanda Batten, CEO Contact a Family
Fiona Bruce MP
Professor Ros Bryar, Institute of Health Visiting
Adrienne Burgess, Chief Executive, Fatherhood Institute
Dr Samantha Callan, Associate Director, Centre for Social Justice
Professor Sir Cary Cooper, CBE, Manchester Business School
Louise Chunn, Founder, welldoing.org
Jeremy Clarke OBE FBACP, Trustee, Albany Trust
Elizabeth Coe, Chief Executive, NACCC
Sir Paul Coleridge, Founder and Chairman, Marriage Foundation
Martha Cover, Vice-Chair, Association of Lawyers for Children
Professor Dame Sarah Cowley, Kings College London
Jon Cruddas MP
John Deagle, Chief Executive, Southampton Community Family Trust
Baroness Deech
Viv Evans, Chief Executive, Adfam
Lord Farmer
Gary Fereday, Chief Executive, British Psychoanalytic Council
Catherine Fieschi, Director, Counterpoint
Kate Figes, Author
Nick Haisman-Smith, Chief Executive, Family Links
Professor Gordon Harold, Andrew and Virginia Rudd Professor of Psychology, Sussex University
Katharine Hill, Director of Policy, Care for the Family
Juliet Hillier, Chief Executive, Brook
George Hosking OBE, Founder, CEO and Research Co-ordinator, WAVE Trust
Martin Houghton-Brown, Chief Executive, DePaul UK
Oliver James, Psychologist and Author
Colin Jones, Chief Executive, Resolution
Professor Brett Kahr, Senior Clinical Research Fellow in Psychotherapy and Mental Health, Centre for Child Mental Health
Andy Keen-Downs, Chief Executive, Pact
Danny Kruger, Chief Executive, Only Connect
Professor Lord Layard, London School of Economics
Nicky and Sila Lee, authors, The Marriage Course
Jeremy Lefroy MP
Earl of Listowel
Penny Mansfield CBE, Director, One Plus One
Julia Margo, Chief Executive, Family and Childcare Trust
Mark Molden, Chief Executive, Marriage Care
Professor Mervyn Murch, Emeritus Professor, Cardiff Law School
David Murphy, Chief Executive, Relate Northern Ireland
Helen O'Brien, Chief Executive, Caritas Social Action Network
Michael Oglesby, Founder, Oglesby Charitable Trust
Susie Orbach, Psychoanalyst and Writer
Rob Parkinson, Chief Executive, HomeStart UK
Nick Pearce, Chair of TCCR
David and Liz Percival, Founders, 2-in-2-1
James Pirrie, Director, FLiP (Family Law in Partnership)
Professor Stefan Priebe, Professor of Social and Community Psychiatry, Wolfson Institute
Kulbir Randhawa, Director, Asian Family Counselling Service
Gwilym Roberts, Chief Executive, Relate Cymru
Jason Royce, Project Director, Romance Academy
Stan Ruszczynski, Psychoanalyst, The Portman Clinic
Sir Michael Rutter, Professor of Developmental Psychopathology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King’s College London
Helen Savage, Mediator, Mediation Now & Trustee, Southampton Community Family Trust
Chris Sherwood, Chief Executive, Relate
David Sinclair, Director, International Longevity Centre
Professor Peter Stratton, Emeritus Professor of Family Therapy, Leeds
Ruth Sutherland, Chief Executive, Samaritans
Professor Mary Target, Professor of Psychoanalysis, Anna Freud Centre
Jeremy Todd, Chief Executive, Family Lives
Michael Trend, Executive Director, Relationships Foundation
Professor Liz Trinder, Professor of Socio-legal Studies, Law School, University of Exeter
Professor Jan Walker OBE, Emeritus Professor of Family Policy, Newcastle University
Sarah Wellard, Director of Policy and Research, Grandparents Plus
Dr Hadyn Williams, Chief Executive, BACP
Hazel Wright, Partner, Hunters Solicitors
For further information contact:
John Fenna | Head of Marketing & Communications
T: 0207 380 1974 | Ext: 6108 | M: 07818092771
A: 70 Warren Street, London W1T 5PB | 10 New Street, London EC2M 4TP
E: jfenna@tccr.org.uk W: www.tccr.ac.uk www.tccr.org.uk
Note to editors
The Tavistock Centre for Couple Relationships (TCCR) provides a comprehensive range of affordable counselling services for couples and individuals facing relationship problems. To find out more about the range of services offered visit www.tccr.org.uk or call 020 7380 1975.
TCCR also runs a variety of practitioner trainings, ranging from introductory courses to doctoral programmes in couple counselling and psychotherapy.
TCCR is recognised in its field as a centre of advanced practice and study, both nationally and internationally. Our ethos is to develop practice, research and policy activities which complement and inform the development of services to couples.