ABOUT US

"Fathers leave an indelible mark on their children and society. We must encourage, equip, and support dads as they become the true heroes of the coming generation."

Ken Canfield, Ph.D. ~ Founder, National Centre for Fathering

For years, many young men have been tarnished with the stigma of being absent parents who father children and then disappear never to be heard from again! This is true in many cases and there are a lot of young men in society who do have children and who do not live up to their responsibilities as fathers, let alone as men. 'I JUST WANNA SEE MY CHILD' is a new and exciting project. The aim being to highlight the plight of men who are unjustly labelled with this epithet but who are in fact the complete opposite. Some fathers are role models in their community, yet to children other than their own. Paradoxically, whether it is due to a bad break up or to the idiosyncrasies of the legal system many fathers who have done and do all that is in their power to be that positive role model in their children’s life do not have the opportunity to spend time with and bond with their children.

'Irresponsible, immature, worthless.... are just some of the labels attached to young fathers by some mums; but what about those dads trying to break the stereotype and embrace young & single fatherhood?'
"Black Britain Magazine"

"Many children are now growing up without the love, care and discipline of one parent, normally their fathers."
"Fathers for Justice"

"...the role of both parents should be enough for the children to realise that both parents are fully involved in their lives, that there is no important area of the children's lives from which either parent is excluded. It should not be so disproportionate that one parent can dominate the lives of the children or to be able to control the children's relationship with the other parent"
"Families Need Fathers"

"The consequences of family breakdown can be seen on every street corner and is illustrated by the fact that the cost of young offending in the UK is £10 billion and that 1 in 4 teenagers is now a criminal according to the Office Of National Statistics. The ASBO, hoodie wearing generation are a direct consequence of fatherlessness."
"F4J"

Many young fathers are saying they need more support and greater understanding as they struggle to break the negative stereotypes imposed on them by society. This project is aimed at all fathers but where there is a stigma attached to 'young black' fathers as being those most likely to be absent, one of our aims is to change that perception and view. These beliefs, in many cases most commonly by the mothers of their children, are hard to break according to many young fathers and although they are trying to engage and fulfil their duties as mature, reliable, strong, fathers who are present in their children's lives, they are often kicked back down by the heavily one sided 'in favour of the mother' legal system and by constant negative criticism.

Not a great deal of research has gone into the dynamics and effects of fatherlessness in the United Kingdom, however, if we use statistics taken from the extensive research conducted in the United States of America we can see that the results are alarming.
More than 27 million children, that's 39% of all US children-now live apart from their father. On average, in a typical year, well over one-third of these children won't have any contact with their fathers and three-quarters of all African-American children born since 1980 will live at least some percentage of their formative years with only one parent which in the majority of these cases, will be their mother.

From this research, the effect of fatherlessness show to be very costly. Children with some degree or day to day contact with their fathers are less likely to drop out of school and become involved in drug or alcohol abuse. Girls are less likely to become pregnant as teens and boys are less likely to become involved in criminal activity or violence.
However, in saying this, unfortunately in some cases even when a father is physically present in the home, he may be emotionally and spiritually absent. Often, men don't know how to effectively involve themselves in the lives of their children.

The aim of fatherstogether.com and the 'I Just Wanna See My Child ' project is to drastically improve the well-being of children by encouraging and inspiring men to become more effectively involved in the lives of their children. This project was set up in response to the drastic decline in what we call 'lack of respect for the family' which also encompasses the trend of fatherlessness in the United Kingdom. This project was founded by Mr Nwaka and Mr Francis to help develop practical resources to prepare dads for nearly every fathering situation.
We also aim to try and dispel the stigma and negative exposure attached to the West Indian slang.....Baby Father.... and also highlight that if you like.....not all dads are bad!!!

Fathers Together is aimed at providing a forum for a positive, proactive voice for father fullness and the benefits of father involvement in the lives of children. Unlike many websites and organisations which look at the same problems in society, we also aim to voice the views and opinions of those affected......OUR CHILDREN!!!
In many instances the voices of our young are lost! It’s very easy to judge, point the finger and indeed give advice but it is a lot harder to listen. Perhaps if we listened to those affected we may as a result be able to provide not only more answers but the right answers.