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20/05/2010

Parents hectic work schedules are leading to a generation of 'Maybe Later' kids, it was revealed yesterday.

Children have been given the new title as "maybe later" is the answer often dished out when they ask busy parents to play.

A new study conducted by car insurance provider Admiral shows that despite their children being their main priority, 80 per cent of parents admit their children deserve more of their time.

In fact, many working parents spend less than an hour a day actually giving their kids one-to-one attention – with the average child getting just 36 minutes with mum or dad daily.

And 68 per cent of children agree - claiming their parents are too preoccupied with working, tidying and checking emails to address their needs "now".

The new trend – which shows adults are parenting 'remotely' from their laptops or kitchen sink and continually promising their attention "later" – was uncovered in a poll of 3,000 working parents and their children.

It reveals 77 per cent of children are fed up of being parked in front of the TV instead of being entertained.

A spokesman James Carnduff for Admiral, which conducted the research as part of its Family Journeys campaign, said:

"The generation of 'Maybe Later' kids shows a worrying trend of parents not spending as much time as they should with their children.

"Parents admit their children aren't getting enough of their attention, and children are also feeling the impact of this, desperate for their parents to spend more time with them.

"We live in ever busier times with many parents taking work home with them once they leave the office, but it seems this is having a negative effect on the relationship they have with their children. Parents need to remember that playing with your kids is a great way to relieve stress and forget about work.

"The responses from the children we asked show that parents can't get away with simply sticking their children in front of the TV as that's simply no replacement for quality time."

The research found that on top of a normal full time working week, working parents log onto their emails as soon as they get home from work at least four nights a week.

And at least one of the two parents misses dinner twice a week due to working late.

When at home, 70 per cent of mums and dads admit they spend much of their spare time cooking and cleaning rather than playing with their children.

And 56 per cent often find themselves promising to play with their children after they've finished a bit of work, checked their emails, or completed the household chores.

But kids are fed up with being treated like second best. Two thirds say mum and dad are always saying they'll help with homework or play "later".

Six in 10 children wish their parents worked less, and 55 per cent wished they would leave the cleaning until after they go to bed.

Sixty eight per cent would like it if their parents had more time to play with them.

The Admiral spokesman James Carnduff added:

"Trying to balance work and home life can be difficult in modern society, but simple things like going on trips as a family can be easy and fun, and don't need to cost a lot of money.

"We're encouraging families to take more trips out together; these family memories are the things our kids remember from their childhood.

"Saying "maybe later" to children needs to become a thing of the past for parents, as the results of our survey show that the nation's children are well and truly fed up."

The poll reveals 92 per cent of parents consider their children to be their absolute highest priority in life.

But 62 per cent admit they do regularly say "maybe later" a lot to their children, without really realising the impact it is having.

Nine in 10 parents say they only work to give their children a nice life, and 90 per cent only want to keep a nice house so that their kids have somewhere nice to grow up.

However, 86 per cent acknowledge their child would probably prefer to spend more time with them, rather than playing alone while their parents work or clean.

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