Mount St Thomas Public School community members take a break for a photo at a water slide day. Photos: Supplied.
Dads make up 60 per cent of parents doing school pick-up at Mount St Thomas Public – a far cry from when dads Glen Williams and Michael Martin were at school.
It’s all thanks to a fathering program that’s not only changing who’s at the school gate, but has sparked exciting events and outcomes such as school campouts, dads who support each other, and strong father and child bonds.
Glen and Michael are School Dads’ Group program leaders at the school, facilitated by charity group The Fathering Project (TFP), which provides a safe and inclusive environment where fathers and father figures create fun and memorable experiences for children and build stronger community connections.
For the pair, it’s in contrast to their own childhood experiences, where it was predominantly mums involved at school.
“It was always a group of mums talking there until 3:30 pm in the afternoon and you just wanted to go home,” Michael recalled, laughing.
Glen said what started with just six fathers 18 months ago had blossomed into a vibrant program, from fun-filled water slide days to an upcoming old-school carnival games event for new Kindergarten dads, and raising funds to build cubby houses for the school.
“We’ve done two school campouts, where we’ve slept at the school and run games for the night,” he said.
“The kids pitch tents on the bottom oval and then wake up and have breakfast.
“The last one we had, we had over 300 people come, so nearly the whole school.”
Michael said the group not only organised exciting events but also created a supportive network through which fathers could connect, share experiences, and actively participate in their children’s school life.
“The main reason I wanted to be part of it was because I enjoyed watching the kids having fun,” he said.
“After meeting a few of the dads when it first started, we all really gelled.
“Once we got to know all the dads collectively, it was just a great bunch of blokes that got together and had fun with the kids.
“When we do the events, the mums join in as well, so it’s a big family event and it’s just great to be a part of the community like that.”
Glen said it had brought him closer to his kids, especially his son.
“He likes to see us actively involved there. It’s benefiting him, as much as it is me,” he said.
“You see the smile on their face when they see you at the school doing something, and it’s really good.”
One of the successful camping events.
Michael agreed.
“I’m actually a better person, too, I reckon,” he said.
“You’re getting outside of your comfort zone.
“There’s some people that sit on the sideline and you haven’t ever spoken to them, and then when they join the group, they get out of their comfort zone, and everyone starts talking and relaxes a bit more.
“Most of all, all the kids just get to play with each other more often.
“The kids love it. The smiles on their faces is why we enjoy it.”
Glen said it was creating a lot of core memories for the kids, while achieving a safer environment.
“Schools where they have a really good program, bullying is reduced, and kids are more comfortable around dads,” he said.
“It’s good for the other dads as well, because when you’re struggling with something, you can reach out to one of them and have a conversation and just reduce the stigma a little bit of what it means to be a dad.
“It’s changed, because at school pick-up, 60 per cent of the people might be dads now, because mums work full-time and the roles are shifting, especially at our school anyway.”
Although, Michael admitted the kids wanted to do something all the time now.
“The worst part is when you go to do school pick-up, you get hounded by heaps of kids and your own kids going, ‘Oh, can we do this after school?’” he said, laughing.
The pair encouraged other schools to get involved by visiting The Fathering Project website and talking to their school principal.
“I encourage any dad to just start a conversation with other dads in the school and say hello to each other and get something happening,” Michael said.
“You’ll never look back after it.”
The project is backed by a study into the impact of school-based dads’ groups, which has shown that peer-support programs have a positive influence on the wellbeing of children, their fathers and the community.
The study, conducted by researchers at The Kids Research Institute Australia, involved interviews with 10 fathers who lead School Dads’ Groups run by TFP. There are now 253 School Dads’ Groups around Australia.
Learn more about The Fathering Project’s School Dads’ Group on their website.
