Thank you to Rachel, one of our single-parent campaigners, who has contributed this blog about the launch of Single parents, equal families – Gingerbread’s general election manifesto. 

My name is Rachel and I’m an active campaigner for Gingerbread. I’m a member of their general election campaign group. It’s an honour and a privilege to have been selected for this role. I am proud to be part of an organisation that advocates for single-parent families.  

The election campaign group is made up of people from various backgrounds.  What we have in common is that we are all single parents. We all understand the struggles and challenges that come with this role. We are dedicated to advocating for policies and legislation that support single parents and their families, regardless of our individual backgrounds.  

Together, we are a strong and unified voice, fighting for the well-being and rights of single parents and their children.  

Single parents often have to balance work, childcare and household responsibilities with limited or no support. This can be overwhelming and stressful at the best of times. But it’s even harder for those of us who are dealing with family court, an abusive ex-partner, or the failing welfare system. And let’s not get me started on the Child Maintenance Service! Single parents also have to struggle against stigma and stereotypes. We want the government to recognise the challenges single parents face. But what’s even more important, we want them to offer better support and understanding whenever possible.  

This manifesto is the result of months of hard work, dedication and collaboration.  

The incredible team at Gingerbread has poured countless hours into crafting and refining these ideas, and the single-parent campaign group has provided invaluable insights and perspectives. Together, we hope to bring about positive change for single-parent families. We need a system that supports single parents, rather than works against them.  

The launch event on Monday 22nd  April was a fantastic opportunity to share the manifesto with MPs. Many of them stopped for quite long conversations, speaking to campaigners, taking part in the single-parent quiz, and grabbing a photograph with single-parent constituents. It was great to see them engage with our asks, and we hope that they will take these into Parliament with them!  

The campaign group gives us single parents a platform and a voice. We want to change life for the better for all single-parent families throughout the UK. This manifesto is the start of that change.