Best workplaces for working fathers revealed as employers get behind gender-equal parenting
Posted on Thursday 17 July 2025
The awards, which are made every two years, spotlight organisations that lead the way in creating dad-friendly working cultures through parental policies, flexible working, supporting returning fathers and leadership.
They are organised by The Equal Parenting Project, parental workplace policy experts, Dr Sarah Forbes from the University of York and Dr Holly Birkett from the University of Birmingham.
This year’s winners are: Vodafone UK, E.ON UK, PepsiCo UK & Ireland, Better Society Capital, University of Oxford, Aviva, Browne Jacobson LLP, National Gas Metering, The Co-op Group Ltd, Centrica, and BMJ Publishing Group Ltd.
The awards will be presented on Thursday 17 July at a ceremony at the Houses of Parliament hosted by the former Minister for Women and Equalities the Rt Hon Anneliese Dodds MP.
Dr Forbes said that creating father-supporting cultures in the workplace enables employers to attract and retain employees.
She said: “With recent changes to flexible working regulations, and ongoing conversations around work-life balance, businesses are placing growing importance on policies that attract and retain top talent.
“We know that people’s attitudes towards sharing childcare have changed dramatically in recent years, with a growing desire among fathers to do more childcare. Supporting fathers to do so makes good business sense as research shows they increasingly want to work for, and show greater levels of commitment to, employers who make it easier to combine work and family.
“We’re thrilled that more organisations are recognising the importance of supporting working dads for family wellbeing, employee satisfaction, and gender equity. It’s inspiring to celebrate employers who are leading the way and making a real difference."
Dr Holly Birkett from the University of Birmingham said: “We know from our research in this area that supporting parents at work not only enhances family wellbeing and fosters a healthier work-life balance, but can also help organisations reduce pay gaps and tackle the motherhood penalty.
“These awards celebrate current progress while encouraging more employers to break down gendered barriers to caregiving, ultimately driving greater gender equality and enabling more women to reach senior roles.
We have been running these awards since 2022, and every year the standard of entry improves. It is heartening to see employers upping their commitment towards supporting gender-equal childcare.”
This year’s event spotlighted outstanding initiatives through four awards:
- Parenting Policies Award – Recognising organisations that enhance and actively promote parenting policies for fathers.
Winners: PepsiCo UK & Ireland, Better Society Capital, University of Oxford, Aviva, Vodafone UK, and Browne Jacobson LLP. - Flexible Working Award – Celebrating employers where flexible working is embedded as the norm, not the exception, and made genuinely accessible to dads.
Winners: National Gas Metering, E.ON UK, and Vodafone UK. - Support for Returning Fathers Award – Highlighting organisations that ensure smooth transitions back to work for fathers following extended leave, helping to maintain career progression and wellbeing.
Winners: Aviva and Vodafone UK. - Leadership and Culture Award – Honouring organisations whose leadership actively supports father-inclusive practices and challenges traditional gender norms in caregiving.
Winners: The Co-op Group Ltd, E.ON UK, Centrica, Vodafone UK, and BMJ Publishing Group Ltd.
Award-winning organisations will contribute to a growing library of case studies on the Working Dads Employer Awards website, helping employers of all sizes across the UK, whether SMEs or multinationals, reflect on and improve their support for working dads and their families.
These awards are made possible through the support of partners, including Business in the Community, Working Families, CIPD, CBI, the Fatherhood Institute, Future Men, Parenting Out Loud, and the Women’s Medical Foundation.
Notes to editors:
About The Equal Parenting Project
Dr Holly Birkett and Dr Sarah Forbes are leading the Equal Parenting Project with the aim of improving the use of family friendly policies and flexible working in the UK. Forbes and Birkett set up The Equal Parenting Project (EPP) in 2017 with the aim of using rigorous, engaged academic research to help promote gender equality by breaking down barriers experienced by parents that prevent sharing of caring responsibilities, particularly in the first year after birth or adoption.
The EPP prides itself in undertaking collaborative engaged research that has the potential to create change in family friendly policies. To do this, the EPP engages with a wide variety of stakeholders who are critical in these decisions. Over the years the project has built a strong network of those engaged in the shared parenting and flexible working agendas across industry, media, the third sector, government departments and parliament, such as the Office for Equality and Opportunity, Department of Business and Trade, Working Families and Business in the Community.
The EPP has also acted as advised on policy reviews and research projects, including producing government reports and adding new questions for the most recent national Parental Rights survey. Birkett and Forbes have also supported multiple organisations such as Nationwide Building Society, AVIVA, The Telegraph, Aon UK, Suffolk County Council and Vodafone to change or update their company policies.
About The Working Dads' Employer Awards
The EPP started these awards in 2022 to celebrate the great work many companies do supporting working dads and encourage other companies to raise their game by promoting best practice. The awards are supported by a prestigious judging panel made up on the key NGOs in the field including CIPD, BITC, Working Families and the Fatherhood Institute.