Features:

Parenthood redefined. 
Children of non-traditional ways of being conceived or born (e.g. sperm donor) currently have no right to know their biological parent. Mark Stephenson writes about the review by the Law Commission.

Daducation.
What do babies learn from fathers ? Harald Breiding-Buss looks at the research.

The entertainment coordinator. Keeping the kids occupied during the school holidays can be a real task. Pat Albertson writes from the front line.

What's in a name.
Naming your babies isn't always a straitforward excercise. Hugh Joughin investigates.

Meet proud father Daniel.
Cover story in words and pictures. 

Hunting role models.
Brendon Smith writes about other males who have shaped his life.

Male suicide. An editorial.

In Brief:

Suicide Not A Gender Issue For Anderton

Associate Health Minister Jim Anderton discounted the idea that special attention should be paid to the issue of male suicide. At a February meeting with the Christchurch-based "Men's/Father's Network" Anderton replied to a presentation by social researcher Annette Beautrais, which showed that 84% of suicides in New Zealand are males, saying that every suicide is one too many. He commented, however, that the Maori suicide rate needs attention.
The government has introduced an “all ages” strategy to target suicide, shifting the focus from specific youth strategies. An also present Health Ministry official said that it would be likely, however, that within the All Ages strategy there would be initiatives targeting men more specifically.
Anderton also did not think there were any problems with men’s access to psychiatric,  counselling or health services. He pointed out that drug, alcohol or violence rehabilitation are almost exclusively male domains.

Legal Parenthood Reviewed

The Law Commission is reviewing legal issues around parenthood, specifically in cases of donated sperm/egg cells or surrogacy. The Commission is also concerned with the high number of Birth Certificates without a father’s name recorded on them and the current system of when a father is presumed to be the legal father.
A discussion paper can be downloaded from the Commission’s web site (www.lawcom.govt.nz; go to “Publications”), or ordered as a hard copy for $15. Submissions close 25 May. (Also see “From Here to Paternity”, this issue pg. 6)
The Law Commission is a government-funded but independent body charged with reviewing legislation.

Young Males Focus of Youth Development Ministry

The Ministry of Youth Development wants social service providers to have a rethink about delivering services to young males at risk.

In a presentation to Community Groups in Christchurch in May, Senior Policy Analyst Tim Penney said not only are young males more likely than females to get to the attention of the police and the courts, they also drop out of school earlier, have higher rates of unemployment, and are less qualified.

Penney said research had shown that support group approaches don’t work for young men, and that the involvement of the service provider needs to be hands-on, individual, and time-intensive. He was critical about programmes that offer excitement and adventure for young men, but don’t lead to long-term goals.

The Young Males project advocates a gender-specific approach as present programmes seem to work better for females than for males. Penney in particular pointed out the value of mentoring programmes.

“NZ Not Great For Kids”—Children’s Commissioner

In a presentation to a parliamentary select committee NZ Children’s Commissioner Cindy Kiro says that with the increase in number of at-risk children New Zealand is no longer a great place to grow up in.

She said 16% of New Zealand households with children have to make do with less than $20,000 a year, and she quoted UNICEF figures saying that every dollar spent on a child saves seven dollars in related costs later in the child’s life.