`Investing in Fathers` primary focus is on young fathers who are not living with their partners or their baby's, however you cannot ignore the fact that they are male and they will be, or are fathers.

These factors need to be taken into account as they have a major influence on how you view a young father. What might be at face value seem particular to young fathers, may have many factors in common with fathers and men in general.

Young fathers have separate issues of their own, simply because of their age.

When looking at fatherhood and supporting them through that period you are up against many traditional male views, and societies views of men. Traditionally society tends to expect men to:

• Be on their guard against sharing emotional issues.
• Be inclined to try and `work out` issues on their own.
• Need to be asked to do things as opposed to volunteering.
• Hide behind a `macho` image.
• Be suspicious of people's motives for support - particularly around parenting or babies.
• Think - `baby's and looking after children is women's business, isn't it?

However, we also know from experience that men:

• Want (often desperately) to talk about their baby's and children - with nowhere to go to talk; you can't talk about that down the pub, can you?
• Will share emotional issues when the environment is safe.
• Need to be given clear information and the value of any support that is offered.
• Can parent babies/children equally as well as mothers - just in a different way.

The message that `Investing in Fathers` gives is, that it is OK for fathers to be with their baby's, despite what society and perhaps friends and family say, get involved as much as you can, as early as you can, before baby is born.

For many men going through that transition into fatherhood is an emotional `roller coaster` for them, whether a planned pregnancy or not there are so many issues to think about:

• Will my baby and my partner survive the birth?
• What about if the baby is ill?
• Will I be able to be a father - what does being a father mean?
• Will I be like my father?
• What about the life I have now - will that disappear altogether when the baby is born?
• What about my partner - will we still have the same relationship we do now?
• How can I spend time with my baby, and my partner, and earn enough money?
• This is my baby, part of me, another life, another generation I have helped create.
• Will my child have the same childhood as I had?
• Will I be able to cope?

These are just a few examples of what fathers have told us they think about; these are `regular` fathers - postmen, drivers, youth workers, police officers, GPs, office workers and fathers who are unemployed.

Many fathers do `run away` of course, when it all gets too much, when they cannot find the answers, when they are not getting support. They `run away` to the gym, to the golf course, to the pub, do overtime, etc.

One father we spoke to, who had a good job, his partner would soon return to work, they had a house, mortgage, supportive friends and family said "I love my baby so much, I wouldn't change anything for the world - but it's not easy being a father, society doesn't make it easy for you, you really have to work at it".

So is it any wonder that some young fathers who are not living with their partner or baby find it hard work and also `run away`.