THIS ISSUE

Having a career cost me my child

The biggest headache facing working mothers should be juggling the school run with a breakfast meeting. Now though, some face losing their children altogether – because they have a job. eve investigates this worrying new trend

Being a working mother is a fabulous yet frustrating situation. You adore your children and your career keeps you sane. You don’t mind working, even if you desperately miss those bedtime cuddles, because your salary is what keeps your family afloat. Never, in your worst nightmares, do you dream that your career could cost you your children. But it’s time for a wake-up call, because that’s exactly what’s happening to working mothers across Britain when their marriages break down.

Increasing numbers of women are being legally separated from their children – not for drinking or doing drugs, nor for hitting, ignoring, or walking out on their children, but simply for being the main breadwinner in their family. The Child Support Agency works to enforce maintenance payments. It has almost 67,000 recorded cases of British mothers living apart from their children; many of them loving, devoted parents who never dreamed that choosing to work instead of staying at home full-time could count against them.

Carole Walton, a police officer from the Midlands, is one of them. Carole earned more than her husband so, when they had children, it made sense for her to work full time. Her hours were 7am-3pm, so she took over the childcare mid-afternoon each day, when her husband left for his 5pm shift. Then her marriage crumbled.

To read the full feature, order the current issue of eve magazine