Parents have outdated views about jobs for girls, says top headmistress

PARENTS who do not understand the modern jobs market should take a “step back” rather than let their outdated stereotypes influence their daughters’ careers, a leading headmistress has said.

Gwen Byrom, president of the Girls’ School Association (GSA), urged parents to resist the temptation to intervene even if they think their children’s career ambitions are “mad”.

“The big challenge for parents is that you want to send your children into the world to be successful and happy in their career,” she said.

“But work is changing rapidly, sometimes it is hard to understand what a career might be. If you ask about engineering, the stereotype is that it is dirty and involves big machines. But, it covers everything from mechanical and electrical, to biological engineering, it could be building prosthetic limbs.”

Mrs Byrom, who is headmistress of the £12,500-a-year Loughborough High School, said there were a growing

number of jobs in digital and technology industries that parents may not be familiar with.

“It is that understanding that work has changed. Young people are much more comfortable with change and the idea they will have lots of careers in their life,” she told The Daily Telegraph. Addressing head teachers at the GSA annual conference in London today, Mrs Byrom will say that parents have a “key role to play – for good and bad – in their children’s future careers”.

Four years ago, research by the Institution of Engineering and Technology found that just 1 per cent of parents said they believed engineering was a suitable career for their daughter, compared with 11 per cent who deemed it suitable for their son.

Mrs Byrom will tell headteachers: “Isn’t it hard enough for girls to battle unconscious bias without the misperceptions of their parents making it even worse?”

Parents should not put “undue pressure or influence” on their children, she will add. “One of the things that can be quite hard and unnerving is to step back and let your child explore everything that might be of interest.

“Some ideas might be mad and quite unnerving for parents. My advice is let them explore, let them see what is out there.”