Parents can go days without interacting with their children, charity warns

A poll for the British Heart Foundation (BHF) found that parents are often too busy to spend quality time with their offspring, while a substantial proportion of fathers leave the house regularly without seeing their children.

A survey of 2,264 adults found one in 10 said the last time they spent quality time with their family was over a year ago or not at all.

More than a quarter (27%) of 1,207 people who said they were parents admit to being so busy that in an average day they often do not spend any time whatsoever with their children.

Of 691 parents who said they lived with their children, 28% leave the house at least once a week without seeing them.

Among 268 dads who lived with their children, 37% said they leave the house at least once a week without seeing them.

Just under three in five of all parents (57%) said they worried that their children spend far less time with their family than they did when they were young.

And 42% worried that social media was taking their children away from quality family time when they were at home.

Almost half (48%) of all those polled said they feel guilty that they don’t spend enough time with their loved ones.

The BHF wants families to get together on June 9 for the charity’s annual day of wearing red for the Wear it, Beat it campaign.

Donna Spriggs Elliott, head of community fundraising at the BHF, said: “It’s clear that our busy modern day lifestyles, and the stresses of the daily grind, are keeping us from spending time with our families.

“Heart disease devastates the lives of millions of people across the UK, often without warning, so finding a way to break away from our normal routines to spend time together is important and our Wear it, Beat it day is the perfect opportunity.”