The Life Chances longitudinal study began in 1990 and arose from the Brotherhood of St Laurence's desire to understand the impact of advantage and disadvantage over the life course. The study began with 167 babies from low, middle and high-income families. Each stage of the study has focused on different aspects of inequality, highlighting the impacts on the life chances of the participants.

The babies are now in their early thirties, and many have begun to form families of their own. Accordingly, Stage 13 of the study investigated how becoming and being parents of young children affects financial wellbeing.

Key findings:

• Most wanted to share the work and care
• The gender pay gap reinforced gender roles
• Take-up and coverage of paid parental leave was patchy
• Limited and costly childcare restricts choice

Recent refocused policy efforts by the federal government are positive attempts to place women’s economic security more firmly on the agenda. Applying a gender lens to all family-related policy areas will ensure the removal of barriers to gender equity, enable women to participate more fully in paid employment and reduce the mismatch between desired work and care arrangements for men and women. Policy levers include boosting childcare affordability and availability, developing models of paid parental leave that encourage more equitable distribution of care between mothers and fathers/partners, and supporting greater take‑up of flexible work options by fathers/partners.