single-sex courses, part-time and flexible time training, and open learning. Single parents attending training courses could receive up to £50 a week per child towards child care under the Employment Training Programme. 18. Employers were becoming increasingly aware of the need to make their recruitment, training and overall employment policies attractive to women. The Government actively encouraged that approach and, as a major employer, set an example with a positive policy involving increased opportunities for part-time work, career breaks for staff who wished to take time gff to care for young children or elderly relatives, assistance with child care arrangements, improved maternity leave provisions, and the introduction of paternity leave. Already, 236 senior civil servants were working part-time. A small but growing number of firms were taking similar steps. 19. The Government realized that family responsibilities could be a particular barrier to women who wished to return to work and pursue a career, that women suffered the disadvantages of interrupted careers and that, on returning to work, women might have to take less demanding, lower-grade work. The Ministerial Group had therefore given priority to co-ordinating the work already done on child care within individual Government departments. In April 1989, it had developed a "five-point plan" on child care covering: improvements in the registration and enforcement arrangements for day nurseries, child minders and play groups; further encouragement to employers to use the tax reliefs available for providing child care facilities; guidance to local education authorities and schools encouraging the use of school premises for after-school and holiday schemes; further start-up support for the voluntary sector; and the desirability of a voluntary accreditation scheme to provide information about the availability and quality of child care facilities. 20. The first four points had already been implemented and work was in progress on 
**Analysis**
The text primarily discusses initiatives and policies aimed at promoting women's participation in the workforce, addressing childcare needs, and providing flexible working arrangements. It highlights the importance of childcare support and flexible work policies in encouraging women to re-enter the workforce and pursue careers. The text also mentions the government's role in setting an example and encouraging employers to adopt similar policies.

**Category**
Employment, Education