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New chair of the board of trustees at Working Families announced 

Published: 18 Jul 2025

Working Families, the UK’s leading charity for working parents and carers, has appointed Paul Coulson as the new Chair of its Board of Trustees. 

Paul, an employment law consultant and long-standing trustee, brings both professional expertise and lived experience to the role. Having grown up in a single-parent family on a council estate in Grimsby and later becoming a single dad himself, he understands first-hand the difference that flexible working and supportive employers can make to family life. 

Reflecting on his own experiences, Paul said: 

My employer gave me a great deal of flexibility, so that I could continue to work full-time. It was a privilege to be so present with my young children, an experience that I had missed out on in their first few years due to the demands of work.

My experiences reflect societal change but still too many families share my mum’s experiences and not enough share mine. I love being part of an organisation which is so focused on helping to achieve the things that my mum didn’t have and which so many still don’t have.

Paul brings a wealth of employment law expertise, senior leadership experience across sectors, and a clear commitment to equity and inclusion. As Chair, he aims to support the executive team to deliver Working Families’ mission to remove the barriers that people with caring responsibilities face in the workplace. 

The charity, now in its 45th year, has been instrumental in shaping workplace policy and practice, most recently playing a pivotal role in bringing about the Flexible Working Act. But Paul is clear that there is still much to be done. 

There is still so much to do.  Many people are still not given access to the choices they need to enable them and their families to thrive. It’s great to see so many progressive employers really embracing and championing the benefits of supporting those with caring responsibilities.  Sadly, though, we know from the 1,500 employees who directly contacted our helpline last year, and the 1.6m unique visits to our advice pages, that there is still work for us to do to help to align employers, employees and government policy in a way which will drive real change for those who need it most.

  • The logo of Working Families

    Our Trustees

    Our Trustees have responsibility for strategy, quality, compliance, governance and oversight of management. They make sure we comply with legislation and all relevant regulations, as well as being our advocates and ambassadors. 

  • Working Families Strategy 2024 – 2029

    The path to building a stronger future lies in developing diverse, productive and happy workplaces that empower individuals with caring responsibilities to contribute fully to the economy while maintaining harmonious family lives. And at Working Families, we’re ready to help make this happen.