Brooks (2012) notes that when student-parents are considered in the UK, this is often in a somewhat pejorative way, where they are either presented as ‘others’ in contrast to the bachelor boy ‘ideal’ who is free from conflicting demands which may conflict with studentship, or they are ‘problematised’ as a group. For trainee teachers who see themselves in two training contexts: the university environment and the school environment, Brooks’ study presents further opportunity for debate. This paper is therefore focused on the attitudes of university and school based staff, involved in the training of Initial teacher training students with parental responsibilities. A case study approach was adopted, utilising two modes of data collection: • open-ended questionnaires distributed to university tutors and school-based mentors • focused conversations with groups of tutors and mentors The theoretical framework of this paper is based on the concept of ‘institutional habitus’ (Reay, David, and Ball 2005), questioning whether the actions of individuals and practices within the often rigid structures of universities or schools make transition for some to teacher training more difficult for some groups than others. This paper aims to explore university tutor and school-based mentor perspectives. As such, it seeks to present perceptions of the barriers, and enablers for trainee teachers with parental responsibilities.

Brooks, R. (2012). Student-parents and higher education: a cross-national comparison. Journal of Education Policy 27,3, 423-439. Reay, D., David, M. E., & Ball, S. J. (2005). Degrees of choice: Class, race, gender and higher education. Trentham Books, 2005.