‘Statistics is about having a really good grasp of concepts like uncertainty and randomness,’ he says. ‘The level of statistical literacy among the general public is pretty poor, and to be honest, it’s not that great among researchers and scientists and doctors, either, even though statistics permeates their disciplines.’

But teaching only accounts for half of his work. The rest is research, most of it collaborative. He has been working on a large project studying children with cleft lip and palate and the effect on their outcomes of the centralisation of services that resulted from a 1998 report by the Clinical Standards Advisory Group. Another project which is just getting under way involves collaboration with a team in Norway on childhood growth and obesity to understand the effect of a free school fruit programme.  

It was Andrew’s Norway connection that first opened his eyes to the need for more equality in childcare. He explains: ‘My wife had a research fellowship placement in Oslo, so we lived there with our first child for six months. I was worried when we went that I’d be quite isolated as a stay-at-home dad– I imagined it’d be similar to the UK where the people you see pushing the prams tend to be women. But in Oslo almost half those I met on parental leave were dads.’

This is partly down to the country’s legislation, he says: ‘Maternity and paternity pay is more generous than in the UK, and the fathers are expected to take at least three months of the total leave, otherwise the family lose the parental pay. It made me realise the difficulty for women of balancing family and career. Until you’ve done it I think it’s hard to fully appreciate that.’

Consequently, when they moved back to Bristol and their second child was born, Andrew was keen to support his wife again. He took additional paternity leave for three months, after she had taken the first nine months. ‘That allowed her to go back to work as well, so we could share the impact. It’s also nice to be able to spend good time with your children when they’re small.’

As long as certain conditions regarding length of service are met, Additional Paternity leave (now replaced by Shared Parental Leave), Andrew points out, is a statutory right in the UK, ‘but I think some people don’t realise this. You’re entitled to it, so it’s not a matter of having to justify it, which might put some men off. You should never be made to feel as though it’s an application or request. The University is a progressive organisation, so the regulations are visible. But it’s as much about the culture in a workplace: if your line manager isn’t aware of the entitlement, they need to be made aware. The more men do this, the more likely the culture will change.’

Another arrangement that he took advantage of is flexible working, though this does require an application. ‘That’s something you have to justify, but my request was dealt with seriously. It means that I regularly have breakfast with my kids and share the drop-off at school and nursery before I come into work. Then I make up for things in the evening or I might work early in the morning before they’re awake!’.

‘But I get to have dinner with my kids almost every night and breakfast most mornings – and I’ve managed to make about 80 per cent of school events like harvest festivals and sports days. And you really notice, when you go to these things, that many dads aren’t able to do that.’