The emPOWERMENt Series Returns with James Hayhurst

On June 4th, The emPOWER Breakfast returns with the second installment of its emPOWERMENt series, welcoming brand strategist and campaigner James Hayhurst for what promises to be a thought-provoking and powerful conversation.

Hosted at Framestore and Company 3, the session, titled 'Beyond the Breakup: The Parents Promise and Changing the Culture of Separation in the UK', will explore the emotional and systemic challenges surrounding family separation, as well as the shifting responsibilities of fathers in both parenting and professional life.

A former managing director at Leagas Delaney and brand director at Unilever, Hayhurst will be in conversation with emPOWER founder Athene Parker, discussing his personal experiences of separation, divorce, and co-parenting. From these experiences came The Parents Promise, an initiative advocating for the emotional wellbeing of children during family breakdowns. Backed by major brands and widely covered in the press, the campaign is pushing for a cultural and legislative shift in how the UK supports families in transition.

The conversation will also touch on fatherhood in blended families and the unique challenges of parenting a preverbal autistic daughter - issues both James and Athene have encountered personally. At its heart, the session will be an exploration of empathy, communication, and how lived experience can transform leadership, both in the workplace and beyond.

The emPOWER Breakfast continues to break new ground by inviting men into the room for open, emotionally intelligent conversations - helping to reshape how we talk about care, leadership, and what it means to show up, at home and at work.