STELLA|1SEPTEMBER 2019 17Aftertwo yearsinDubai,they movedto
Amsterdam,wheretheyworkedinjournal-
ismand copywriting.Theymarriedin2 010
and Maewas born threeyears later.InHol-
land, flexibleworking is thenorm,but when
thefamilymovedback to London in 2015,‘it
was like hittingabrick wall’, says Anna.
It waswhile struggling to jugglework and
motherhoodthat theMothe rPukkablogwas
born. ‘I wasangry aboutmy situation,’ she
says.‘And Ifelttherewas agap in questions
aboutissueslikematernity discrimination.
There’salot of feminist chat aboutthegen-
derpaygap,butIwantedtotalkaboutwhere
that gap’s coming from. The biggestcauseis
thelack of flexibleworking options,which
pusheswomen out oftheworkforce.’
One day, shewas 12 minuteslate to collect
Maefromnursery afteradelayonthe Tube.‘I
wasapologising andrealisedIjustcouldn’t
saysorryany more,’she says, hervoice catch-
ing atthememory. She felttheguilt common
to manyparents:the senseshe wasnever giv-
ing enoughathome or intheoffice.‘I was so
stresse d, apologisingall thetime for leaving
meetings,for being latefor pickup.Ithought,
“It’snot my fault .” It just wasn’t working.’
The following day, she askedher employ-
er for flexibleworking,and when they said
no,she quit.Whenshe blogged and tweeted
about herfrustration, usingthehashtag
#FlexAppeal, it struckachord withmothers,
fathersand non-parents alike,whofelt the
traditional approachtoworkwasn’tworking
for them. ‘It’snot justaparentissue,but a
peopleone,’she says. ‘Someone mightwant
flexibilitybecausethey have aparent to care
for,they’re writing abook, orthey have a
terrapinto feed.Why have weaccepted
asystem that wasbuiltint he Industrial Rev-
olution?It’sout of date.’
She describes thestatus quo as‘a game of
competitive sitting:I’vesat herethe longest,
so Iget thebonus’.There’saperceptionthat
anyone workingfewer hours, or from home,
is aNetflix-addictedslacker. ‘Evenifyou get
into theoffice at9.02,you’r etreatedlike a
bad employee,’ she says. In fact, shepoints
out that flexibleworking is good for busi-
ness.‘Itincreases productivity and helps
attract andretain talent.’
Fromthe start, she’s shownaknack for
making an impact, organising flash mobs
aroundthecountry at which she andahost
of brightly dresse dsupporters sing,‘Let’s
talk about flex,baby,whenyou’re on the
P-A-Y-E.’‘It wasaway of gettingattention
beyond theInstagramecho chamber,’ she
says. The strategyisworking.She’s visited
theWelsh Assembly,the Equality and Hu-
man Rights Commissionand Downing
Streettopromotethecause. She’s also work-
ing withcommunicationsagen cy Claremont
on atoolkitfor employers, to help makeflex-
ibility flourish.
WhenMae andEve aren’t atschool and
nursery, Anna andMatt split childcare
50/50,withhelp from Chrisand Lucia.‘Of
course,there arerowsabout pickingup
toilet roll,but becausewechoosehow and
when towork,we’re able tocommunicatemore,’saysAnna. They’ve justfinishedtheir
newbook,Where’s My Happy Ending?in
which they discuss howtokeeparelation-
ship alive long -term.
Annasaysshe feelsespeciallyfortunate to
have her twogirls after her multiple miscar-
riages.‘Iwouldn’t sayIhave aheightened
senseofprotect iveness, it’s more an aware-
nessthat having childrenisn’talwaysour
choice,’she says.‘I’m awarethat despitethe
devastating heartbreak of miscarriage,we’re
luckythey foundus.’Followingonemiscar-
riage, she explainedthe situationtoMae. ‘I
wanted her to know whyIwas sad,that it
wasn’t about her,’ she says.‘Shesaid,“Oh,
did it fallout ofyour tummy?That’s sad.”’
She says she chooses to writeabout such
intenselypersonal subjects because‘they’reshare,’she says.‘I wanttobehonest about
what lifeis actuallylike. I’mnot onething,
I’mmultifaceted.Ilike to laughand Iliketo
takethingsseriou sly.’Occasionaltrollingis
par for thecourse, but she takesitinher
stride:‘The onlyguy Ishutdownsaid I
looked like apregnant elephant, butgener-
allyI’m open to hearing otherperspectives.
Youdoneedresilience,though.’
Annaand Lucia have clothingand cos-
metics brands clamouring to signthem up
for mother-daughter campaigns, but Lucia
is choosy about her endorsements.‘Ifit’s
something Ilike, that’s fine,but Idon’t want
to be agreedyInstagramwoman,’ she
laughs. ‘Sometimespeoplemessageme
to sa ythey’ve seen me inthesupermarket
and Ithink,“Whyare they interestedinClockwise from
rightAnna andMatt
co-parenting;movie
nightfor Lucia and
Chris; proud dad
Chris on Anna and
Matt’s wedding dayInstagram@mother_pukk
a,@grandmother_pukka
partofbeing human.Isat a tmydesk
miscarrying,feelingthatIcouldn’t tell
work.Ipostedabout it andhundredsof
women saidthey’ddone thesame.’When
Matt shared hisperspective,itwent viral.
‘Men arestill abit sl ow to communicate
their feelings aboutthese issues, ’Mattsays.
‘Womengotint ouch to saythey’dsharedit
withtheir partners.’ Althoughnaturally less
openthan Anna,‘I realisedwhat we were
doing washelpingpeople.’
She takes thesame view of sharing pic-
tures of herself breastfeeding,orshowing
her C-section scar.‘There’s not muchIdon’tme?”Idon’treallyget it.I’d neverhave
envisagedthishappening,but it ’s amazing.’
Anna doesn’taccept gifts,‘becauseno-
body needstosee me lording it about with
thelatest Kenwood mixer’, butshe doesn’t
judgethosewho do.She maybeanalpha of
themummybloggerworld, but she insists:
‘Idon’tsee myself as an“Instamum”. I’mnot
definedbymotherhood.I’m not partofa
squad.I’m just awoman tellingmy story,
hoping to changething sfor my daughters.’
Their futureisinformidable hands.
FormoreinformationabouttheFlexAppeal
campaign,see@mother_pukkaonInstagramAS SEEN
ON INSTAGRAM‘I don’t seemyself as an“Instamum”.
I’mjust awoman tellingmy story,hoping
to changethingsfor my daughters’
Document: 1017CC-STMMA-1-010919-A017C-XX.pdf;Format:(205.00
x260.00 mm);Date: 27.Aug 2019 16:10:33; Telegraph
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