ASK an average mum how they cope with family life and they would probably say, “We manage”. The idea that women can have it all – a career and a family – is one you pretty much wave goodbye to when you have children.

Some can afford to stay at home and live on one parent’s salary – but know a sustained career gap will inevitably affect their future job prospects.

Others may feel returning to work is the best option but worry incessantly that they – and their children – are missing out on Mummy time.

The third way – perhaps the most popular now – is part-time working.

On the surface, it offers the best of both worlds. But it can sometimes feel impossible to do either job to the best of your ability.

If this really is the situation facing women today I’m not sure where the Government is going with its new plans to allow maternity leave to be ‘swapped’ between mums and dads.

As I understand it, women could have roughly six months off and then share the second six months’ leave (some paid, some unpaid) with their partners.

In theory it’s great, especially where women are the main breadwinners.

I know several families where that is the case – which made it financially tricky for them when they did have a child.

I also agree that it should not be assumed that women must automatically take on the role of child carer. There are some families who want the stay-at-home-dad model.

Trouble is, how many is ‘some’?

I know quite a few mums these days but I can’t think of one who actually wanted to return to work six months after having a baby.

Some felt they were not ready physically after months of pregnancy, childbirth and then weeks of disturbed sleep.

Others felt they were not ready emotionally because, as most mums will tell you, it’s probably at about six months in when having a baby stops being terrifying and starts to become good fun.

A netmums survey about work and flexibility found the overwhelming majority of mums said they didn’t want to return to full-time work.

What they really wanted was decent part-time jobs.

Clearly, more choice is good. So if some will benefit from flexible maternity leave I’m all for it.

But I suspect the average family will still just have to manage.