Employers must join recruiters in taking bold and urgent action to stop overlooking career returners and quickly get them into the labour market.

A petition has been started for a statutory requirement for employers to offer career breaks for parents with a seriously ill child, but some have questioned the practicality of such a policy.

Stopping work, even temporarily, significantly impacts the confidence over-50s have in the relevance of their skills, according to research from pension provider Aegon.