A quick glance around any playgroup or softplay centre in the middle of any week in the past couple of years would have revealed a trend that has hit the headlines today - there are more female breadwinners, and more men that stay at home with the kids, than ever before.

The statistics show that the number of 'breadwinner wives' has hit about 2.7 million, which means one in five women out-earn their husband or boyfriend. Meanwhile, a further 25% earn the same as their other half.

As a result, the number of men who stay at home to look after their kids, because their wife is earning more, has risen 80% in 15 years. In 1994, there were 120,000 men who stayed at home with the kids, which has risen today to 214,000.

It is being referred to as a massive change in society, but we still have a hell of way to go if we are looking for equality.

Taken separately those figures are not such big news. Women and men in their 20s have increasingly been paid roughly the same. The difference in average pay for the same roles has been less than 1%. They both emerge from their education with the same skills and same qualifications and they both make the same salary. So the fact that a small proportion of women may earn more than men after a couple of years is hardly worth reporting.

In fact, the figures translate to 45% of women earning the same or more than their other half and 55% earning less.

The statistics about stay-at-home dads, meanwhile, are absolutely tiny. While the growth is massive, their numbers are still dwarfed by the number of stay-at-home mums.

The interesting thing will be what happens next.

When the economy gets back on a more even keel, and men are able to find work, will they return to the workplace, or will they continue caring for the kids? If they stay at home for a few years, when they return to work, will they be straight back on the career ladder and out-earning the average woman in a few short years, or will they suffer the same fate as stay-at-home wives and earn around a third less?

If they are treated the same on their return to work as women are, will average pay figures start to look more equal? And if they start to demand more money more quickly, will we see a step change in the way people are treated on their return to work?

It all remains to be seen.

In the meantime, the trends seem to be in the right direction, which is another tiny victory for equality.