In this podcast, Dr Weston talks with Dr Nikita Hayden about the experiences of young people who have siblings with intellectual or developmental disabilities. Research into the outcomes of these children is extremely mixed. Dr Hayden unpacks the complexities of this, highlighting more complex family factors that also impact on young people's outcomes. She asserts the need to target support to those young people who actually need it and discusses meaningful things that schools and families can do to help support siblings and foster good sibling relationships.

Our researcher of the month, Dr Larisa McLoughlin, talks to Dr Weston about her recent paper which examines whether or not social connectedness is a protective factor against cyberbullying's negative impact on mental health and wellbeing. They chat about what social connectedness really is, the best ways to approach conversations about cyberbullying with your children and how schools can support strong social bonds.

In this podcast, Dr Weston is joined by research scientist, Dr Natalie Brown, to discuss the importance of menstrual cycle education and its current delivery in UK schools. They discuss the everyday effects of the menstrual cycle, including its impact on school attendance, social confidence and participation in sport and physical activity, and explore the general lack of understanding around many of the issues associated with it. Dr Brown outlines the findings of a new study examining teachers' perceptions of menstrual cycle education, chats about the perceived barriers to delivering it and lets us know what her and her team intend to do to help things improve!

Our researcher of the month, Mishika Mehrotra, talks to Dr Weston about the importance of mealtime conversation between parent and child. Join us to learn more about the why mealtimes are so important, what Mishika will be investigating and how to encourage children to open up during family chat around the table. Mishika is currently pursuing a PhD at the University of Cambridge as a Gates Cambridge Scholar, and is definitely a researcher to watch out for in the future!

In this podcast, Dr Weston is joined by Laura Barrett, author of a powerful and moving new book which chronicles her experiences when, shortly after birth, her third son was diagnosed with the life-limiting genetic condition, cystic fibrosis. It is a powerful and inspiring read, imparting a strong message of hope for any parent going through a similar situation. In this interview, published to coincide with Cystic Fibrosis Week (13th-19th June), Laura describes her coping mechanisms, gives us some insight into raising a child who has cystic fibrosis (her baby has grown into a fun-loving, sport mad young boy, raring to start school in September) and provides some general advice on coping with diagnoses and long hospital stays, regardless of the specific condition. 

Our researcher of the month, Dr Ola Demkowicz, talks to Dr Weston about teenage girls' mental health. We know that girls and women tend to be at greater risk of low mood, anxiety and depression, and that over the last decade or so, more girls are reporting symptoms of low mood and anxiety. Dr Demkowicz joins us to discuss her recent paper which investigates risk factors and cumulative risk exposure in relation to emotional symptoms. Find out more about risk and protective factors as well as what schools can do to cultivate better pupil wellbeing.

In this podcast, Dr Weston talks with Patrice Bain, educator, speaker and author, about her new book A Parent's Guide to Powerful Teaching. In it, they discuss some of the science behind how children learn and Patrice outlines practical and simple strategies that parents can use at home with their children to optimise learning. You'll also learn more about why it's important to discuss learning processes with children, how to help with revision and retrieval and how to avoid cognitive overload. 

In this podcast, Dr Weston talks with suicide prevention and postvention expert, Dr Chris Bowden. They discuss the importance of cultivating emotional literacy, developing coping mechanisms and managing impulsive behaviours before considering how schools can best respond in the sad event of a pupil dying by suicide. 

Our researcher of the month, PhD student Emre Deniz, talks to Dr Weston about sibling bullying. They discuss how common this phenomenon is, how often it goes unnoticed and what it involves. Learn more about predictive and protective factors and optimal ways that parents can respond to bullying in the home. Emre also specialises in sibling relationships for neurodiverse children and he outlines how parents can proactively encourage positive sibling bonds for children with autism.

In this podcast, Dr Weston talks with Fiona Spargo-Mabbs, founder of the Daniel Spargo-Mabbs Foundation, a drug and alcohol education charity that aims to support young people make safe choices about drugs and alcohol and reduce harm. Fiona and her husband Tim set up the charity in response to the death of their son Daniel, having taken ecstasy. Fiona gives factual information about drugs that are commonly used among teens, focuses on social media as a new and developing drugs marketplace and provides numerous actionable tips which focus on good communication with young people about this challenging issue. We also find out about Fiona's books and website, which are packed full of useful, evidence-based resources.