June has been using the word, ‘pedagogy’ for many years and is now beyond delighted that LEYF can employ Pedagogy Coaches to support its nurseries understand how to embed pedagogy in their daily practice.  Listen to June chat with Siobhan, Konstantinos and Ricky, who explain the role of a Pedagogy Coach at LEYF and how it helps to builds  a quality practice!

Celebrating the publication of their new book: Social Leadership in Early Childhood Education and Care: An Introduction, June and Mona sit down for a frank discussion about social leadership. By narrating the leadership of those who already lead with a social purpose in Early Childhood Education and Care, we can encourage more conversations about social leadership. Pour a cup of tea, and enjoy.
https://amzn.to/3R202pY 

 Do you enjoy listening to an honest, funny, down to earth conversation?  That sums up June's chat with serial social entrepreneur Karen Lynch. June met Karen many years ago when Karen was invited to rescue Belu Water which was in debt and its future was looking unsustainable. She stayed, turned it round and left it last year in a good place able to meet her £1m donation to Water Aid. 

Why is child poverty not on the agenda? It’s a horrible situation that doesn’t just affect the child but the wider society. In this podcast I am discussing the issue with Katherine Hill who is the Strategic Project Lead for the London Child Poverty Alliance.  

Whilst filming on-set with her newborn son, Charlotte Riley became very aware of how the lack of childcare was detrimental to the careers of so many women and men working in the film industry. She soon recognised that the kind efforts to support her bringing her baby on set could work for the lead actor but it was not an option for the hundreds of others who form the essential production team – without which no film or programme could ever be produced.

Listen to June chat with Charlotte about how her mission to improve childcare provision for the UK film industry has been a catalyst for deeper conversations on breast-feeding, menopause and ageism .

Time to Put Empathy at the Heart of Pedagogy

June got to know Helen Garnett when she met her at an Empathy Lab event and was enthralled by her description of the word ‘empathy’. It was a light-bulb moment.  June soon realised that both children and adults were not born with a given level of empathy. On the contrary. It is developed throughout each of our lives and is a vital skill. Furthermore. empathetic behaviour doesn’t just happen – it is caught within a loving and nurturing environment.

Listen to their discussion,  see if you can answer the question what can we do to increase empathy?

It was when June was talking at a conference about community engagement where she met Professor Norma Raynes.  She is a lively, impassioned speaker who asked the question – why do we exclude the old from nurseries and school? Does their experience, knowledge and understanding count for nothing? She told of the organisation she founded to address this very pertinent issue. The organisation is, of course, FromGeneration2Generation. Enjoy and connect! 

 Leslee Udwin is a film maker and founder of the organisation Think Equal. She is on a mission to achieve a global system change In Early Childhood Education through social and emotional learning based on empathy, equality and inclusion. 

In this podcast Leslee talks passionately about her journey and her remarkable energy to persuade everyone to understand how social and emotional learning from the earliest age has a huge benefit on the long-term behaviour attitudes and values of young people across the world. 

We all agree that child obesity is a complex issue and addressing it can seem overwhelming. Therefore, partnering and learning from others is crucial.

June's conversation with Sonia Pombo,  ranges from discussion on salt "the silent killer", salt in hot chocolate, subtle ways to reduce salt and the importance of an Early Years chef to be trained.  As a parent, nutritionist and working parent Sonia provides a very interesting overview as what we can do in nursery to support parents and challenge the food myths, fads, snacking, confusing packaging and the ethics of the food industry that can overwhelm us. 

https://leyf.org.uk/podcast-action-on-salt

 It was a chance conversation with Jim Blakemore that led to the beginning of what has now become a strong relationship between LEYF and Bikeworks and has encouraged two wider conversations between the two organsiations.

Have a listen to June in conversation with the two founders of Bikeworks, Jim Blakemore and Zoe Portlock as they discuss the growth of Bikeworks, their response to COVID-19 and why access to bikes and cycling for children and families can help people build their inner confidence.

 https://leyf.org.uk/podcast-bikeworks