The Bold Blueprint: for Modern Educators

What if great leadership in education and care isn’t defined by how skilled you are - but by how calm, clear and connected you can stay?

In this episode of The Bold Blueprint, Barbi and Jamie sit down with Adrian Pattra-McLean, Founder and Education Director at Farran Street Education. Long before he studied educational psychology, Adrian was learning about people by watching his family run their early childhood service - a place grounded in calm, familiarity and real connection.

That environment helped shape his blueprint for leadership:
calm creates culture, and culture creates results.

Together, we explore:

• Why leaders who stay calm create teams who stay capable.
• The difference between positional, distributed, and collaborative leadership.
• How predictable energy, boundaries and clear roles reduce burnout.
• Why “open door” leadership often hurts givers.
• Rituals, belonging, and the psychology behind keeping great educators.
• How time blocking and rhythms help leaders get out of reactive mode.
• Why teams fail without structure, and what great structures actually look like.
• The stress response no one talks about: avoiding tasks when we feel incompetent.
• What leaders can do tomorrow to build trust, clarity, and calm.

Adrian brings decades of lived experience, practical leadership insight, and stories from services across Australia - making this one of our most relatable and actionable episodes yet.

For leaders, educators, coordinators, NS/ELs and anyone ready to move from reacting to leading.

Links

10 past 10 morning briefing Adrian mentions -
https://farranstreeteducation.com.au/empower-your-team-with-the-10-past-10-morning-briefing/

Once known for Muriel’s Wedding, Gabby Millgate has since found a new stage - early childhood education. 

Now a Nature Pedagogy Leader, Gabby brings creativity, care, and courage to early education, reminding us that children aren’t separated from nature - they’re part of it. 

In this episode of The Bold Blueprint, Barbi and Jamie talk with Gabby about using performance to build connections, why dirt is foundational to learning, and how ecological literacy starts with small acts - one rock, one seed, one story at a time. 

We explore: 
✅ Nature pedagogy and ecological literacy 
✅ Children as participants, not spectators 
✅ Fire pits, chickens, compost and courage in practice 
✅ How belonging to land builds confidence, empathy and care 

💙 Because nature isn’t a luxury in early childhood - it’s the original curriculum. 

This episode is brought to you by Firefly HR & ELM

What stays with us isn’t always the systems, the policies, or the structures - it’s the people who showed up when we needed them most.

In this episode of The Bold Blueprint, Barbi and Jamie sit down with Narelle Gurney - Jamie’s former caseworker during his teenage years in refuge, and someone who went on to spend more than a decade with The Salvation Army in Malawi.

We talk about:

· The torchbearers in dark times, and why one safe supportive relationship can change everything.

· What 11 years in Malawi revealed about poverty, simplicity, and why communities there are “relationally rich.”

· Why slowing down, being present, and creating space for children and young people is more powerful than any policy.

This is a conversation about the kind of impact that lasts - the human side of leadership, belonging, and connection across continents.

👉 Listen in if you’ve ever wondered whether one person, or one moment, can really change the course of a life and how you approach your day to day.

When a service is bought or sold, educators often feel it first. Questions about trust, change, and the future of their work can sit heavy - but the story is bigger than the transaction.

In this episode of The Bold Blueprint, Barbi and Jamie sit down with Hilary Knights - childcare broker, approved provider, and sector insider with three decades of experience. Hilary shares what really happens when services change hands, why educators are central to every transition she oversees, and what the future of the sector might hold.

We explore:

· How ownership changes impact educators, families, and communities.

· Why trust in the first 30/90 days matters more than promises.

· The importance of planning, not reacting, when thinking about the sector’s future.

· Where growth is happening, and what it means for day-to-day practice.

Hilary reminds us that every service is more than a building - it’s a community, and educators are its anchor. This conversation is a chance to see the bigger picture while recognising the everyday impact of the people who make it all work.

🎧 Listen now.

Bias isn’t always intentional - but it’s always influential. From who we comfort first, to who we see as “leadership material,” our unconscious choices shape the culture of every classroom and workplace.

In this episode of The Bold Blueprint, Barbi and Jamie sit down with their first international guest, Kate Jordan-Downs, M.S.Ed. - an educational entrepreneur, DEIB consultant, and teacher at heart. With experience spanning the classroom, executive leadership, and her own inclusion focused consultancy, Kate brings both lived practice and systemic perspective.

Together, we unpack:

· The difference between explicit bias (what we admit) and implicit bias (what leaks out).

· Why bias is an emotional reflex before a conscious choice.

· Everyday examples of bias in education and care, from halo effect to attribution bias.

· Why equity and fairness are not the same, and how good practice doesn’t always equal just practice.

· Practical tools for reflection, and how to turn awareness into action.

Kate challenges us to lean into the discomfort, take ownership, and recognise that neuroplasticity means bias isn’t fixed. By doing the messy work of unlearning, we can rewire our habits, build authentic inclusion, and create spaces where every child and every educator truly belongs.

Whether you’re a new educator or a seasoned leader, this episode will push you to see what often goes unseen - and to act on it.

This episode is brought to you by fireflyhr.com.au and elm.net.au

What makes a service truly work for the people inside it?  In this episode of The Bold Blueprint, Barbi and Jamie sit down with Stefan Piruk from Jarra - a former teacher turned service developer who has built more than 30+ services across Australia.

From staff rooms and storage to outdoor play and parking, Stefan shares how the smallest design decisions can have the biggest impact on both educators and children.

We talk about why the best services prioritise staff wellbeing, how thoughtful design supports recruitment and retention, and why belonging has to be built into the walls as much as the curriculum.

We explore: 

• How service design influences culture, practice, and supervision. 
• Why educator wellbeing and workflow are essential to NQS Quality Area 3. 
• Nature play, outdoor spaces, and designing for real community needs. 
• The future of services and why the best ones start with people, not just plans. 

This is a conversation about spaces that support, not squeeze - and the design difference that lets both educators and children thrive. 

This episode is brought to you by Firefly HR & Early Learning Management

What happens when programming shifts from ticking boxes to building trust?

In this episode of The Bold Blueprint, Barbi and Jamie sit down with Chelsea Fankhauser to talk about programming, practice, and the culture that makes it all work.

From trialling tech free days and stepping back into paper based planning, to re-finding connection in active supervision, Chelsea shares how small changes have made a big difference for her team and the children in their care.

We dig into:

- Reducing tech to strengthen responsiveness

- Active supervision and the power of human connection

- Team culture, belonging, and permission to play

- The balance between compliance and creativity

It’s about bringing programming back to what matters most - children, connection, and trust.

Listen now!

You’ve read her words. You’ve felt her impact. But have you ever heard her story?

Freya Lucas has long been one of the clearest voices around education and care - but this is the first time she’s ever been a podcast guest. And we were lucky enough to be her first.

From early childhood educator to recruiter, writer, to wellbeing work, Freya’s journey is anything but linear - and everything about purpose.

In this episode, we go beyond the bylines and talk with Freya about what it means to follow your purpose - even when the path isn’t straight.

We cover:

- What drew her to education and care in the first place

- Moving between roles - from educator to recruiter to writer

- Why “very few of us are trees” (and what that means for our career choices)

- What if your career didn’t follow the script - and that was the point?

- The campsite rule, the infinity loop, and five minute moments

- Why Freya says: “It’s a privilege to play even a small part.”

- And how sometimes your pivot can become your purpose

This one’s about identity, impact, and the quiet power of showing up with care. 

Listen Now. It’s warm, thoughtful, and full of the reminders we didn’t know we needed.

This podcast is brought to you by elm.net.au & fireflyhr.com.au

What keeps someone in early education for 30 years, and still loving it? 

In this episode of The Bold Blueprint, Barbi and Jamie sit down with Rebecca Hutchison,CEO of Early Learning Management, for a conversation about leadership, joy, critical reflection, and what it really takes to build quality in education and care.

We cover:

• Empowering the next generation of educators.
• What culture and collaboration actually look like on the floor.
• Autonomy, innovation, and the non-negotiables of good leadership.
• How to stop the doomscroll and reconnect with purpose.

If you’ve ever felt like the heart is missing in sector conversations, this one brings it back. Listen now and remember why you started.

This episode of The Bold Blueprint is part check in, part call out, and all heart.

Barbi and Jamie go guest free and sit down for a mid year moment of honesty, curiosity - and joy.

Because yes, we’re tired. But we’re also hopeful. And there’s power in naming both.

We ask:

• Who’s still missing from the conversation?
• What would change if psychological safety was a compliance requirement?
• Would things look different if every leader returned to the floor for a month?
• We talk burnout, birthdays, child safeguarding, the lost art of singing, and the quiet courage it takes to keep showing up.

You’ll hear reflections on:

• Guests on the podcast so far and our own journey’s
• The educator who walked away
• The educator with fresh eyes
• The director who’s never been online

Joy, duty, ego - and why this work still matters

If you’ve ever questioned whether your story belongs here - it does.

And if you’ve been thinking about coming on the podcast… yes, we mean you.

🎧 Hit play for a grounded, warm, and very human pause - before we dive into whatever comes next.

This episode is brought to you by fireflyhr.com.au & elm.net.au