The Cheryl Lacey Show

Most principals are dedicated to their schools, their staff, and their students, no matter the pressure. But dedication alone isn't enough. With so many challenges facing school leaders, professional support isn't optional, it's essential.

A conversation with Andrew Cock

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Britain's independent school sector is in free fall. 

Since 2010, over 1,100 schools have closed and the pace is accelerating. VAT on fees, rising costs, and a co-dependency on international enrolments have pushed closures past 100 since January 2025, with some forecasts suggesting the sector could shrink from 7% of pupils to just 3%. For independent schools survival means charitable status, mergers, or acquisition. There's a solutions gap - correction - a solution being ignored.

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The United Nations sells a vision of peace and unity, but its foundations tell a harsher story. Bankrolled by John D. Rockefeller Jr., its headquarters rose where a neighbourhood once stood, wiped away to make room for global power. 

Their language is peace but the reality is leverage, money, and influence concentrated at the highest levels. 

A conversation with Lawrence Rogak

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Ben Roberts-Smith's story is unlike any in Australian military history. Decorated with the Victoria Cross, celebrated as a national hero, then  a defamation trial that first relied on 'balance of probabilities' to criminal charges he now faces. And, the deeper question: what does this means for the Australian Defence Force if this is how Australia treats its bravest soldiers. Who will be willing to serve?

A conversation with Mike Holt

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Sex is biological. Gender is a social construct. And a defence force exists to win wars, not to serve as a platform for social experimentation. The Trump administration made decisive steps to restore clear, science-based definitions of male and female across federal policy, military readiness, standards, and cohesion. Objective reality is non-negotiable. Isn't it? Straightforward and prepared for anything Lawrence and Cheryl are unafraid to say what many are thinking.

A conversation with Lawrence Rojak

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It's a question too many children are asking. What does relinquishment of the nuclear family, the replaceable role of fathers, and the narrative in schools tell us about what children need when dad isn't in the picture? What is society telling our children when being brave and masculine could be the first step toward arrest?

A conversation with Peter Richardson.

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The EA role in a school is unlike any other. Not a teacher, nor a general admin role, but absolutely central to everything.

In this episode, we explore the unique identity, influence, and professional value of executive assistants in education, and why school leadership simply couldn't function without them.

A conversation with Kristine Nivan

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Martial law. Treason. When citizens arrest is blocked it exposes more than the fear. The determination for Australian's to take back the lucky country.  

A conversation with Mike Holt.

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Combat and first responder trauma   is costing the lives of those charged with saving the lives of others. 1 veteran died by suicide every week between 1997 and 2020. All while PTSD has become shorthand for a bad week at work. 

A conversation with Mark Pavilach

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Tasmania has rolled out its literacy plan. A big budget and the kind of language that makes it very hard to argue against - explicit teaching, evidence-based practice, best practice frameworks. 

But what happens when the words we use  so accepted, so unquestioned, that teachers stop thinking and stay comfortable with being handed the answers?

Critical thinking isn't just a skill we should be teaching kids. It's a professional obligation teachers owe to the system itself.

And, the uncomfortable question: in a culture that praises teachers for working hard and showing up, are we trading accountability for applause? 

Good intentions don't teach children to read. Critical professionals do.

A conversation with Simon Matthews

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