WorkLife Stories

Elaine Halligan, parenting coach at The Parent Practice and author of ‘My Child's Different’ tells us her story of a recent discovery that - like her son - she also has ADHD. She talks openly and inspiringly about her own traits, and how she uses them positively in her life and career. She offers her own advice and expertise for both adults and parents of children who may have ADHD or other neurodiverse conditions.

In this episode, we meet Felix Koch and Phil Burgess, the former co-heads of the London office of creative agency C Space. They talk about how they transformed an office with low morale and high attrition after a merger, to a thriving, inclusive, award-winning team. They discuss what worked and what didn't, how they set their shared goals and values alongside very different leadership styles. Find out more about Felix and Phil’s current venture WITHIN, here: https://www.within.business

In this episode, psychologist Jessica Chivers talks to us about her son who has ASD and ADHD and her daughter who has suffered from an eating disorder. She discusses how she has helped them through difficult times of the past few years, navigating different care and educational settings to get them the support they needed. She explains how looking after her own mental health and relationships has given her the strength and resilience to better support her family.

In this episode, Max Siegel talks to us about his lived experience of being transgender. He talks about his upbringing, his family, his feelings about his body, his mental health and the emotional and physical changes he's experienced. He also offers his advice to parents of children who may be going through something similar - and to us all as friends and colleagues of trans people.  

Dorett Jones and Pamela Jones, who are specialists in equity in the workplace and founders of the Genesis Consultancy, talk to us about how employers can create safe, healthy working cultures that help employees of any background, race, gender or sexuality to grow, develop and stay at organisations. They discuss an employee's typical journey from recruitment through to exit, where the pitfalls may lie and where companies are successfully striving to make their workplaces truly inclusive.

Laura Wheeler and Caroline Murphy chat to Anna Richards about their experience of moving out of London, from the practicalities and the stress along with the emotional adjustment needed, diversity and how our identities are linked to where we live.

In this interview with one half of Two Dads UK, Michael Johnson-Ellis talks about how he and his husband Wes built their family through surrogacy and how this experience has led them to support LGBTQ+ couples wanting to become parents. Michael talks about how he hopes the law will change to recognise and support gay couples better and how he thinks corporate employers can help employees going through surrogacy more effectively.

In the latest episode of our podcast 'WorkLife Stories', Anna Richards talks to Lorna Cook and Devila Vekria who are both members of our Support Group for Carers of Elderly Relatives. Lorna and Devila tells us about how they manage their caring responsibilities alongside their careers including the challenges, routines and positive advice they have for others who may be in a similar position.

[Trigger warning]. In this episode, we hear from independent health visitor and birth trauma specialist Liz Poole about the different types of trauma people may experience around birth, how this trauma can manifest itself if the associated emotions are not fully processed and how colleagues and friends can support those we suspect might be suffering.

Support can be sought from: 

Cityparents’ Anna Richards talks to Joy Burnford, Founder of My Confidence Matters about progress in gender balance in the workplace, the main issues she sees for women at work today and how corporates and leaders can help to address them.