In this episode, our Play Pedagogy Award Officer, Fiona Kirkland speaks to Leanne Sweaton.

Leanne is the Principal Teacher in Woodmill and Dunfermline Cluster in Fife supporting schools to close the poverty related attainment gap. She has been teaching for 25 years and began her play journey began back in 2016. Since then, she has revolutionised her practice and have never looked back. She runs the popular Facebook page 'The Play Piece'. Her work has been spotlighted by HMiE and Education Scotland and she has spoken nationally on this topic.

In this episode, our former CEO Marguerite Hunter Blair speaks to Paul Hoenigmann, Managing Director of Inclusive Play.

Paul is passionate about widening access to the physical, social, and cognitive development for all children through expanding the provision of welcoming and accessible outdoor play spaces. Our UK-made inclusive equipment supports communities create safe, engaging environments where every child can play, learn, and thrive—regardless of ability.

Find out more about inclusive play on our website: https://www.playscotland.org/playful-communities/inclusive-play-design-3/

In this podcast episode, we hear from Dr. Mike Wragg and his research on play in care homes.

Dr Mike Wragg is a Senior Lecturer on the Childhood Development & Playwork BA (Hons) course at Leeds Beckett University.  Mike is Chair of Trustees of Play Bradford, a local play development charity that he founded in 2004, and which incorporates the Big Swing adventure playground.  Mike's current research is focussed on the practice of playwork in care homes with people living with dementia, which he's presenting at the 2004 UK Dementia Congress. 

In this episode of the podcast, we hear from Dr. Lorna Arnott and her research on lived experiences of children's play, specifically in technology and digital play before the age of 5.

Lorna Arnott is a Reader of Early Childhood Education and former Director of Early Years at the University of Strathclyde. Her work sits close to practice around three inter-related themes: children’s lifeworlds and experiences in early childhood settings and home cultures; pedagogic innovation in Early Childhood Education; and children’s digital play.  The first two themes are brought together in her conceptualization of how the dynamics of context shape children’s experiences (see selected publications: Pedagogic Cultures). Dr Arnott’s high standing in this field led to her inclusion in the Scottish Government Strategic Approach to Participation, serving on the Children’s Rights and Participation Team. Dr Arnott is an internationally recognized expert in children’s digital play, as evidenced in her role as editor of the 2017 SAGE book Digital Technologies and Learning in the Early Years and co-editor of three special issues on this topic in the British Journal of Educational Technology, Global Studies of Childhood and The European Early Childhood Educational Research Journal. She is founder and co-convener of the EECERA Digital Childhoods, STEM and Multimodality Special Interest Group.  She is Deputy Editor for the International Journal of Early Years Education and Assistant Editor for the Journal of Early Childhood Research.  Methodologically, Dr Arnott specializes in children’s voice and creative methods for children’s participation and has co-edited two books aimed at both research and practice audiences: Research Through Play: Participatory Methods in Early Childhood (SAGE, 2021) and Theory and Practice of Voice: A Guide for the Early Years (Routledge, 2022). Underpinning all of this work is an interest in children’s experiences of learning through play.

Karen is the leading expert in playwork qualifications in Scotland. She is the curriculum manager at Glasgow Clyde College for Playwork, Childhood Practice, Additional Support Needs, Social Services, and Early Learning and Childcare. She is a qualified primary teacher and she recently completed a Masters in Education where her research focused on play deprivation. 

Dr Sarah Goldsmith has been a playworker and playwork trainer for over twenty years, after finishing a degree in Playwork. Sarah has worked in out of school clubs, adventure playgrounds and as a play ranger. The experience Sarah gained as a playworker led her to a PhD that explored children's experiences of toys and gender from a playwork perspective. Currently, Sarah works part time at Thrive Outdoors, researching children's opportunities for outdoor play in Glasgow, as well as working part time as a Childhood Practice lecture at West College Scotland. Sarah is also Chair of the International Play Association (IPA) Scotland.

Dr Stephanie Chambers is a Senior Lecturer in the Sociology of Health and Wellbeing at the University of Glasgow. She leads a masters programme in Global Health and teaches on health inequalities and programme design and evaluation. Stephanie’s research focuses on children and young people’s health and wellbeing. She is particularly interested in the ways in which intergenerational programmes might bring wellbeing benefit to both children and older adults.

Give Them Time is a grassroots movement which evolved in 2018 from parents across Scotland sharing their own, often difficult, experiences of applying for a further year of nursery funding for their child.

Their campaign has been successful in changing the law so that all children with a legal right to defer their p1 start (those not age 5 by the school start date) from Aug 2023 to Aug 2024 and every year thereafter, are now automatically entitled to a further year of nursery (Early Learning and Childcare – ELC) funding. This means it is no longer up to councils to decide whether to fund this or not for mid-August to 31st Dec born children (Jan and Feb borns have had an automatic entitlement to this funding since 2000).

They have created a two page information leaflet as a resource for parents, carers, ELC staff, health visitors, primary school teachers and anyone else with an interest in primary one deferral rights in Scotland.

Virginia Radcliffe is the Artistic Director & CEO of Licketyspit, a theatre and play charity focused on early years children and families.

After graduating in Drama & English Virginia became an actor. In her 30's, on becoming a mother, she developed her fascination for the early years, which flourished on moving to Scotland in 2000 to become Director of Scotland's first dedicated early years theatre programme at Wee Stories. In 2004 this became Licketyspit. Virginia has written and directed 7 successful touring plays, teaching resources and children's books.

In 2008 she led the development of LicketyLeap - a groundbreaking immersive theatre as early intervention. This defined the role of the actor-pedagogue and the children's rights-led Storyplay approach and methodology that now underpins Licketyspit's repertoire of participatory drama-led projects for children and families in areas of high poverty.

Virginia is passionate about equality, children's rights, the early years, the way Storyplay can support children to prompt families and communities to relax and appreciate each other and remind us what matters. She seeks to share Storyplay as a trauma-informed practice that can open doors to imaginary playworlds and unlock the limitless possibilities of children.

You can find our more about Virginia's work at www.Licketyspit.com 

• Big Porridge & Play Glasgow - 5min promo; 20min documentary
• Happening Now
• Porridge & Play Hubs - New Scot Integration Project'22 – 5min promo; 20min documentary
• Stories of Resilience Film 4min film showing online Storyplay with refugee families in Pandemic.
• Have Your Say Through Play Film demonstration and child consultation reports.

·         Children’s Rights approach ·     

    Children & Families Network

• Family Art Voyage – Webpage with blogs/pics about project with range of artists selected by children to lead workshops in their own practice within the Storyplay framework.

Amy Woodhouse is the Chief Executive Officer of Parenting across Scotland - speaking up for and with parents and families in Scotland. Prior to this role, she was Head of Policy, Projects and Participation for Children in Scotland, a position she held for eight years. 

Earlier in her career she worked as a researcher in the mental health sector and has a particular interest in how music, and the arts more widely, can be used to promote mental health and well-being. She is currently a Board Member of Scottish Ensemble, a pioneering collective of outstanding musicians.

Amy recently participated in a Churchill Fellowship research project that looked at Increasing Children and Young People’s Access to Hobbies and Leisure Activities (churchillfellowship.org). Her fellowship focused on national approaches to improving children and young peoples’ access to hobbies, learning from the experiences of Finland and Iceland. In her own spare time she is a tap-dancer, sometime painter, terrible but enthusiastic guitar player and lover of long-distance walks.

The Opentree Foundation (Project: Toybank — Development Through Play) Toybank — Development Through Play is the flagship project of Mumbai-based non-profit The Opentree Foundation, which was founded in 2004. Toybank creates safe spaces for at-risk children with a focus of mainstreaming play-based learning in India. We adopt a Conscious Play™ approach to enable children from vulnerable communities to alleviate stress, build resilience and overcome probable adversity. Through the Conscious Play™ approach, the programmes focus on children's critical thinking, communication, and socio-emotional learning. We set up play centres in partnership with Nonprofit Organisations, Community-Based Organisations, government and low-income semi-government schools, and government and non-government CICs (Child in Institutional Care). Through advocating for the Right to Play, we aim to bring about a change at the policy level to make Play an integral part of children’s learning. Currently, Toybank works with 77,000+ children, across 623 play centres in seven districts of Maharashtra, India. 

Shweta Chari
Co-founder and CEO, Toybank — Development Through Play
Shweta has been a champion of children’s Right to Play for over two decades and has been working towards mainstreaming play and play-based learning in India. A creative facilitator, Shweta is an engineer by education. She was selected for the Harvard Business School — Strategic Nonprofit Management — India programme with a full scholarship. She has won prestigious accolades for spearheading Toybank in its efforts to bridge the gap between the developmental needs of at-risk children and their emotional well-being and cognitive development through Play. With The Opentree Foundation, Shweta has brought together a team of passionate changemakers and subject matter experts who have helped make learning a joyful and fun experience for underserved children.

Pete Moorhouse is an early years creative consultant, researcher, author and artist educator based in the UK.  He is an associate trainer for Early Education delivering training nationally and overseas and is also a Froebel Tutor for the Froebel Trust. His work in school is centred around nurturing children's creativity inspired by Froebelian principles and the approach in Reggio Emilia. Pete is a leading authority on woodwork in Early Years education and has written several books and journal articles, including ‘Learning Through Woodwork’ (Routledge) as well as books on outdoor learning. He is currently working on his latest book – ‘Creativity in Practice: Nurturing creative and critical thinking in early childhood education’. He was awarded an honorary research fellowship from the University of Bristol and is currently researching creative progression in early education. Pete was also awarded a Churchill Fellowship to undertake international research into best woodworking practices in education. Pete won the national award (2019) from the Creative Learning Guild for his work promoting creativity in education and is Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. 

Yvonne Young is an Early Years Officer with West Lothian Council. Her ‘Wonderful woodworking’ journey began three years ago whilst completing the Froebel in Childhood Practice course with the University of Edinburgh, sparking her interest in play through a Froebelian lens. Her project has since sparked an initiative linking West Lothian College and West Lothian STEM to offer woodworking opportunities within primary one classes, with 50 teachers embracing this. After completing CPD training with Pete Moorhouse, he awarded her the first-ever Big Bang Woodwork Award last April to celebrate her achievements in embedding woodworking across her previous ElC and School community. She continues to promote the idea that every day can be a wonderful woodworking day! 

Catch up with Yvonne, Pete and Fiona in this latest episode.

In this episode, our former CEO Marguerite Hunter Blair speaks to Dr William Bird MBE.

Dr William Bird MBE is passionate about getting people active. As a family GP in the 1990s, he pioneered the concept of social prescribing by setting up the first Health Walk scheme. William is an advisor to the World Health Organisation, the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities and Sport England. He is an Honorary Professor at the University of Exeter and the Chair of Active Essex, the Active Partnership for Essex. In 2010, he set up Intelligent Health, an organisation that has a mission to build healthier, active and more connected communities with 2 million participants worldwide.

Dr Naomi Lott is the John Fell Research Fellow, at the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights, where she is Co-Investigator on the project ‘Developing a Framework for Implementing the Right to Play’. Naomi is also a Lecturer in Law at UCL.

Naomi has recently completed her ESRC Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Oxford, Faculty of Law, where she was Principal-Investigator on the project ‘Advancing the Development and Application of the Right to Play’. Naomi completed a PhD at the University of Nottingham on the child's right to play (Article 31, UNCRC), examining the right from conception through to implementation. This research has recently been published in 'The Right of the Child to Play: From Conception to Implementation' (Routledge, 2023).

Naomi holds a LLM in Human Rights Law and a Masters in Socio-Legal Research Methods from the University of Nottingham, and a degree in International Politics from Aberystwyth University. Naomi has conducted research for/funded by the United Nations University, Delta 8.7, the Rights Lab at the University of Nottingham,the ERC, the Walk Free Foundation, and the ILO and IOM.

Here, she speaks with Play Scotland's Chief Executive, Marguerite Hunter Blair, and our Director of Projects, Cherie Morgan, about the Child's right to play.

The Right of the Child to Play: From Conception to Implementation - 1s (routledge.com)

Delta 8.7 | United Nations University (unu.edu)

Winning research proposals: 16 Junior Researchers Awarded Fellowships and Seed Grants (ilo.org)

NB: Due to poor internet connection, this episode has some glitching. We have edited this where possible. Thank you for listening!

This month we celebrate 35 years of Care and Learning Alliance in the Highlands! We speak with the Chief Executive, Jaci Douglas and the Head of Quality, Learning and Workforce Development, Corrina Shearer about all things CALA and play.

Care and Learning Alliance (CALA)

Mick Conway started his playwork career on Bermondsey adventure playground in 1978. He went on to become Director of Hackney Play Association where he was a founder of Playday, created the Quality in Play system and was a consultant on development of the Playwork Principles. He helped set up London Play and Play England and ended up back where he started, working on adventure playgrounds in Islington for a change. These days he’s kept busy by three grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

This month on The Playwell Podcast we will be discussing childrens use of video games, and how they impact and interact with childrens play.

To explore this, we will hear from Andy Roberston. Andy is a gaming journalist who wrote the book 'Taming Gaming', and runs a family gaming database. He has written for The Guardian, Forbes, and appears on BBC TV.

Listen to hear our Project Support Intern, Christopher Drewery catching up with Andy.

In this episode, we will look at Play in Museums.

To explore this we will hear from Lauren Henning and Loretta Mordi.

Lauren Henning is the Learning and Museum Manager at the Tall Ship Glenlee in Glasgow. From West Lothian forests, onboard Glaswegian ships to Orcadian galleries, Lauren has worked in cultural and heritage organisations the length and breadth of Scotland and joined the Glenlee team in March 2021. Lauren believes passionately in the importance of play within heritage spaces and that museum and learning departments need to work together to remain forward-thinking and relevant to their communities.

Loretta Mordi is the Museum Development Manager – Learning and Engagement, at Museums Galleries Scotland (MGS), the national development body for museums and galleries in Scotland. She has a passion for education, learning, culture, equality, diversity, inclusion, and social justice. Her role at MGS includes driving strategic learning and engagement by supporting the sector to deliver Scotland’s Museums and Galleries Strategy and Scottish Government National Priorities. She provides a proactive interface with museums and galleries on key strategic learning and engagement projects to build a sustainable sector relevant to schools and their communities and to improve quality of services. She convenes the MGS Strategic Learning Forum and is keen on the social impact of museum and heritage learning and health and well-being.

Here is our Play Pedagogy Office, Fiona Kirkland, catching up with Loreen and Lauren.

In this episode, we will look at Dungeons & Dragons at school, in primary and secondary.

To explore this we will hear from Debs Barrie & Andrew Hay.

Andrew Hay is the Principal Teacher of Technologies at Newbattle High School where he runs a Dungeons and Dragons club. He supports the 66th Edinburgh Boys' Brigade company as Captain and Games master of the Dungeons and Dragons games they play for fun. He is passionate about supporting young people to develop creativity and problem solving skills to support them as a teenager but also give them the skills to apply in adult life.

Debs Barrie has been a primary teacher for 15 years and has been playing dnd since the launch of 5e. She feels lucky to still play with her original group in which there are two fabulous DMs. They made the game so much fun that she started a school D&D club in 2018. She continued throughout lockdown and until the children went to high school and joined, or formed, clubs there. While she continues to run games for upper primary children, more recently she has introduced D&D to primary 1 children, simplifying and adapting it to suit younger players.

Here is our Learning & Development Officer Jenny Lester catching up with Debs & Andrew.

This is a takeover episode!

Play Scotland recently attended the International Play Association Conference in Glasgow. This episode of our podcast is made up of are reflections from this conference.

PEEK (Possibilities for Each and Every Kid) seeks to support children, young people and families in Glasgow by raising their hopes and aspirations, achieve goals and work towards increasing their expectations for life. Young people from PEEK attended the conference and interviewed participants with questions they designed themselves.

Find out more about the conference: https://www.ipaglasgow2023.org/
Find out more about IPA: https://ipaworld.org/

This is a takeover episode!

Play Scotland recently attended the International Play Association Conference in Glasgow. The next few episodes of our podcast are reflections from this conference.

The Aileymillers are a group of children who shared their thoughts about play linked to the conference themes, whilst engaged in play as a strand of children’s participation in the 2023 IPA conference. They attended the conference and interviews participants with questions they designed themselves.

Find out more about the conference: https://www.ipaglasgow2023.org/
Find out more about IPA: https://ipaworld.org/

This is a takeover episode!

Play Scotland recently attended the International Play Association Conference in Glasgow. The next few episodes of our podcast are reflections from this conference.

In this episode, Tam Baillie poses questions from children around the world to Philip Jaffé.

Prof. Philip D. Jaffé is a professor at the University of Geneva, Switzerland, and the founding director of its Centre for Children’s Rights Studies. He is a member of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and currently serves as its Vice-Chair. A clinical and a forensic psychologist trained in Switzerland and in the USA, for many years, his somewhat eclectic academic and professional activities have focused on children's rights, and more specifically child protection and child participation. Still a practising licensed psychotherapist and a court-appointed expert witness, he has also conducted clinical and training consultancies for a wide range of humanitarian organizations, both governmental and non-governmental. Beyond the traditional "teach, research, publish or perish missions" required by a leading university, his vision of academic life is to branch out in the community at large as a science practitioner and educator.

Tam Baillie is a Scottish youth worker and policy manager who served as Scotland's Commissioner for Children and Young People between 2009–2017. He was the chair of the conference organising committee for the International Play Association Conference 2023.

Find out more about the conference: https://www.ipaglasgow2023.org/
Find out more about IPA: https://ipaworld.org/

In this episode, we will look at play and screen time.

To explore this we will hear from Dr Aaron Balick.
Aaron is a psychotherapist, author and psychological consultant with a special interest in the psychology of technology. He is the author of the children’s self-help book, Keep Your Cool.

Here is our Learning & Development Officer Jenny Lester catching up with Aaron.

Click here to read the IPA briefing on screen time here or click here to find offline play ideas here.

On this epsiode, our Play Pedagogy Award Officer, Fiona Kirkland, speaks to Rebecca Wilkinson-Quinn, Clinical Lead for Scotland, Place2Be.

Becky is a qualified Art Psychotherapist and Clinical Supervisor. Becky comes from a Fine Arts background, working as an exhibiting artist, FE teaching and community settings. Becky has predominantly worked therapeutically with CYP, their families and teachers in schools, but has also lectured and worked with adults with a variety of presenting issues.  
 
Becky began working with Place2Be 19 years ago, initially as a volunteer on placement. Becky has worked in a variety of roles at Place2Be and is now the Clinical Lead, for Scotland and is responsible for the clinical quality of the work. Having experience of the lasting difference that can be made in schools and communities from the ground up, Becky is hugely passionate about early intervention and the impact Place2Be’s work has.

In this episode, we will look at playtime at school.

To explore this we will hear from Michael Follet.
Michael is the founder and director of OPAL - Outdoor Play and Learning. A school improvement initiative which works across the UK and beyond. He has a wealth of experience as a playworker, teacher and school improvement officer. He is the author of ‘Creating Excellence in Primary School Playtimes’.

To find out more about the OPAL programme in Scotland please visit our website https://www.playscotland.org/projects/opal/

In this episode, we will look at play in hospitals.

To explore this we will hear from Teri Wright and Margaret McEwan.

Teri is a Health Play Specialist at Glasgow Children's Hospital. She was recently nominated for the Children’s Health Scotland Awards for her work.

Margaret has been the Play Services Co-ordinator at the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People since 2017. For her work supporting children through treatments she won the the NHs Lothian Health Hero.

To find out more about play in hospitals you can visit:
https://www.whatwhychildreninhospital.org.uk/
https://rhc.nhsggc.org.uk/home/coming-into-rhc-glasgow/directory-of-services/play-in-hospital/
https://www.glasgowchildrenshospitalcharity.org/support-us/appeals/46-support-our-play-service
https://children.nhslothian.scot/parents-and-carers/play-service/
https://children.nhslothian.scot/children/play/

In this episode, we will be looking at children playing out in the local area.
To explore this we will be speaking to Ingrid Skeels and Cherie Morgan.

Ingrid is the Co-Director of Playing Out. Playing Out is a national organisation and movement for long-term change, supporting children’s right to play outside on their streets and in their local area. She is passionate about the importance of freedom and creativity in play for children.

Cherie Morgan is the head of Projects at Play Scotland. Her role is to work with partners to develop and lead projects that will improve children’s opportunities for play in their local community, with a focus on co-creation and action research. She led on the creation of the Playful Streets Resource, which supports communities to improve play opportunities their spaces in a number of ways.

Find out more about Playful Streets here: https://www.playscotland.org/get-involved/communities/

Find out more about Playing Out here: https://playingout.net/

In this episode, we will be discussing how practitioners can support parents to discover the power of play and encourage play at home.

To discuss this we will hear from Evie Keough. Evie is the founder and CEO of Boromi – a play libraries charity. Evie has taught in primary schools from rural Dumfriesshire to central London, where she developed the idea for borrow boxes of toys for home play. She then won the 2017 Teach First Innovation Award and has been growing Boromi ever since. She is passionate about improving opportunities in the early years to improve future life outcomes.

Find out more about Boromi here: https://www.boromi.co.uk/

In this episode, we will discuss play in Cultural Heritage Settings.

To explore this we will hear from Russell Clegg. Russell is a project worker at the Living Memory Association. He previously worked as a primary school teacher and has a wealth of experience in engagement in heritage sites.



Find out more here: https://www.livingmemory.org.uk/

In this episode, we will discuss play in the Health and Social Care Standards, UNCRC incorporation, and the Promise.

To explore this we will hear from Henry Mathias. Henry is the Strategic Lead - Standards for Health and Social Care at the Care Inspectorate. Henry played a key role in ensuring a child’s right to play has statutory backing in Scotland through the development of the Health and Social Care Standards.

Find out more about the Health and Social Care Standards here: https://www.careinspectorate.com/index.php/new-standards-and-inspections

In this episode, we will discuss play and poetry.

To explore this, our Learning & Development Officer, Jenny Lester, catches up with Joseph Coelho. Joseph is a British poet and children's book author who was elected Children's Laureate in 2022. He has dedicated his career to making poetry accessible to all, with a focus on children and young people.

To find out more about his work and his upcoming projects, check out his website https://www.thepoetryofjosephcoelho.com/

In this episode, we will discuss play for D/deaf children.

To explore this, our Learning & Development Officer, Jenny Lester, catches up with Faith Robyn from the National Deaf Children’s Society.

Faith is the Bright Start Development Manager at the National Deaf Children’s Society, working to support deaf children, their families and their practitioners in the early years. As a deaf adult, Faith has also worked in the Early Years sector for 18 years, managing Ofsted Outstanding settings and coordinating and delivering Local Authority training for early years providers.

Find out more about support D/deaf children please see the links below.
Together We Can- series of 4 live webinars on a range of different early years, deaf-specific topics https://www.ndcs.org.uk/our-services/services-for-professionals/online-information-sessions-for-professionals/a-bright-start-for-every-deaf-child/#Deaf

Online Early Years Networking Groups where you can:
- receive training, expert advice, practical tips and resources
- meet and exchange ideas with practitioners working in similar roles
- develop your practice to plan and provide for deaf children who attend your setting, or may do so in future.
https://www.ndcs.org.uk/our-services/services-for-professionals/early-years-networking-groups/

If you have any feedback or suggestions for future episodes please email jennylester@playscotland.org

In this episode, we will discuss playful transitions from nursery to primary one.

To explore this, our Learning & Development Officer, Jenny Lester, catches up with Fiona Thomson from Twinkl.

Fiona is the Early Learning and Childcare Segment Manager for Twinkl Scotland. She previously worked in a private nursery for 3 years and a local authority setting for 5 years, gaining both an SVQ 3 and degree in Childhood Practice whilst working full time.

Find out more about play and learning here: https://www.playscotland.org/play/playful-learning/

If you have any feedback or suggestions for future episodes please email jennylester@playscotland.org

In this episode, we will discuss risky play.

To explore this, our Cheif Executive Marguerite Hunter Blair catches up with Tim Gill.

Tim Gill is an independent scholar, writer and consultant on childhood, and a global advocate for children’s play and mobility. Tim is a global leader of the movement for a balanced, thoughtful approach to risk in childhood. He is one of the architects of risk benefit assessment and the Chair of the UK Play Safety Forum.

Find more information about risky play here: https://www.playscotland.org/play/playful-learning/managing-risk-play-provision/

We hope you enjoy this episode!

If you have any feedback or suggestions for future episodes please email jennylester@playscotland.org

In this episode, we speak to Julia Jane Gladwin.

JJ is a garden designer with 30 years of experience in horticulture. She founded Go Flourish, a charity whose aim is to reconnect children to nature. Go Flourish put well-designed gardens into schools. The project uses a Liaison Teacher and the gardens to give real world context to curriculum learning. Partnering with St Andrew’s University to measure outcomes, Go Flourish aim to provide a cost-effective mechanism for national roll-out and demonstrate that mental health and learning outcomes are improved.

In this episode, we will look at autism and play.

To explore this our Learning & Development Officer Jenny Lester catches up with Dr Robert Grant.

Dr.Grant is a licensed Professional Counselor, National Certified Counselor, and Registered Play Therapist Supervisor. He is the creator of AutPlay® Therapy which is an integrative family play therapy approach. He is also currently serving as the chair on the board of directors for the Association for Play Therapy.

In this episode, we will look at youth work and play.

To explore this our Director Marguerite Hunter Blair speaks to Kevin Kane, Policy and Research Manager at Youth Link Scotland.

Kevin leads the development of youth work policy impacting on young people’s lives, investigating and responding to current and emerging policy and legislative issues affecting young people and the youth work sector. He is leading on co-developing and producing the new National Youth Work Strategy (20-25) and implementation plan, alongside strategic partners, The Scottish Government and Education Scotland.

In this episode, we will look at partnership working to plan for play at local authority level.

To explore this our Head of Projects, Cherie Morgan, caught up with Audrey White from Dundee City council.

Audrey is the Education Support Officer for the Children and Families Service, Dundee City Council. She has a degree in physical education and she is passionate about improving the health and wellbeing of children and young people, particularly relating how play, physical activity and enjoying the outdoors; supporting children and young people to make healthy choices relating to food and drink.

You can find out more about how to plan for play at local authority level here: https://www.playscotland.org/play/playful-communities/

In this episode, we will look at how to engage children and young people in planning. This is the perfect place to start if you are looking to engage with children and young people on the NPF4 (Draft), or on an Open Place Plan or Play Sufficiency Assessment.

To explore this, our Learning and Development Officer Jenny Lester catches up with Dr. Jenny Wood from a Place in Childhood. Jenny is a trained town planner who completed a PhD on children’s human rights and the Scottish town planning system. She now works to enable young citizens to participate meaningfully in improving the environments and services which affect them.

In this episode, we will look at play, sport, and physical activity, and how play can be used to lead to better outcomes for all children.

To explore this, our Head of Projects Cherie Morgan catches up with Active Nation Commissioner for Scotland Lee Craigie, and Thrive Outdoors Fund Manager from Inspiring Scotland Melodie Crumlin.

In this episode, we will look at play and gender equality, and how play can be used to lead to better outcomes for all children.

To explore this, our Learning and Development Officer Jenny Lester catches up with Joanna Zawadzka from Zero Tolerance and Susie Heywood from the Gender Equal Nurseries Project in NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde.

In this episode, we will look at play and mental health, and how play can be used to lead to better outcomes for all children.

To explore this our Director Marguerite Hunter Blair speaks to Professor Helen Dodd.

In this episode, we will look at poverty as a barrier to play, play as a social justice issue, and how play can be used to lead to better outcomes for all children.

To explore this our Director Marguerite Hunter Blair speaks to Professor John McKendrick.

In this episode, we will look at how play can be used to support active travel and lead to better outcomes for all children.

To explore this we will be hearing from Naomi Wright from the Art and Energy Collective, Robyn Warburton from Paths for All, and Emily Ryder from Play Together On Pedals.

In this episode, we are looking at how play supports families to get out and be active, and also how more broadly it supports relationships between the children and families and also in providing a support network of peers.

We will be chatting to Jane Brompton, Chief Executive of Early Years Scotland, Clare Haughey MSP, Minister for Children and Young People, and Charlotte Bowes, an Early Years teacher and Play Champion from Edinburgh.

In this month's episode, we speak to Dannielle Don, a Youth Development Worker at The MAXwell Centre in Dundee.

About Dannielle
My journey started in 2014 during a placement with Barnardo’s Growing Up Project, where I was introduced to The MAXwell Centre. That’s where I discovered my unexpected love for gardening, and it quickly blossomed into something more. I volunteered with the very first Garden Club and soon after joined the team in a professional role. Now, I work supporting local primary schools and nurseries, helping children plan, plant, and maintain their garden plots. Afternoons are a lively mix of After School Clubs, Youth Cooking Groups, and the Maxwell Youth Council (MYC), with a Garden Club during school holidays - everything we do is focused on building confidence, skills, and community in a fun, hands-on environment.I believe in the power of nature, food, and creativity to inspire young people, and I feel incredibly lucky to do what I love every day.

On this episode of the podcast, we speak to Niki Buchan about play in nature.

Niki has 40 years’ experience in Early Education, works internationally as a conference keynote speaker, nature pedagogue, trainer, and award-winning author. She is a strong advocate for children’s right to a quality childhood, including the right to regular play and access to nature. She is the author of ‘Children in Wild Nature’, ‘A Practical Approach to Nature-based Practice’, co-author of STEM Detectives and author of ‘But I Want to be Good’.  

Nurture Nature Conferences
How outdoor play in natural environments, guided by nurturing adults, can transform children’s wellbeing. Expect an inspiring and practical experience that will equip you with tools to improve children’s wellbeing, behaviour, and resilience through outdoor play. 
Perth - Saturday, 24 May 2025 
Aberdeen - Saturday, 31 May 2025 
Bathgate - Saturday, 28 June 2025 
https://salugen.uk/shop/  

On this episode of the podcast, we speak to Angelica Celinska about working in early years childcare.

Angelica is an early childhood advocate, lecturer and founder of The Voice of Early Childhood (TVOEC). Angelica is working on giving the early childhood sector a voice through TVOEC by encouraging shared reflection, dialogue, collaboration and healthy debate. Angelica’s areas of expertise are community building, networking, career progression and bridging the gap between academia and practice. She has worked in practice across various settings and in different roles, before moving into content creation aimed at enhancing training and development for both educators and parents across the globe. This has involved working in publishing, training, academia, events and resourcing learning environments.

http://www.thevoiceofearlychildhood.com/

On this episode of the podcast, we speak to Suzanne Scott and Rodney Mountain who have been creating nature trails across Scotland to encourage families to get out and explore. 

"I'm enthusiastic about promoting playful curiosity, wellbeing and outdoor exploration through art and community. I partnered with Rodney Mountain, the creator of ‘Brambles and Brumbles’ concept of intergenerational togetherness. He is a champion of bringing people together and he is passionate about the value of bringing art and design into healthcare. Together we created an inspiring, magical trail of inclusivity, togetherness, nature based wellbeing and outdoor adventuring."

The trail is housed at Dundee Botanic Garden, with one day pop up trails at Scone Palace, Dens Road Primary School, Creative Dundee and the Maxwell Centre (Community Centre and Garden).

In this episode, we hear from Dr. Dan Wuori about his work in early years education.

Dan Wuori is the Founder and President of Early Childhood Policy Solutions and Strategic Advisor on Early Childhood at the Saul Zaentz Charitable Foundation. Dr Wuori is a former kindergarten teacher and school district administrator. 

Working as the Deputy Director of South Carolina First Steps to School Readiness he developed significant, bipartisan support for early childhood education, including the creation of statewide program accountability standards, and the expansion of evidence-based home visiting programs.  

Dr. Wuori holds a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism, a Master of Arts in Teaching, and a Ph.D. in early childhood education, all from the University of South Carolina. 

He speaks to a social media audience of a quarter of a million to share the powerful learning and development that happens in the early years. And in turn, uses this learning to influence national policy.