Listen "The Hannah & Lucy Show | The Importance of Teacher Wellbeing"
Episode Synopsis
This week, Hannah Wilson and Lucy Neuberger tackle one of the biggest issues in education, the myth of teacher wellbeing. In classic fashion they ask why wellbeing in schools so often misses the mark and what real care for staff should look like. 🌟 Lighting Up & Lifting OffHannah has a new ring light. Lucy gets a “Croydon facelift”. Then there’s tales of CrossFit mishaps. Yet amid the laughs, they reveal how exhaustion is setting in across the profession. Half-term can’t come soon enough. Lucy reflects on the intensity of teaching four-year-olds and the UK’s unusually early start to formal schooling compared with Europe. Respect for EYFS teachers, she says, has never been higher. 🧘♀️ Wellbeing: Beyond Fruit Bowls & YogaHannah shares news of filming a new High Performance Foundation podcast with wellbeing expert Ollie Patrick and Education Matters host Shaniqua. The aim: to shift staff wellbeing from token gestures to genuine change. Hannah recalls being a school wellbeing lead and how Ofsted once remembered her school purely for her surfing-related broken foot. It’s a perfect metaphor for the problem - wellbeing that hurts more than it helps.Both rail against “tick-box wellbeing” - cold chips at parents’ evening, positive-affirmation posters and breakfast biscuits passed off as dinner. True wellbeing, they argue, means thoughtful planning, balanced workloads, compassion from leaders and trust in teachers’ professionalism and far less in slogans, sports or stale snacks. 💬 The Courage to Call It OutLucy confesses she’s reached the stage of her career where she’ll politely but firmly say when something is “rubbish”. Teachers, she says, shouldn’t have to suffer in silence for fear of being labelled difficult. Hannah agrees, adding that wellbeing must be modelled from the top. Leaders who put oxygen masks on themselves before expecting staff to keep going. It’s about honesty, humanity and sustainability, not performative positivity. 💔 Hannah’s Story: When School Was a LifelineIn a powerful moment, Hannah shares how teaching became her refuge during a period of domestic abuse. Work, she says, was her safe space, the structure that kept her going. Yet she also describes how a lack of compassion from senior staff eventually drove her to leave. It’s a reminder that teachers carry invisible burdens and that empathy and understanding from leaders are vital. She quotes Sarah Garner (CEO, Unity Schools Partnership): “Everyone is fighting a battle you can’t see.” 🕰️ Deadlines, Workload & The ADHD TeacherThe duo dig into report deadlines, unrealistic expectations and why many teachers thrive only under last-minute panic. They joke about ADHD brain wiring but insist that leadership must accommodate neurodiverse working styles. Lucy calls for schools to plan calendars collaboratively, ensuring reports, parents’ evenings and mocks don’t collide. It’s not laziness, she says, it’s about design and foresight. 🧠 Real Wellbeing CPDBoth argue that schools should teach how to rest, manage stress, eat, sleep and prioritise. Hannah champions CPD focused on self-care, drawing on James Clear’s Atomic Habits and productivity strategies like Grace Beverley’s planners. They discuss energy, nutrition and the science of sleep, even the benefits of turmeric shots and vitamin D. Their message: healthy staff make healthy schools. 😀 Compassion, Kindness & Practical FixesThe show ends with laughter and sincerity: free flu jabs for teachers, vitamin D for the winter months and a headteacher pushing tea around on a trolley. Real wellbeing is small kindnesses that say “we see you”. Lucy’s final note: “Sometimes good enough is good enough.” 💬 Takeaway:Teacher wellbeing isn’t about fruit, yoga or buzzwords. It’s about time, trust and compassion, creating schools where staff feel safe, supported and human.Follow us, we're worth it:🔗 Website🔗 Spotify🔗 Instagram🔗 Bluesky🔗 X (Twitter)
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