Tiny Chair Podcast

Greg Bottrill is the founder of Can I Go and Play Now?, offering training for Early Years settings and schools, so that “the magic of children can really shine”. He’s also an award-winning author, a speaker, and a passionate advocate for play. He's behind approaches like Adventure Island and Drawing Club, and is also the creator of Play school TV, creating characters like “Zoomer the Number Dog," "Bob The Brick," "the Magic Mustard Tin," and "Tiny Ted”. He is a former Early Years Lead and Assistant Headteacher, but now works with a variety of settings to support educators to deliver magical and inspiring play experiences. As Greg says, “Education should be an adventure.”

Tamsin is an early childhood and early education specialist, a trainer and consultant, and Principal Lecturer in Early Years at Norland College. She is the Early Years Education Director at Linden Learning, and an Early Education Associate. She’s a speaker, a writer, and an advocate of Loving Pedagogy.

Trisha Lee is the founder and artistic director of Make Believe Arts, a theatre and education company, and the charity behind Helicopter Stories. Trisha created MakeBelieve Arts in 2002, based on the idea that “story has the power to change lives”. She is a writer, a speaker, a trainer, and is a trained secondary school drama teacher although now the children she works with are mostly in the Early Years. Tricia achieved a Master’s in Writing for Young Children (you can find her books on her website) and has now worked in the Early Years sector for 24 years.

Trishas Youtube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/ ⁨@TheListeningClassroom⁩

Ben Kingston-Hughes, is the director of Inspired Children, and has over 30 years of experience working with young people. He is a trainer, speaker, and author, and has written everything from books to strategies for Local Authorities to articles for Nursery World. He is the winner of the 2019 National Playwork Awards Training Award and was a finalist for the Nursery World Trainer of the Year in 2020. His latest book "Why Children Need Joy" was also a finalist for the Nursery World Best Professional Book award in 2024.

Ben's Email:
[email protected]

Ben's books:
A Very Unusual Journey Into Play
Why Children Need Joy: The Fundamental Truth about Childhood

Brett Wigdortz OBE is the co-founder and CEO of Tiney, the biggest childminder agency in England. He is also the founder and former CEO of Teach First, a charity that works to address educational disadvantage by placing graduates in low-income schools. Brett is the Co-Founder of Teach For All and the Fair Education Alliance and received his OBE for services to education in 2013. He says that his lifelong mission is to help every child access an excellent education.