Teachers Talk Radio

Parents giving 'duvet days' to kids for mental health: Points of View

The panel (Liz Webb, Rae Whitehouse and Tom Rogers) discuss - Three-quarters of parents have allowed their child to stay at home and take a “duvet day” if they don’t want to attend school, according to a new survey. Seventy-five per cent of 2,000 parents surveyed said they have allowed their child not to go to school if they feel tired, emotional or not able to attend. Forty per cent of those surveyed said they had allowed “duvet days” to happen more than once. On average, parents reported letting their children take six days off during the past school year for these reasons, while 75 per cent of parents said their child’s behaviour improved after such absences. Ninety-seven per cent of surveyed parents said they believe their child’s mental health is just as important as academic success.

Teaching - Britain's most undervalued profession?: The Late Show with Sarah Wilkinson-Crute

Why are teachers leaving in record numbers? Why won’t new graduates join the profession? And has public respect for teachers hit an all-time low?
In this show, we explore the pressures, perceptions, and politics shaping modern teaching in the UK. From workload and behaviour to pay, status, and social expectations, we ask the big question: has Britain stopped valuing its teachers?
Featuring real voices from classrooms this is a conversation about the future of education — and the people holding it together.

In Defence of Webinars: The Saturday Breakfast Show with Darren Lester

While we may mourn the decline of conferences in fancy hotels with post lunches, Darren looks at the importance of webinars and considers why they have remained the default form of CPD post-pandemic.

The Mental Health Hour: The Twilight Show with Phin Adams

It's actually four weeks, not five, until the hols for most. How are you coping? We talk things to do to just keep going.

Surviving the Complaints Crisis: Practical Strategies for Teachers and Leaders: The Friday Morning Break Show with Carl Smith

Carl chats with expert on managing school complaints, Rachael Smith about what practical strategies schools can use when they feel overwhelmed by parental complaints. This show contains a number of fantastic practical strategies to help teachers and school leaders everywhere.

Decode and Conquer - Command Words Cracked: The Twilight Show with Louise Pickering

Louise Marie speaks to Joanne Crofts about how to boost cross-subject exam confidence in students by teaching an understanding of command words.

DfE introducing new 'enrichment benchmarks': Points of View

Tom Rogers, Liz Webb and Lucy Trimnell discuss how the DfE is introducing enrichment benchmarks to push schools to deliver more extracurricular clubs – but research shows that teachers are already working unpaid and out of hours to deliver such activities.

When Music Teaches - The Power of Songs in ESL Learning: The Saturday Lunch Show with Famida Choudhary

In this show, Host Famida Choudhary speaks with Sam Burns about how purposeful, well-designed songs can transform English learning. Sam shares how authentic lyrics, rhythm, and repetition can double teaching impact, make grammar stick, and boost confidence for both children and adult learners. A practical, insightful conversation packed with classroom tips, song writing secrets, and strategies teachers can use immediately. Tune in to discover how music can truly teach.

Is it time to hit the RESET?: The Twilight Show with Phin Adams

I literally had to reset doing this show. We talk being at a crossroads in education, finding light and balance. This is your mental health hour.

Industry in the classroom - how academia can collaborate with business in HE: The Twilight Show with Timea Kadar

In this Tuesday Twilight Show, Timea explores how business and academia can truly work together in higher education – not just in theory, but in day-to-day teaching and assessment. She’s joined by Mohammed Al-Jobori, lecturer and module leader in Business & Management, and business coach Bayo Igoh, who share concrete case studies where students co-create real business plans, run simulations, and even design live websites for small and medium-sized enterprises. They dig into the benefits for students (employability, soft skills, real portfolios), the gains for businesses, and the very real challenges around communication, motivation and assessment. The panel also considers where AI fits into this picture, and why closer collaboration, incubators, networking and shared spaces might be the future of higher education.
This show is brought to you in partnership with Hachette Learning and BETT Show 2026.