Mother of All Solutions

Special Episode - Baby Banks

In this special episode, Laura speaks with two fantastic women working to alleviate child poverty in the UK - Kelly Fort, Head of Operations at MammaKind (baby bank) and Sophia Parker, Director of Emerging Futures at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (social change organisation.) 

We talk about what baby banks are, the families using them and why, unfortunately, as Sophia tells us, "Baby banks are anticipating their busiest year yet." With huge cost of living rises on food and energy bills, insecure and low paid work, more and more families are in poverty and this has a massive impact on children and mums. 

I hope the conversation helps you better understand the situation many households are currently in. Kelly and Sophia also share some ideas on what we can do to help. 

If you think you might benefit from using a baby bank service, or would like to volunteer your time or gift a donation you can find one of the 150+ baby banks in the UK via this map: 

https://littlevillagehq.org/uk-baby-banks/

To read the Joseph Rowntree Foundation reports visit: 

https://www.jrf.org.uk/reports

 

To connect with the baby banks discussed: 

MammaKind Instagram @mamma_kind (also on Facebook or email info@mammakind.or.uk) 

Little Village Instagram @littlevillagehq

Sophia Parker Twitter @mssophiaparker

 

This special episode is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick with music by Ros Fraser. 

Thank you for listening and do share, rate, review and keep in touch...Mother of All Solutions @SolutionsMother

 

 

The Journalist

In this episode Laura interviews journalist Phillippa Guillou, presenter of the Lockdown Babies podcast. 

We discuss why Phillippa wanted to make the podcast, her own experiences of having a baby in July 2020, and her career now. 

We also share some clips from Lockdown Babies - the remarkable and heartbreaking stories of the families who had babies in the middle of a global pandemic. 

I hope you enjoy this conversation focused on pregnancy and parenthood in the pandemic. To contact Phillippa on socials: 

Twitter @philly_guillou

Instagram @lockdown_babies_podcast

https://anchor.fm/lockdown-babies

 

The Mother of All Solutions podcast is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick, with music by Ros Fraser. Please subscribe for further episodes and connect via @SolutionsMother 

Thank you for listening. 

 

MOAS Moments

In this short special I have selected clips ("MOAS moments") from 6 past episodes to give you a flavour of the series and recent interviews. The moments come from: 

• The Chapter - Lockdown, with writer Kate Burt 
• The Job Sharers, with The Job Share Pair 
• The Playworker, with author Adele Cleaver
• The Mums of Twins, with author Alison Perry
• The Dads, with teacher Will Blatherwick
• The Collective, with Georgie Grant of Onion Collective

You will hear chats about maternity leave and lockdown, job sharing, the cost of childcare, celebrations of motherhood and a dad's perspective. 

Thank you to all my guests and listeners! 

And do listen on at the end of the MOAS Moments special - there are some outtakes from my conversation with Kate Burt that we hope you will enjoy! 

If you are new to the Mother of All Solutions I hope this offers an interesting intro to the podcast - do listen back to the full episodes and subscribe for more to come. 

Thank you, 

Laura, Host & Producer @SolutionsMother 

Music by Ros Fraser

The Playworker

In this episode Laura talks to Adele Cleaver, playworker and author of the memoir Children Don’t Dissolve in the Rain.

Adele is a mom from Birmingham with two girls - a 5 year old and 7 month old. We talk about her professional and personal experiences of play settings, and how her book aims to encourage parents to play and rest more effectively.

You can find Adele on social media @adeleplayworker

Children Don’t Dissolve in the Rain is available from her website as well as book retailers:

https://adeleplayworker.bigcartel.com/product/signed-copy-children-don-t-dissolve-in-the-rain-by-adele-cleaver

Mother of All Solutions is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick with music by Ros Fraser. You can connect with Laura via Twitter or Instagram @SolutionsMother

Show notes: 

In the episode Adele and I talk about:

• Assemble Play @assembleplay
• #hibernationplay
• Big Blue Play @bigblueplay
• Julia Cameron’s books, The Artist’s Way and The Artist’s Way for Parents
• The Parent Journey podcast

If you enjoyed the themes in this episode I would recommend you also listen to the Radical Childcare episode in the MOAS playlist! Thank you for listening. 

Photo of Adele Cleaver and daughter by Vero Leopoldino

 

 

The Chapter - Lockdown

In this episode of Mother of All Solutions, host Laura Broderick and guest Kate Burt revisit Joeli Brearley’s book The Motherhood Penalty and discuss the NEW chapter, Lockdown, available in the newly released paperback edition!

The original book review episode saw Laura and Kate, along with other members of their book group, discuss Joeli’s book in May 2021. It was a chance to explore our experiences of motherhood and the workplace, and reflect on the founder of Pregnant then Screwed’s book as a “call to arms.”

Ten months later, and a new baby for Kate, we sat down to see what Joeli had put to page recently and share our own experiences from the pandemic around her writings. We hope it’s an enjoyable and insightful discussion and we would love to hear what you think and/or your experiences of lockdown life (especially from first time mums or those with insights from other countries.) You can reach out via social media to @SolutionsMother or email motherofallsolutions@gmail.com – we would love to hear from you.

If you haven’t yet read the book, The Motherhood Penalty – How to stop motherhood being the kiss of death for your career, it is available here: The Motherhood Penalty | Book by Joeli Brearley | Official Publisher Page | Simon & Schuster UK (simonandschuster.co.uk)

And to listen to the original book review episode we released it’s called ‘The Book – Pregnant then Screwed’ on the Mother of All Solutions pod platform. You can also listen to other relevant past episodes, including an important discussion on Childcare for WOW Festival March 2021. 

Happy listening and Happy International Women’s Day 2022!

 

 

The Job Sharers

For this Mother of All Solutions episode, host and producer Laura Broderick talks to Rachel Maguire, one half of The Job Share Pair.

We discuss what job sharing is, the benefits of working in a pair and Rachel’s work story of maternity leave and returning to job share in HR with Hannah Hall-Turner. They are now running The Job Share Pair consultancy together and you can follow Rachel and Hannah on LinkedIn and Instagram as @thejobsharepair

The latter section of the episode is me responding to questions from Hannah and sharing my experience of job-sharing! I job shared for a year between 2019-20 after my second maternity leave. And my previous job share partner, Ros Fraser, is the composer of the music for Mother of All Solutions.

I really hope you enjoy the episode (sorry about the sound quality in some parts.) It would be great if you could “share” the episode, follow Mother of All Solutions podcast on Twitter and host Laura Broderick on Instagram as @SolutionsMother

Or contact me via motherofallsolutions@gmail.com – I would love to hear from you!

 

 

The Collective

In this episode Laura interviews Georgie Grant, Co-Director of The Onion Collective CIC based in Watchet, West Somerset. “The Onions” met as a group of mums in the town – some local and some new, but all with a desire to improve the area for their children. Bringing their skills, and friendships, to the table they set about to find out what the residents of Watchet also wanted to see happen to improve where they live.

Over years of development and fundraising the result is a fascinating new building.

Recently opened, the East Quay development is a community hub, youth space and art gallery. The ideas of generations of the town fed into the design but it was this group of mums driving it to happen over 9 years.

To find out more about East Quay: https://www.eastquaywatchet.co.uk/

The current exhibition by artist Bedwyr Williams: https://www.eastquaywatchet.co.uk/events/exhibition-the-see-wall

Architecture article on the building: https://architecturetoday.co.uk/east-quay-arts-centre/

The Watchet Boat Museum: https://www.onioncollective.co.uk/boatmuseum

Valentine, the Carol Ann Duffy poem that inspired their name: https://www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poem/valentine/

I give you an onion.
It is a moon wrapped in brown paper.

From Valentine by Carol Ann Duffy

 

I hope you enjoy hearing about this group of women - their achievements for their own kids and their whole community. It would be much appreciated if you could rate, review and subscribe to the podcast. And do follow East Quay and Mother of All Solutions on social media at @eastquaywatchet / @SolutionsMother

The podcast is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick, with music by Ros Fraser.

The Artist Midwife

For this episode, MOAS host Laura Broderick interviews Laura Godfrey-Isaacs, an artist and midwife and co-author of the book Maternal Journal, A creative guide to journalling through pregnancy birth and beyond.

We talk about Laura’s experiences of work as an artist and a producer, and later training to be a midwife. We cover lots! The new book and the origins of the Maternal Journal project, birth experiences, creative practice, the pandemic and the March with Midwives (on the the day we recorded.) Laura has two adult daughters and lives in London.

To find out more about the book and the Maternal Journal process:

Book — Maternal Journal

To connect with Laura on Twitter and Instagram @godfrey_isaacs / @maternaljtnl

#maternaljournal

Thank you for listening – if you enjoyed this episode please do share with your friends. You can also subscribe for future listens, and explore past episodes of Mother of All Solutions, rate and review the podcast! Also please do email your ideas to host and producer Laura Broderick via motherofallsolutions@gmail.com

Twitter and Instagram @SolutionsMother

The Mums of Twins

In this episode Laura Broderick interviews Alison Perry, author, podcaster and blogger, about her experiences of maternity leave and her career as a mum of three, including twins.

She shares the specifics of parenting twins through pregnancy, parental leave and returning to work. We discuss being employed in a workplace and being self-employed, as well about the huge cost of childcare when you have multiples. We also talk about Alison’s book OMG It’s Twins! published earlier this year.

After the interview with Alison the episode contains audio contributions from two other mums of twins, both currently on maternity leave, and how they are considering their situations and solutions. We hope you enjoy the episode and it offers support or useful points of reflection.

Mother of All Solutions is produced and hosted by Laura Broderick, with music by Ros Fraser.

To contact Laura you can email: motherofallsolutions@gmail.com

Mother of All Solutions: Twitter and Instagram @solutionsmother

Alison Perry: Twitter and Instagram @iamalisonperry

Find Mother of All Solutions and Not Another Mummy Podcast on your favourite podcast apps!

To find out more about Alison’s book OMG It’s Twins!

https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/111/1119275/omg-it-s-twins-/9781785043130.html

The Dads

In this episode Laura Broderick discusses the book DAD (Untold Stories of Fatherhood, Love, Mental Health and Masculinity) with Will Blatherwick, history teacher and dad of two.

The conversation is structured around our thoughts on the book (with an emphasis on work and parenting) and audio contributions from two other dads who have read the book alongside us. Music in the episode is by Ros Fraser.

DAD is curated by Elliott Rae and is a collection of stories from dads in the Music Football Fatherhood (MFF) platform.

Music Football Fatherhood | For dads who want more open conversations around fatherhood - Music.Football.Fatherhood - open conversations around fatherhood

The book DAD is a call for open conversations around fatherhood. Founder of MFF, Elliott Rae, regularly works with organisations and staff networks to help support working fathers and parents, and work towards equal parenting and gender equality, through workshops and talks.

To connect with the MFF network you can do so on Twitter and Instagram via @MFFonline_

I enjoyed reading DAD, having an open conversation with Will and hopefully connecting with more dads through the Mother of All Solutions podcast. If you enjoyed the episode please do subscribe to Mother of All Solutions on your favourite podcast app and listen back to past MOAS episodes.

You can get in touch with MOAS host and producer Laura Broderick via Twitter and Instagram via @SolutionsMother / Email: motherofallsolutions@gmail.com

 

This episode is in memory of my friend Sègun Akingbola – he loved open conversations and he loved being a dad.