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The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching

Sharon Cawley and Sarah Dunwood
The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching
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5 of 76
  • 076 - Paula Smith - Classroom to Transformational Coach and Trainer
    After three decades in education, rising to the ranks of headteacher and executive head, Paula Smith found herself at breaking point. In this deeply moving and powerful conversation, Paula opens up about her career, the moment that changed everything on the M25, and how she rebuilt her life from burnout to transformation.Now a Transformational Coach and Trainer, Paula shares how she turned pain into purpose, discovered the importance of choosing herself, and now helps others break free from fear, shame, and self-limiting beliefs.This episode is a story of courage, faith, and rebirth - a reminder that it’s never too late to rewrite your own ending.Buy Us a Coffee ☕️ Loving the Pit Pony Podcast? We’d be so grateful for your support! We’ve set up a Buy Me a Coffee page where you can make a small donation to help keep the podcast running. https://buymeacoffee.com/thepitponyclub Voice Message Us: https://www.speakpipe.com/pitponypodcast Contribute to our 'Silenced by Support' Campaign - complete the questionnaire, read the report, sign up to the mailing list. If you've been affected by any of the issues raised in our podcast there are organisations who can help: Education Support The Samaritans Mind Andy's Man Club Join Us: Subscribe to the Pit Pony Podcast Sign up to our mailing list here: http://eepurl.com/i1L5ck Thanks for listening 🙏Edited with finesse by our Podcast Super Producer, Mike Roberts of Making Digital R...
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  • 075 - Liz Bell - Classroom to Education Recruitment Consultant
    In this emotional and uplifting episode, we meet Liz Bell, who spent 18 years in primary education, rising to deputy head and curriculum lead. Known for her energy, collaboration, and love of working with children who others had given up on, Liz poured herself into teaching - but the system broke her.After moving to Lincolnshire for a fresh start, Liz quickly found herself undermined, exhausted, and battling imposter syndrome. Within weeks she spiralled into illness and breakdown, forced to confront the reality that even her passion and commitment could not protect her from a toxic culture.Liz shares openly about the shame, the tears, and the darkest days, as well as the resilience it took to rebuild her confidence. Today, she has created a new life as an education recruitment consultant, using her teaching experience to match teachers with schools and support them ethically.Her story is one of heartbreak, healing, and finding purpose beyond the classroom - proving that skills honed in teaching can open new doors and change lives in surprising ways.With thanks to our episode sponsor (Click to visit):Little VoicesConexus TuitionBuy Us a Coffee ☕️ Loving the Pit Pony Podcast? We’d be so grateful for your support! We’ve set up a Buy Me a Coffee page where you can make a small donation to help keep the podcast running. https://buymeacoffee.com/thepitponyclub Voice Message Us: https://www.speakpipe.com/pitponypodcast Contribute to our 'Silenced by Support' Campaign - complete the questionnaire, read the report, sign up to the mailing list. If you've been affected by any of the issues raised in our podcast there are organisations who can help: Education Support The Samaritans Mind Andy's Man Club Join Us: Subscribe to the Pit Pony Podcast Sign up to our mailing list here: http://eepurl.com/i1L5ck Thanks for listening 🙏Edited with finesse by our Podcast Super Producer, Mike Roberts of Making Digital R...
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  • 074 - Pit Pony Clare Gregg - Classroom to Entrepreneur and Advocate
    In this powerful episode, we sit down with Clare Gregg, whose journey into teaching was anything but ordinary.Statistically, Clare should never have made it into the classroom. As a child, she was a school refuser, on the child protection register, and at 18 found herself homeless and pregnant. Yet against all odds, she fought her way into education, inspired by the teachers who believed in her.Clare went on to teach Religious Education, working in challenging schools, comprehensives, and even a pupil referral unit. Along the way, she navigated personal health struggles, raising a family, and the crushing realities of leadership that left her unsupported and, ultimately, broken by the system.Today, Clare has rebuilt her life as a mortgage advisor, business owner, and activist. She shares her story with honesty and humour, opening up about complex PTSD, breakdown, resilience, and why she still believes in the power of education even after stepping away.Clare’s story is one of survival, transformation, and the fight to create a new identity beyond teaching.With thanks to our episode sponsor (Click to visit):Little VoicesConexus TuitionBuy Us a Coffee ☕️ Loving the Pit Pony Podcast? We’d be so grateful for your support! We’ve set up a Buy Me a Coffee page where you can make a small donation to help keep the podcast running. https://buymeacoffee.com/thepitponyclub Voice Message Us: https://www.speakpipe.com/pitponypodcast Contribute to our 'Silenced by Support' Campaign - complete the questionnaire, read the report, sign up to the mailing list. If you've been affected by any of the issues raised in our podcast there are organisations who can help: Education Support The Samaritans Mind Andy's Man Club Join Us: Subscribe to the Pit Pony Podcast Sign up to our mailing list here: http://eepurl.com/i1L5ck Thanks for listening 🙏Edited with finesse by our Podcast Super Producer, Mike Roberts of Making Digital R...
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  • 073 - Nick Smart - Breaking the Silence on Settlement Agreements in Education
    Nick Smart: Silenced by Support and the Fight for ChangeWelcome to Season 2 of The Pit Pony Podcast. We begin with an episode that steps beyond individual exit stories and into the heart of a growing campaign.Our guest is Nick Smart, a primary teacher who entered the profession at 42 and is now, at 58, exiting the classroom. But Nick’s story is not just about his own departure - it’s about shining a light on the thousands of teachers who have been forced out under the guise of “support plans.”In this powerful conversation, Nick explains why informal support plans have become a death knell for so many careers, how settlement agreements and non-disclosure clauses keep teachers silent, and why he decided to contact his MP to raise the issue nationally.Together with Sarah Dunwood, Nick has helped produce Silenced by Support, a report containing over 100 anonymous testimonies and data from thousands of educators. It is a campaign that shows the scale of the problem and demands urgent change.This is more than one story. It’s a call to action.With thanks to our episode sponsors (Click to visit their websites):Conexus Tuition Little VoicesBuy Us a Coffee ☕️ Loving the Pit Pony Podcast? We’d be so grateful for your support! We’ve set up a Buy Me a Coffee page where you can make a small donation to help keep the podcast running. https://buymeacoffee.com/thepitponyclub Voice Message Us: https://www.speakpipe.com/pitponypodcast Contribute to our 'Silenced by Support' Campaign - complete the questionnaire, read the report, sign up to the mailing list. If you've been affected by any of the issues raised in our podcast there are organisations who can help: Education Support The Samaritans Mind Andy's Man Club Join Us: Subscribe to the Pit Pony Podcast Sign up to our mailing list here: http://eepurl.com/i1L5ck Thanks for listening 🙏Edited with finesse by our Podcast Super Producer, Mike Roberts of Making Digital R...
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  • 072 - Pit Pony Revisited: The Summer Series - Amy Meade
    In our FINAL Summer Re-Issue episode, we revisit the story of Amy Meade, who spent 14 years in education, moving from secondary English to primary leadership and eventually deputy and acting headship.Amy loved teaching and wasn’t working in a toxic school, but even after a successful Ofsted she realised the treadmill never stopped. Delaying medical treatment, putting family second, and even looking forward to surgery just to rest, Amy reached her epiphany moment: school could not come before her health and her loved ones.She resigned with nothing to go to, pushed through hundreds of applications, and eventually found a new career in learning and development. Amy now thrives as a Learning & Development Manager, using the same training and organisational skills honed in the classroom to make a difference in the corporate world.Her story is about people-pleasing, resilience, and the courage to believe that life outside the classroom can be healthier, more flexible and deeply fulfilling.With thanks to our episode sponsors (Click to visit their websites):Conexus Tuition Little Voices Buy Us a Coffee ☕️ Loving the Pit Pony Podcast? We’d be so grateful for your support! We’ve set up a Buy Me a Coffee page where you can make a small donation to help keep the podcast running. https://buymeacoffee.com/thepitponyclub Voice Message Us: https://www.speakpipe.com/pitponypodcast Contribute to our 'Silenced by Support' Campaign - complete the questionnaire, read the report, sign up to the mailing list. If you've been affected by any of the issues raised in our podcast there are organisations who can help: Education Support The Samaritans Mind Andy's Man Club Join Us: Subscribe to the Pit Pony Podcast Sign up to our mailing list here: http://eepurl.com/i1L5ck Thanks for listening 🙏Edited with finesse by our Podcast Super Producer, Mike Roberts of Making Digital R...
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About The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching

Sharon Cawley and Sarah Dunwood talk to former teachers about exiting from the classroom and thriving.Don't forget to leave us a VOICEMAIL, quickly and easily at https://www.speakpipe.com/pitponypodcastSupport the podcast by buying us a coffee here:https://buymeacoffee.com/thepitponyclub
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