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PODCAST

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching

Sharon Cawley and Sarah Dunwood

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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All Episodes

62:04

079 - Suspension - Navigating the Hardest Days in...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/11/04

In this powerful new episode, Sharon and Sarah tackle one of the most difficult experiences any teacher can face: suspension from school. They unpack what really happens when you’re suspended, why it is supposed to be a neutral act, and the reality of how it is often handled in schools. With honesty and compassion, they talk through the emotional toll, the fear, and the isolation, and offer practical guidance on what to do next. From understanding ACAS guidance and TRA investigations to manag...

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69:21

078 - Sarah Grocutt - Classroom to Freelance Email...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/10/28

After twelve years teaching in specialist and alternative education, Sarah Grocutt reached breaking point. What began as a career full of creativity, compassion, and purpose turned into exhaustion, fear, and guilt as she tried to balance motherhood with an unforgiving system. In this candid conversation, Sarah opens up about her powerful decision to walk away from the classroom after an unsafe and unsustainable experience in a new provision. She shares what it took to rebuild her identity, re...

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71:57

077 - Lisa Mead - Classroom to Online Tutor

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/10/21

After twenty years in primary education, Lisa Mead found herself completely burnt out. The workload, the pressure, the impossible expectations - it all came to a head one morning when she simply couldn’t face going back into the classroom. In this powerful and relatable episode, Lisa opens up about: • Balancing motherhood with teaching and the guilt that comes with both • The culture of overwork and silent expectation in schools • The grief and shock of losing a colleague t...

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82:39

076 - Paula Smith - Classroom to Transformational...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/10/14

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 ...

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111:51

075 - Liz Bell - Classroom to Education Recruitment...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/10/07

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 ...

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64:24

074 - Pit Pony Clare Gregg - Classroom to...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/09/30

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 e...

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76:08

073 - Nick Smart - Breaking the Silence on Settlement...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/09/23

Nick Smart: Silenced by Support and the Fight for Change Welcome 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 plan...

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72:14

072 - Pit Pony Revisited: The Summer Series - Amy Meade

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/09/16

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...

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65:44

071 - Pit Pony Revisited: The Summer Series - Gareth...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/09/09

In this deeply reflective reissue, we revisit the story of Gareth Isaac, who entered teaching through the Teach First route in 2014. Within just a few years he was experiencing disassociation, exhaustion and a sense of living outside his own body. Gareth opens up about how perfectionism and people-pleasing pushed him to burnout, the eerie experience of teaching on autopilot, and the moment he confided in a colleague who urged him to see a doctor. Signed off for stress, anxiety and depression,...

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67:30

070 - Pit Pony Revisited: The Summer Series - Katie...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/09/02

In this powerful reissue from our archive, we revisit the story of Katie Stone, a teacher who resisted the profession for years before finally entering via the TA route and discovering a love for the classroom. From her PGCE at Manchester Met to seven years in teaching, Katie describes how the joy of working with children was eroded by pressure, exhaustion and an informal “support plan” that left her anxious, confused and eventually signed off with work-related stress. Pregnant at the time an...

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87:08

069 - Pit Pony Revisited: The Summer Series - Paul...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/08/26

In this powerful Summer Re-Issue, we revisit the story of Paul Lennon, a teacher whose career spanned 28 years and took him across the globe. From Japan, Italy, Malawi, Moscow and Senegal to his final role in Warsaw, Paul built a life around travel, education and family. But after decades of success and fulfilment, his last school brought him face to face with one of the most toxic leadership cultures we have ever heard described on the podcast. Shouted at in meetings, undermined at every tur...

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71:45

068 - Pit Pony Revisited: The Summer Series - Sarah...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/08/19

In this powerful reissue from our archive, we revisit the story of Sarah Cowen, a teacher whose journey through education reveals the toll of relentless pressure, systemic failures and the struggle to protect her own wellbeing. Sarah speaks openly about her early passion for teaching, the moments of joy with her students, and the devastating impact of burnout and anxiety. She describes the reality of trying to hold everything together while her mental health unraveled, and the difficult choic...

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71:06

067 - Pit Pony Revisited: The Summer Series - Grant...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/08/12

In this powerful reissue from our archive, we revisit the story of Grant Decker, an educator whose career took him from the classroom to unexpected new horizons. Grant speaks candidly about his early years in teaching, the highs of inspiring students, and the increasing pressures that began to chip away at his health and sense of purpose. He shares the moments that forced him to pause, reassess, and ultimately step away from the profession he had once imagined would be his life’s work. From n...

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79:56

066 - Pit Pony Revisited: The Summer Series - Hannah...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/08/05

In this powerful reissue from our archive, we revisit the story of Hannah Jones, a history teacher who walked away from education after enduring one of the most dehumanising experiences we have ever heard. From her early passion for teaching to a brutal relocation that left her physically unwell, mentally exhausted and teaching in a condemned classroom, Hannah’s story is one of survival, clarity and courage. She shares what it was like to raise a disabled child in a system with no empathy, ho...

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66:09

065 - Pit Pony Revisited: The Summer Series - James...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/07/29

As part of our Summer 2025 Rewind Series, we are revisiting one of the most heartfelt and compelling conversations we have ever shared. In this reissue, we are joined by James Terry, a former RE teacher who knew from a young age that teaching was his calling. After six joyful years in the classroom, James took a promotion and relocated to a new school. Within four terms, everything changed. He describes the slow unravelling that followed. A creeping sense of disconnection. Burnout. Anxiety. P...

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58:39

064 - Pit Pony Kat Philippou-Curtis Part 2 - With...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/07/22

Kat’s Story, Part 2: Swallow - A Film That Could Change Everything In this gripping second half of our conversation with Kat Philippou-Curtis, we’re joined by the legendary Cathy Tyson, who brings Kat’s story to life in the upcoming film Swallow. Together, we explore how a teacher who refused to be gagged transformed personal trauma into a powerful work of art. We talk about non-disclosure agreements, toxic leadership, cultural discrimination, and the quiet scandal of teachers forced out and ...

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40:31

063 - Pit Pony Kat Philippou-Curtis - Classroom To...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/07/15

In this gripping and harrowing episode, we sit down with Kat Philippou-Curtis, a drama specialist, film writer and filmmaker, as she shares the shocking truth behind her exit from further education. Kat was a passionate and dedicated lecturer, loved by many of her students and deeply committed to unlocking creativity through the arts. But what started as a dream job quickly unravelled into a nightmare of bullying, systemic malpractice, safeguarding failures and false allegations. Kat speaks c...

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53:13

062 - Pit Pony Jay Dehaan - Classroom to Curriculum...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/07/08

In Part 2 of Jay Dehaan’s story, we hear what happened after he made it into the classroom. Jay shares the emotional toll of leadership, the grief of losing a loved one, and the quiet realisation that the system he fought to be part of no longer fit the life he wanted. From pushing for curriculum change to missing out on time with his own children, Jay found himself questioning everything. We talk about the rigid structures of education, the barriers to meaningful change, and how discovering ...

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54:16

061 - Pit Pony Jay Dehaan - Classroom to Curriculum...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/07/01

Jay Dehaan didn’t grow up wanting to be a teacher. In fact, he hated school. He left education with no qualifications, spent five years in a wheelchair as a child due to Perthes disease, and was told by Citizens Advice that his family would be better off if he signed on. But somehow, against the odds, Jay found his way into the classroom. In this episode, Jay shares his early life with brutal honesty. We talk about growing up in chaos, being excluded by the very system he would later work in,...

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49:48

060 - Gareth Dale - Classroom to Childrens Author /...

The Pit Pony Podcast - Life After Teaching ·

2025/06/24

In Part 2 of this powerful conversation, Gareth Dale continues his story - from barely holding it together in the classroom to discovering his voice as a children’s author and private tutor. We talk about what happens after the funeral, the long shadow of trauma, and how Mr Dale - the teacher persona - became both a mask and a means of survival. Gareth shares how he began to write feverishly at night, eventually turning his grief into a series of children’s books that now connect with pupils ...

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79 results

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