To mark the end of Mother of All Solutions, this episode is a conversation with two great friends and previous guests of the podcast, Lily Anderson-Nicholls and Kate Burt. Lily is an HR Professional and Kate a journalist - we discuss both our personal and the societal contexts for working parents today, and what's changed over the 6 years of making Mother of All Solutions.  As with all good conversations with friends, it ranges from the serious to the silly! We discuss changes in workplaces and work patterns, parental leave and rights for mums and dads, as well as the mental load, the juggle and parenting/career changes as kids get older.  Please do listen and excuse the sound quality in parts - we recorded around my dining table with one lovely pre-schooler and a whirring fish tank in the background!  Thank you for supporting this very personal indie production over the years. It's been a blast and I hope some useful and enjoyable listening along the way.  x Mother of All Solutions is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick, with music by Ros Fraser. You can keep in touch with Laura on Instagram @SolutionsMother

In this episode Laura interviews Rumi Bose, urban designer and regeneration consultant. Rumi set up her own business 18 months ago after a successful career working in local authority. Whilst she was at Southwark Council she had her three boys now aged 12, 9 and 5. We discuss what motivated her to train as an urban designer (her second career) and what inspires her in this field and the types of roles she has had and is now developing herself.    I am sure you will enjoy listening to Rumi and do visit her website to find out more about her work rumibose.com    We also discuss maternity leave, flexible working, raising boys, sibling dynamics and parenting/places. Thank you for listening and do share with other parents who may benefit from this conversation about careers and caring.    Mother of All Solutions is an independent podcast produced by Laura Broderick with music by Ros Fraser. Connect with Laura on LinkedIn or Instagram @SolutionsMother

In this episode host Laura Broderick speaks with co-owner of Home Grown Brixton, Gill Springer.  Gill runs the cafe and catering business with chef Portia Eyeson. Both are mothers and Gill a grandmother. They are working hard to offer great food and a new community space in their home area of south London. They are using their skills and friendship to grow their community catering business.  Both have had interesting careers as well as busy caring roles, so it was great to learn more from Gill whilst Portia was busy in the kitchen! Please note the episode was recorded in the cafe so there is some background noise.  To find out more about Home Grown Brixton visit their website https://www.homegrown.cafe/ And to read more about Gill and Portia https://www.homegrown.cafe/index.php/about-us  You can connect with Home Grown Brixton via Instagram @home_grownbrixton and Mother of All Solutions @solutionsmother  If you have enjoyed the episode please do rate, review and share with people. Thank you for listening!

In this Special Episode I share an interview with photographer Rachel Larsen from the Creativity Found podcast.I enjoyed listening to Rachel speak about her work and family life with host Claire Waite Brown, and am delighted to now be able to share it with listeners of Mother of All Solutions. Rachel is a writer and photographer who documents and is commissioned to take pictures of families. She talks about her career decisions to fit creativity and work around her caring responsibilities, as well as how she likes to document families with all the joys and stresses of home life. I thought it was a great episode for the summer holidays when we are at home and juggling even more than usual!  I hope you enjoy listening and do keep in touch with myself, Rachel and Claire via our Instagram feeds @solutionsmother @rachel.larsen.weaver @creativityfoundpodcast   Finally, this episode is released with Mother of All Solutions turning 5!!! So if you can take 5 min to leave a review, give the podcast a 5 star rating or tell 5 friends about the show that would be much appreciated. Thanks for listening and stay well this summer x

Hello and Happy Father's Day! For this special episode I talk with my manager and three of my colleagues who are all dads.  We discuss hybrid working, sharing the juggle with your partner, being vocal about your role and life as a dad and more! We also just have some nice chats about our kids.  I hope you enjoy the episode and it's useful to see how a group of colleagues can support each other through the highs and lows of parenting.  Thank you for listening - and please do rate, review and share if you can!    Mother of All Solutions is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick, with music by Ros Fraser. To stay in touch please do subscribe to the podcast and connect via Instagram @SolutionsMother

In this special episode of Mother of All Solutions, recorded at The Podcast Show 2024 London / Shure stand, we have guest Samantha Baines - actor, comedian, author, broadcaster and "new mum".  Sam shares her career choices, chats about her podcast The Divorce Social, and talks about living with hearing loss and writing books based on her experiences of being deaf. She shares information on her pregnancy and early motherhood, as well as next steps now she's back at work and acting again.  It was great to speak with Sam and I hope you enjoy learning more about her roles and work. To connect with her on socials follow @samanthabaines / www.samanthabaines.com  To keep in touch with your host and producer Laura Broderick, please connect on Instagram @SolutionsMother  Thanks for listening! Do subscribe for future shows - I have something planned for Father's Day :-) And if you have enjoyed this episode a rating, review or mention to a friend would be much appreciated.

For this final episode of the Spring 2024 mini-series of Mother of All Solutions, I am pleased to share an interview with Donna Bloye (winner) and Steven Broughton (semi-finalist) from series seven of the Great Pottery Throwdown.  Fans of the series will have enjoyed watching them on screen and like me picked up a strong sense of their love for pottery and ceramics, but also their role as parents. Donna is mum to three children and Steven is dad to one daughter. I wanted to talk to them together and hear more about their careers as art and design teachers too - and their work now as potters, alongside parenting.  I hope you enjoy the conversation and it gives you some nice moments to think about creativity, ceramics and kids too. Thank you for listening!  You can find out more about these fantastic people and their work:  Donna Bloye www.otonipottery.com / Instagram @oto.ni.pottery  Steven Broughton www.stevenbroughtonceramics.com / Instagram @steb_pots Mother of All Solutions podcast is an independent podcast hosted and produced by Laura Broderick, with music by Ros Fraser www.motherofallsolutions.com / Instagram and X @SolutionsMother If you have enjoyed the episode it would be much appreciated if you could like and share, and do subscribe for future episodes coming later in 2024!

This episode was recorded at the Mothers in Music all-day festival on 7 March 2024 at the Mount Without venue in Bristol.  Organised by Alice Ballantine Dykes of Mama Coaching, with a team of producers (mothers and musicians) - “a collective of mothers challenging norms to stay visible, valued and celebrated in the music industry.” The event included wonderful performances, along with discussions about the challenges and ways for mothers to keep performing and thriving in their musical careers.  It was a joy to attend. This episode is a record of the conversations I had with musicians who make and produce in many ways (singers, songwriters, community leaders, therapists, solo performers, band members, DJs etc).  I hope you enjoy listening and if it resonates with you do share with someone else who you think would benefit from hearing about these fantastic musicians who are also mothers.  To find out more about Mothers in Music you can follow Alice and the network on Instagram @mamacoachinguk. To find out about coaching workshops and opportunities you can email Alice info@mamacoaching.org / www.mamacoaching.org  Music throughout the episode was the Bring Your Own Baby (BYOB) choir performing. The final song is by the artist JMA. Mother of All Solutions intro and outro music by Ros Fraser. Cover photo for this episode taken by Emma Rice.  The podcast is hosted by Laura Broderick - you can connect on Instagram and X as @SolutionsMother / www.motherofallsolutions.com  Thank you for listening.

In this episode I talk with Harriet Williams, Deputy Leader of the Women's Equality Party (WEP). I initially interviewed Harriet back in the beginning of making Mother of All Solutions podcast when Harriet worked as a 'Young Parent Consultant'. She still works in many roles and in this episode mentioned supporting:  Care experienced parents:  https://www.barnardos.org.uk/research/care-experienced-parents-unite-change Single parents: https://www.gingerbread.org.uk/    In this episode, we specifically discuss current issues around childcare costs and entitlements, and reference data from Pregnant Then Screwed published in Feb 2024:  https://pregnantthenscrewed.com/shocking-new-stats-about-the-cost-of-parenting/  This was discussed in the context of 15 hours free childcare (for those eligible) starting next month in April 2024:  https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2024/03/15/how-to-claim-15-hours-free-childcare-code/  I hope you find the conversation interesting and you will also listen back to Harriet when we talked 4 years ago! You can connect with Harriet:  Instagram @mummyharrii and X @HarriAWilliams Mother of All Solutions is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick, with music by Ros Fraser. You can connect with Laura:  Instagram and X @SolutionsMother  Thank you for listening.  Note to listeners: whilst no personal scenarios are shared we do touch upon some sensitive issues relating to women and girls, so keep this in mind before you listen.

It was a pleasure to speak about momfluencer culture with writer and podcaster Sara Petersen. Author of the book Momfluenced: Inside the Maddening, Picture-Perfect World of Mommy Influencer Culture, Sara shared lots of insights into the moms and mums of social media.  It was fascinating to hear more and also reflect on mumfluencer culture in the UK, and our relationships with influencers and sharing online in general. Plus, what is the British equivalent of the family pumpkin patch outing?!  To learn more about Sara and her work you can sign up for her Substack - In Pursuit of Clean Countertops: https://sarapetersen.substack.com/  You can also connect with her on Instagram @slouisepetersen    Mother of All Solutions podcast is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick with music by Ros Fraser. Stay in touch via Instagram and X as @SolutionsMother  Thank you for listening - and do tell a mum or mom friend you think might like the pod!

This first episode of the new series of Mother of All Solutions is an interview with Katy Marks - architect and designer.  Katy talks about her career as an architect, establishing her own business and navigating maternity leave and work. She then shares about her experience of going through a single mastectomy and later designing the Unobra for asymmetric bodies.  It was a pleasure to learn more about Katy and aspects of her life and work. You can connect with her:   Architectural practice via Citizens Design Bureau https://www.citizensdesignbureau.net/ Design work at Unobra https://www.unobra.co.uk/  Instagram @citizensdesignbureau and @_unobra   Mother of All Solutions is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick, with music by Ros Fraser. Listen out for the rest of the new 2024 mini-series - dropping Mondays in March and April. Subscribe so you don’t miss out, and it would be wonderful if you could share with your friends. Thank you x https://www.motherofallsolutions.com/  Instagram and X @SolutionsMother

I am delighted to announce a new mini-series for Mother of All Solutions. This teaser contains clips from interviews with some of the amazing mothers who joined me for the podcast. Full episodes will follow on Mondays through March/April, and I am excited to share many perspectives on parenting and work over the course of the season.  I hope you enjoy listening!  #mothersday #internationalwomensday  MOAS is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick, with music by Ros Fraser. Portrait photo by Jannine Newman.  www.motherofallsolutions.com Do connect via Instagram and X @SolutionsMother

Hello! It's almost the holidays so this episode is a short n sweet end to the Mother of All Solutions podcast in 2023.  Featuring guest contributions from Suze Cooper, Vivi Koroma Kala and Molly Rowan, plus my mum and my daughter, there is chat about podcasts and books (my favourite things) plus a poem and a song. I really hope you enjoy it and it makes you feel festive in a friendly podcasty way.  Thank you for listening this year, and do listen out for more MOAS episodes in 2024 - likely March - all being well!  Thank you for all the support with the podcast. MOAS is produced and hosted by Laura Broderick - you can connect on socials via @SolutionsMother. Music by Ros Fraser.  Wishing you and your loved ones a very Happy Christmas and all the very best for the New Year. Laura x

For this episode Laura interviews photographer Jannine Newman, who has adult sons and came to use the term ‘photographer’ professionally in her 50s.  We discuss her work and ambitions through the decades, and how being a mum has influenced her career moves. We also talk about looking after kids through their stages, parenting twins, ADHD in the family and more.  Jannine explains the term skill stacking and why she believes it's important to maximise your niche set of skills and experiences. She is also a stylist and vintage market host and we chat about side projects, business ideas and confidence.  I hope you enjoy the conversation!  You can find out more about Jannine and her work at www.janninenewman.com  And find her on Instagram as @underthecloth  The podcast Mother of All Solutions is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick. You can connect on Instagram and X via @SolutionsMother  Music by Ros Fraser, and episode recorded in Content is Queen studios.

In this episode, timed with International Men’s Day 2023, Laura shares clips from a recording with dad-of-two Steve Folland, Being Freelance and Doing It For The Kids (DIFTK) podcast.  Laura and Steve spoke earlier this year as part of the DIFTK community meet up. It was a great conversation but there was a lot of chat I couldn’t squeeze into that episode - so here are some clips in this mini bonus one!  Steve shares his journey from starting as a freelancer when his kids were very young, to them now being 10 and 13. He also discusses running a community for freelancers and how workflow can be for those who are parents and those who aren’t. It was great to hear his thoughts and I hope you enjoy listening too.  #InternationalMensDay You can find out more about Being Freelance here:  https://www.beingfreelance.com/ You can also listen to Steve within 'The DIFTK Community' episode on the Mother of All Solutions podcast.  To keep in touch with Laura Broderick, host and producer of Mother of All Solutions, please do connect via: https://www.motherofallsolutions.com/ Instagram and X @SolutionsMother  Music for the series by Ros Fraser.

A year ago I participated in Pregnant Then Screwed's event, The March of the Mummies, and recorded with parents on the march in Newcastle.  As it's been Halloween this week and there is a lot in this episode that is still relevant at the one year anniversary point I thought I would re-release it.  If you listened previously - thank you. If you missed the episode first time, I hope you enjoy it now. And please do share it if you can.  Happy listening, Laura (mummy, host and producer)  Do also keep in touch on X and Instagram as @SolutionsMother

In this episode Laura speaks with Rosa Schling, Co-Director of oral history production company On The Record and project manager of the Grow Your Own project, to discuss the project and the podcast series Childcare Voices. The episode was recorded at the Bishopsgate Institute in London during a childcare archive workshop day. Also on mic are participants involved in helping map the history of childcare in London - they share what they discover through looking at archives about settings and actions of the past.  To follow the Grow Your Own project and listen to the Childcare Voices podcast please visit:  https://on-the-record.org.uk/projects/grow-your-own/   Mother of All Solutions is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick with music by Ros Fraser. You can keep in touch via: https://www.motherofallsolutions.com/  Instagram and Twitter/X @SolutionsMother  If you have enjoyed the episode please do subscribe, share it on your socials, or leave a rating and review!  And do listen through the MOAS archives - I also mention relevant past episodes - ‘The Childminder’ and ‘WOW Festival: Radical Childcare’

It was a pleasure to chat to comedian and writer Eleri Morgan about her work doing stand up and comedy writing, now as mother to an 8 month old baby. We discuss taking her son to gigs, being part of writing rooms and how to navigate work around childcare going forward.  We also discuss her documentary ‘DRYCH: Dyfodol i Dewi’ (on iPlayer for a few more days!) which follows her struggle to reconcile having a baby with leading a low-carbon life. And we chat about her plans for future documentaries on subjects such as the cost of childcare.   I hope you enjoy the episode, and please do keep in touch / share the episode with your friends.  You can connect with Eleri on X as @eleri_morgan or on Instagram as @eleri_morahan (and @eleri_morgan_comedy)  The Mother of All Solutions podcast is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick - you can find me on X and Instagram as @solutionsmother  Music by Ros Fraser. Thank you for listening!

It's back to school, and a new term for MOAS too, starting with quarter-finalist Lauren Tedstone and semi-finalist Vicki Reid from the Great British Sewing Bee 2023 #sewingbee #gbsb #greatbritishsewingbee Both mums of two young children, we discuss their careers before entering the Sewing Bee, plus their work, family and sewing lives now. It was great to chat to these enthusiastic and talented sewists about hobbies, community and of course their friendship (formed over a cuppa.) So make a brew and take a listen! Do also keep in touch and tell your friends... Vicki Reid @whatvickimade  Lauren Tedstone @madebylaurentedstone Laura Broderick @solutionsmother   Mother of All Solutions is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick with music by Ros Fraser.  Find out more via the website www.motherofallsolutions.com and subscribe to the podcast via your favourite app.

I am delighted to share this episode from the Creativity Found podcast… Claire Waite Brown interviews Caro Giles, author of Twelve Moons. I loved this conversation and love Caro’s book, which outlines her life as a single mother of four daughters living in rural Northumberland. There is family, nature, isolation, rediscovery - it’s practical and emotional.  I hope you enjoy Claire’s interview about Caro’s life and work, here on my podcast feed.  To connect with them both:  https://www.creativityfound.co.uk/Podcast @creativityfoundpodcast  https://www.carogiles.com/  @carogileswrites    Mother of All Solutions is hosted and produced by Laura Broderick, with music by Ros Fraser.  Thank you for listening - please subscribe and keep in touch!  Website coming soon, for now find me @SolutionsMother