A Better Way - The Podcast

Laura is the CEO at WWIN, a specialist domestic abuse service. In this episode Polly and Roger talk to her about… …The destructive power of the labels we put on women …The power of creating space where survivors of abuse are heard, believed and valued for themselves …Holding consistency, empathy and boundaries in order to create trust and enable change …Diminishing the impacts of a fear-based, hig...

Nikki is the culture and transformation lead at ENCOMPASS SOUTHWEST. In this episode Polly and Roger talk to her about… …How her early life honed her instinct for inclusion …Why you have to work on yourself if you’re trying to help others change their behaviour …Why justice and wellbeing are as important for service providers as they are to service users …Keeping it simple and making time for chan...

Will recently began a new role as convenor the Better Way network, and has been thinking deeply about its next phase. In this episode Polly and Roger talk to him about… …How his early life and first career in the City eventually led him to A Better Way …Lessons from both commercial and charitable organisations …How a highly damaging experience of workplace bullying led to a new direction in his li...

Jaki describes herself as a “Grandma in tech” and runs a community interest company called If Everyone Cares. In this episode Polly and Roger talk to her about… …How technology can transform the reach of small groups and organisations. …How Sir Richard Branson helped inspire a new way of mapping and joining up charities, volunteers and community groups …How what Noel Edmonds called “A doddle” crea...

Benaifer is Chief Executive of Hopscotch Women’s Centre whose vision is a community where minoritised women are respected and safe, and can achieve their full potential. Polly and Roger talk to her about…   …Empathic leadership and safe spaces to give and receive compassion. …Slowing down to find more effective answers. …Trauma-informed local government …Why booing at an awards ceremony revealed s...

James is a leading light of the B Corp movement here in the UK and co-founded B Lab. He is also founder and co-chair of food business Cook, a non-exec at Panahpur, a charitable foundation and the founding partner of Snowball, an investment management firm.   In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to him about…   …Putting capital to work in the name of social progress. …Why maximising shareholder we...

Alison is Race Equality Programme Director for Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. In this episode Polly and Roger talk to her about…   …A lifetime in Liverpool’s social justice movement. …Her experience as a young carer and mum. …Layers of marginalisation and intersecting identities. …Disrupting systems. …Authentically modelling A Better Way’s behaviours and principles.  …And a lot more!  ...

Pavan is CEO of Revolving Doors, a ‘think- and do-tank’ dedicated to breaking the cycle of crisis and crime. Polly and Roger talk to her about…   …Leading a truly member-led organisation. …Knowing from a young age that human rights was her thing. …How her own experience made giving voice to the voiceless her driving force. …Rethinking and resetting after the pandemic. …The preventative state: meet...

Noel is the Founder & Managing Director at WEvolution UK – a movement inspired by his mother in India which nurtures small, powerful groups who save small amounts, to create big opportunities. In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to him about…   …What happened when he took a group of women from Glasgow to the largest slum in Mumbai. …The joy in human connection even in the darkest times. …Mal...

Lots of us know City Bridge Foundation as a funder but this conversation goes much further to understand the critical and challenging role of funders in Better Way leadership. Polly and Roger talk to Lara about…   …Her deep commitment to the idea of service. …Turning “learning how to function in our dysfunction” on its head – and making a mess. …The power of analogies, metaphors and acronyms in ra...

Jude is founder and director of Sounddelivery Media – who champion the expertise and insights of lived experience leaders. In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to her about…   …Why Jude left her BBC career behind to set up an organisation to tell new and different stories …The true meaning of “informed consent” …How active allyship alongside lived experience sets leaders up to fly …Building capac...

Dalton Leong is now a semi-retired charity leader, with an earlier successful career in banking and financial services. In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to him about… …His journey from senior banker to CEO of a children’s hospice. …Joining forces – why merging two charities was the right move for beneficiaries …Bringing together the voices of 16,000 VCSE organisations in one county …Understan...

Samira is an independent consultant supporting community development, working with the Grenfell community, The King’s Fund and the Nuffield Trust, among others. In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to her about…   …How to find a completely different starting point for conversations that truly change things …Reframing “evidence-based practice” as “practice-based evidence” …The “in between space” w...

Sarah has worked in mental health since the age of 15 and has now achieved her dream job as CEO of Mind . In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to her about…   …The pleasures and pressures of the job she always wanted. …Is mental ill health really increasing and why? …The realities of striving to remain an “authentic” leader and what does that even mean?  …And a lot more!   Sarah can be reached vi...

Caroline co-founded A Better Way and runs a think tank called the Civil Exchange, after a career full of learning, famously being the first female Private Secretary to the first female PM – Margaret Thatcher. In the final episode of the first series, Polly and Roger talk to her about…   …How Caroline first saw that a better way was so desperately needed. …Lessons from working for two Prime Ministe...

John is a systems thinker at Impro. In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to him about… …What even is systems thinking? …What led public services into meltdown. …How can we rebuild in the best way for citizens? …Lessons from The Netherlands who now have empty places in prisons. …Let’s not jump to digital solutions (“We need an app for that”). …And more   You can contact John here.. https://www.imp...

Clare Wightman is CEO of Grapevine - Coventry and Warwickshire. In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to her about… …Strengthening people by putting love, hope, intimacy and connectedness first. …Building power to challenge for system change. …Creating a culture that thrives and endures through stories. …Why one of the hottest risks of striving to collaborate is to our individual psychological saf...

David is the founder of the Relationships Project and Community Links and one of the founders of A Better Way. In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to him about…   …How David’s life’s work led to the movement for A Better Way …How relationships have suffered as the public sector has changed …Why 9.75 miilion pandemic volunteers are not “an army” …What it takes to raise our sights and shift the so...

Khatija is the CEO of Ideal for All, a charity and social enterprise based in Sandwell. In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to her about… …Being truly user-led. …How a one-stop-shop delivers better outcomes at less cost. …Standing with people to claim what’s rightfully theirs …The value of local partnerships and the threats posed by large and national organisations. Khatija can be reached via: ...

Kathy is the CEO of Children England and one of the founders of A Better Way. In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to her about… …How competition and contracting have wasted energy and money and undermined trust, collaboration and purpose …Who should be the catalysts for change and how we need to listen …Lessons to be learned from local, decentralised successes …Kathy’s journey from practitioner...

Cate is the CEO of Surrey Youth Focus. In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to her about… …Being a positive insurgent or “disrupter in chief,” challenging but valued by many different players in the system around children and young people …How Cate’s experience as a parent provided the insight that led her to activism. …How confidence and trust to change things is built in a different kind of con...

Amanda is a Trustee for The Lankelly Trust Foundation. In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to her about… …What happened when women who had survived lifetime trauma took their city council to court …Making sure you get your seat at the table …What makes organisations good at drawing on lived experience to redesign services …And other topics Get more from A Better Way Network at https://www.better...

Karin is the Chief Executive of Cambridge House. In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to her about… …Expertise in change making …Whether charities do their masters’ bidding …Radical listening’s implications for leadership, trust and disagreements …And other topics Karin can be reached via: www.ch1889.org info@ch1889.org Get more from A Better Way Network at https://www.betterway.network/ Podcast...

Paul is the Founder Of eCulture Solutions. In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to him about… …The power of virtual cooperation to help make our places thrive …Recognising who does the caring in our communities and coming together virtually and IRL to enable them …Whether designing services in partnership with people who use them can reduce “institutional nervousness” …And other topics Paul can b...

Olivia is the Deputy Director, People and Communities for NHS England. In this episode, Polly and Roger talk to her about… …Organising around how individuals and communities hope to live their best lives …Breaking out of community and individual stereotypes – and the notion that involvement is the soft and fluffy side of our work …The power of what can happen when lived and learned experience are...