Growing Hope Conversations

In this episode of Holding Hope, Naomi is joined by Natalie Williams, Chief Executive of Jubilee +, for a powerful conversation about belonging, neurodiversity, leadership and the mercy of God. Natalie shares openly about growing up in poverty, struggling to feel at home in church, and discovering a hope in Jesus that widened her horizons and changed the direction of her life. She reflects on what...

This is a Holding Hope podcast from Growing Hope, a charity offering free therapy for children and young people with additional needs, and support for their families. Join our host and founder, Dr Naomi Fox, as she explores how organisations and individuals can hold onto the hope of Jesus when supporting people in difficult circumstances.   In this episode, we’re joined by Nathan Dudley, founder a...

This is a Holding Hope podcast from Growing Hope, a charity offering free therapy for children and young people with additional needs, and support for their families. Join our host and founder, Dr Naomi Fox, as she explores how organisations and individuals can hold onto the hope of Jesus when supporting people in difficult circumstances. In this episode, join Naomi as she interviews worship leade...

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast. This week we’re joined by Dr Joy Allan, a theologian, preacher and speaker, and works as the Church Engagement and Relationship Manager for the Difference course, part of the Reconciling Leaders' Network. Her passion and expertise is disability theology, mental health theology and pastoral care. Joy shares her journey as a theologian, champion of the...

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast. This week on the podcast we’re joined by Jade and John Reynolds, an inter-abled couple who share their experiences of disability, faith and parenting through social media. In Part 2 of Bambi's conversation with Jade and John explore the power of humour in navigating the challenges of disability and diagnoses. They share personal stories of using comed...

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast. This week on the podcast we’re joined by Jade and John Reynolds, an inter-abled couple who share their experiences of disability, faith and parenting through social media. In Part 1 of Bambi's conversation with Jade and John, they discuss the dynamics of living with disabilities, parenting, and faith. They share personal stories, including the realiti...

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast. This week on the podcast we’re joined by Dr Minna Moffatt-Feldman, the Accessibility Coordinator for Caritas Salford. Caritas work alongside people who are experiencing poverty, disadvantage, discrimination and homelessness, helping them to transform their lives with dignity.  In this episode, Minna shares her experiences as a deaf individual working...

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast.  In this episode, we’re joined by David and Joanna Whale, clergy parents of children with additional needs, and admins of the Facebook groups Clergy Parents of Children with Additional Needs (UK) and Christian Parents of Children with Additional Needs. David and Jo share their experiences of life navigating the challenges of parenting children with ad...

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast. This week on the podcast we’re joined by Erin Burnett, an author, speaker and theology student from Northern Ireland. Her autism diagnosis at the age of 18 helped her understand much of her anxiety as a younger teenager, and why the typical ways of talking about God just didn't connect with her. She was inspired to write With All Your Mind: Autism and...

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast. This week on the podcast we’re joined by Tanya Van Dalen. Tanya is an occupational therapist, manager at Growbaby Kingston and author of Sensory Parenting for Sensory Children.  Tanya talks with Bambi French about faith, parenting, and finding hope in the middle of life’s challenges. Drawing from her experience as a mum, occupational therapist, and au...

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast. This week on the podcast we’re joined by Joe Lowther, CEO of KICK, a charity whose mission is to transform young people’s lives, with God’s love, through sport and support. ⁠ Joe Lowther is married to Laura and has 3 sons. He was previously a principal of an outstanding school and is now CEO of KICK. How can sport and faith bring belonging to children...

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast. In this episode, Clare Luther, parent educator, children’s book author, and emotional growth speaker, shares her journey of faith, parenting, and emotional resilience. Clare starts to unpack her unique Daesy Dialogue framework - designed to guide and equip parents, caregivers and teachers to promote emotional growth in a constructive and healthy way....

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast. This week is Part 2 of our conversation with Carrie Grant MBE. Carrie is a parent of four children with special educational needs, TV presenter, vocal coach, leadership coach, ordained minister and campaigner for families with SEND. In Part 2, Carrie talks about her own experiences of parenting SEN children, reflecting on the challenges of the educati...

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast.    In this week’s podcast we’re thrilled to be joined by Carrie Grant MBE. Carrie is a parent of four children with special educational needs, TV presenter, vocal coach, leadership coach, ordained minister and campaigner for families with SEND.   This week is Part 1 of Bambi’s conversation with Carrie. Carrie reflects on raising four children (three b...

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast.  This week, we're joined by Dr. Léon Van Ommen, Co-director of the Centre for Autism and Theology at the University of Aberdeen.  Léon highlights practical and theologically rooted ways to support neurodivergent individuals within worship and church life. He explains how 'normal church habits' might be exhausting for some neurodiverse people, and two...

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast. The podcast from Growing Hope, a charity offering free therapy for children and young people with additional needs, and support for their families. Join our host, Bambi French, as she welcomes guests who’ve been there - sharing real stories, honest struggles, and how churches can truly make a difference. In this episode, we're joined by Sophie Killing...

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast. The podcast from Growing Hope, a charity offering free therapy for children and young people with additional needs, and support for their families. Join our host, Bambi French, as she welcomes guests who’ve been there - sharing real stories, honest struggles, and how churches can truly make a difference. In this week’s episode we’re excited to be join...

Welcome to Growing Hope Conversations Podcast. The podcast from Growing Hope, a charity offering free therapy for children and young people with additional needs, and support for their families. In this episode, Rachel tells Bambi about her family’s journey of raising children with additional needs. She reflects honestly on grief, joy, and the unexpected gifts along the way. Rachel also speaks abo...

Growing Hope Conversations // Ep.12 Sophie Guthrie-Kummer & Pregnancy Choices // This is the last episode in our series and it is such an interesting one! Our hosts Naomi and Mark chat to Sophie about pregnancy choices and additional needs. Sophie is the Director at Choices – a charity which supports parents through pregnancy and beyond. You can face really difficult choices when you're pregnant....

Growing Hope Conversations // Ep.11 Kay Morgan-Gurr & Public Accessibility // This week Naomi and Mark talk to Kay. Kay is Co-founder of the Additional Needs Alliance and the current chair of Children Matter. She is also the disability advisor to Spring Harvest and serves on the Evangelical Alliance council. Kay uses a wheelchair and has a visual impairment. In this episode Kay shares her experien...

Growing Hope Conversations // Ep.10 Sarah Hutt and Phil Guthrie - Disability and Conflict // This week Naomi and Mark talk to Sarah and Phil the co-founders of Crux. Crux aims to help people and communities navigate conflict. They want to equip people to have the conversations that matter. Having a child with additional needs is complex. There are often difficult decisions and conversations that n...

Growing Hope Conversations // Ep.9 John Naude & Disability and the Church // This week our hosts Naomi & Mark have a conversation with John Naude, the Associate Vicar at The Point Church in Burgess Hill. John was born with spina bifida and was the first stipendiary (paid) clergyman to use a wheelchair. There is a perception in our society (and in the church) that you can’t be disabled and lead. We...

Growing Hope Conversations // Ep.8 Lynn McCann & SEN Schooling // This week we are joined on Growing Hope Conversations by Lynn McCann to chat about SEN schooling. As Mark says in the episode - Children and young people only get one chance at their school years so making sure they get the right support and encouragement is absolutely vital. Lynn McCann is an Autism Specialist Teacher with Reach Ou...

Growing Hope Conversations // Ep.7 Beth Mellor & Additional Needs Parenting // Naomi and Mark chat with Beth Mellor about additional needs parenting. In 2015 Beth set up Take 5 & Chat in Whitley Bay to create a safe space for parents and carers to meet together over a slice of homemade cake. Beth understands the anxieties many parents face on their own and wanted to create a community of families...

Growing Hope Conversations // Ep.6 Nicola Watson & Additional Needs and Isolation // This week our hosts talk to Nicola Watson who is the Additional Needs Co-ordinator for Care for the Family. Nicola also has 3 children of her own, one of whom has global developmental delay. In this episode Nicola shares her advice as a professional, working with families who have children with medical, additional...