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What Shabnum talks about

Ready-to-book episode angles — each one field-tested on stages and in the studio. Pick a direction, or bring your own.

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01
Parent partnership is not a “nice to have,” it’s core SEND infrastructure

Many systems talk about working with parents, but treat them as peripheral once professionals step in. Shabnum speaks from experience about how early progress depends on trusting parents as consistent…

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02
Recognition often comes before confidence and that’s where leadership is tested

Public recognition doesn’t always arrive after someone feels ready for it. Shabnum talks about being pulled onto stages and into media as visibility accelerated, and having to develop confidence, voic…

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03
International comparisons show the UK has SEND strengths it fails to back

Shabnum has seen early years SEND practice outside the UK first-hand, including visiting nurseries abroad and discussing how different systems approach support pathways. Her perspective isn’t that the…

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04
Private and voluntary early years settings are propping up public outcomes without public leverage

Policy conversations still treat early years like childcare logistics, not national education infrastructure. Meanwhile, parliamentary scrutiny has been explicit that the SEND system is under strain a…

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05
Early years is where the SEND crisis either gets contained or explodes

Nationally, the number of children and young people with EHC plans reached around 638,700 in January 2025, and the trajectory continues upward. Shabnum argues that treating SEND as a school-age issue …

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06
You don’t need permission to become a leader in education

Shabnum speaks to those who didn’t start with status or strategy roles, but learned leadership by showing up every day on the frontline. Her story reframes leadership as something earned through servi…

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07
Waiting for a diagnosis is an institutional habit that harms children

Systems often act like support must be “earned” through paperwork, but children don’t live on administrative timelines. Shabnum’s work shows that meaningful provision can-and should-begin before a dia…

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