About this episode

Georgia Jones and Kelsey Parker discuss education and child development with Tom Le Tissier, focusing on screen use and the 11+ exam.

This week Georgia Jones and Kelsey Parker are joined by Tom Le Tissier, Head of Alleyn's Regent's Park, for a chat about school choices, screens and what actually makes children thrive, and yes, it's his very first podcast. Tom explains the 11+ properly (Georgia had to Google it that morning), why more families are looking for a route around it, and how quickly children soak up their parents' panic. Then it goes deeper: the difference between screen time and screen use, why an iPad should just be "an extension of the pencil case," and how we've got more protective in the real world at exactly the moment we should be loosening the reins. Plus teaching children to fail well, why the best athletes and musicians specialise late, and his top five things he wishes parents understood about school. Kelsey opens up about how her daughter Aurelia was held after losing Phoenix, Georgia shares the maths teacher who put her off numbers for life, and Tom confesses to sprinting flat out in an inflatable shark costume while every other teacher was just having a laugh. Grab a cuppa and get comfy. Alleyn's Regent's Park is a co-educational preparatory school for children aged 3 to 11, offering an…

People in this episode

Hosts: Georgia Jones, Kelsey Parker

Guest: Tom Le Tissier

Topics covered

• school choices
• screen time vs screen use
• children's development
• parenting
• education
• 11+ exam

Keywords

• screen time
• 11+ exam
• children's education
• parenting advice
• iPads
• children's development
• failure
• specialization

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Alleyn's Regent's Park

Places: North London, Regent's Park, London Zoo

More episodes of Mum's The Word! With Georgia Jones & Kelsey Parker

• 'We're WORSE Than America' | Rhiannon Lambert on the crisis Poisoning Our Kids & Why Eating Healthy Costs DOUBLE · September 6, 2026 · 45 min
• 'The Only Way Is Essex Has Nothing on My Class' | Mr P (Lee Parkinson) on Raising Triplets, School Readiness Myths & Why Boredom Is a Gift · August 30, 2026 · 33 min
• 'He's Had To Man Up Fast' | Georgia Jones & Kelsey Parker On First-Time Dads & Blended Family Life · August 23, 2026 · 27 min
• 'It Was the Greatest Honour of My Life' | Shaughna Phillips on Losing Her Dad at 22, Keeping Lucia Home & Grieving While Parenting · August 16, 2026 · 43 min
• 'You're Making Them Worse' | Georgia Jones & Kelsey Parker's Brutal Verdict on Gentle Parenting · August 9, 2026 · 33 min
• 'Contraception Parks & Birthing a Velociraptor' | Comedian Hannah East on Unhinged Mum Life, Going on Tour & Why Yellow Is Her Era Now · August 2, 2026 · 52 min

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Mum's The Word! With Georgia Jones & Kelsey Parker podcast page.