The People Behind It
Hi, we're Jonathan
& Carolyn.
Co-Founders.
Between us we bring over four decades of primary education experience — teaching, leading, and championing every child's right to a playtime that works for them.
The Co-Founders
Two educators. One shared mission.
Jonathan
Co-Founder
Jonathan has spent over twenty years in primary education — teaching, leading and watching children grow. His passion for play began in the classroom and grew into a mission to transform playtime for every child in every school.
Training to become a headteacher gave Jonathan a clear view of the pressures school leaders face — and the gap that playtime consistently falls into. Playground Engagement was born from his determination to fill that gap.
Carolyn
Co-Founder
Carolyn brings two decades of primary teaching experience, including significant time in school leadership teams. As a qualified SENCO with a Master's degree in Education, she has spent her career ensuring that every child — particularly those with additional needs — is genuinely included and supported.
Carolyn has been pivotal in the development of Playground Engagement from the very beginning. Her deep expertise in SEND, inclusion and educational leadership continues to shape and inform everything the company does — from the model itself to the way we work with schools.
Built on Experience
Shaped by the best leaders we have ever worked with.
Over the course of our careers we have been fortunate to work alongside some exceptional school leaders — headteachers who drove genuine school improvement, behaviour specialists, and staff with deep expertise in inclusion, neurodivergent practice and trauma-informed approaches.
The most successful of them shared one thing in common: they put the needs of children first. Not systems. Not data. Children. That is our whole mantra — and it runs through everything we do.
That experience has directly shaped the Playground Engagement model. We do not arrive at a school with assumptions. We listen, we observe, and — most importantly — we speak to the children themselves. Underpinning it all is the Curiosity Approach: the belief that children learn, grow and thrive when they are given the freedom to explore, wonder and discover — on their own terms.
Pupil Voice is at the Heart of What We Do
We speak to children and find out what they love — not what we think they love. Their voices shape every recommendation we make.
Inclusion & SEND Expertise
Informed by years of specialist practice supporting children with additional needs.
Trauma-Informed Practice
We understand that behaviour is communication — and we design provision accordingly.
Behaviour Through Engagement
Rooted in the belief that engaged children are less likely to present challenging behaviour.
Neurodivergent Awareness
Playtime provision that genuinely works for children who think and experience the world differently.
The Curiosity Approach
Inspired by the principle that children learn best through wonder, exploration and self-directed discovery — not prescription.
Jonathan's Story
Why We Started Playground Engagement
I have always been fascinated by play. Not just as a break from learning — but as learning itself. Throughout my career in primary education, my greatest joy was watching children become curious, take ownership and surprise themselves with what they could do. My classroom was never quiet. It was full of games, movement, laughter and discovery.
But over twenty years, I watched the education landscape shift dramatically. Teaching and learning evolved. Schools invested in curriculum, in assessment, in professional development. And yet playtime — one of the most important parts of the school day — was left almost entirely untouched.
"When was the last time new games or creativity in the playground were genuinely explored? Why do we not give children the opportunity to apply what they have learnt — to lead, to create, to connect?"
I started noticing the children who were falling through the gaps. A lonely girl who had never heard of hopscotch. A boy with autism who spent every lunchtime walking the perimeter of the playground alone. Children who were disengaged, anxious or simply bored — not because they were difficult, but because nobody had designed a playtime that worked for them.
I also noticed how football dominated. It is a wonderful sport — but it serves roughly 18% of the school community, and yet it can consume the entire playground. The other 82% are left to find their own way. That is not inclusion. That is not good enough.
When I began training to become a headteacher, something shifted for me. I started to see the full scale of what school leadership involves — the complexity, the responsibility, the sheer number of plates a headteacher has to keep spinning. Playtime is rarely at the top of that list. And I understood why. But I also knew that it should be — because what happens at lunchtime shapes everything that follows in the afternoon, and far beyond.
That is when I realised I did not want to be a headteacher. I wanted to be the person who walks into schools and solves the problem that headteachers do not have the time or the tools to solve themselves. Playground Engagement was born from that moment.
The Moment That Said It All
Three cones, a tassel and a spoon.
My three-year-old son Isaac once took three cones, a tassel from the curtains and a spoon — and invented a game. He explained the rules to me with complete confidence, and we played it together. It was joyful, creative and entirely his own.
That is what I want for every child at playtime. Not a prescribed activity handed down by an adult. Not a sport that only some children enjoy. A space where children can be curious, inventive and free — and where the adults around them know how to nurture that.
That moment with Isaac crystallised everything. It is what Playground Engagement is built on.
A Cause Close to My Heart
Lunchtime staff deserve better.
I have sat in training rooms where lunchtime supervisors were spoken about negatively. They are the least paid members of staff, they receive almost no training, and yet they offer something that teachers often cannot — a different kind of relationship.
Children talk to lunchtime staff. They open up. They feel safe. Those relationships are a safeguarding gateway, a wellbeing lifeline, and a source of genuine belonging for children who might struggle elsewhere.
Part of what Playground Engagement does is change that. We train, support and value lunchtime staff — because when they thrive, children thrive.
What Drives Us
What We Believe
Every child deserves to play
Not just the sporty ones. Not just the confident ones. Every single child — regardless of ability, need or background — deserves a playtime that works for them.
Lunchtime staff are undervalued
They are the least paid, the least trained, and yet they offer something uniquely powerful: relationships built outside the classroom. That matters enormously — for wellbeing, for safeguarding, for belonging.
Children learn best when they lead
Give a child ownership and they will surprise you every time. The best play is child-led, curious and creative — and schools can create the conditions for exactly that.
Playtime should be a highlight
Not a source of anxiety. Not a management problem. A genuine highlight of the school day — where children laugh, connect, explore and grow.
Inclusion is not an add-on
A playground that works for 18% of children is not a good playground. True inclusion means designing provision where every child can find their place.
"I can't express enough how happy it makes me to see children laugh, play and engage with each other."
— Jonathan, Founder
Let's Work Together
Ready to transform playtime in your school?
We would love to hear about your school and explore how we can work together. Get in touch for a free, no-obligation conversation.