Introducing ITV’s Play Time - the groundbreaking new TV show championing SEND children with Céin McGillicuddy and Andy Kinnear
Release Date: 11/09/2025
Helping Learning To Stick with Dr Susie Nyman
The SENDcast
As we approach the end of 2025, we want to take a moment to express our heartfelt thanks to you - our wonderful listeners! It has been another remarkable year with 52 episodes recorded, 35 new guest speakers and 100,000 downloads. Thank you for being part of this journey! I’m excited to share our latest episode of the SENDcast, where we explore the concept of "sticky learning" with the legendary Dr. Susie Nyman! A recently retired curriculum manager with 29 years of experience, Susie shares her insights on how to make learning truly resonate with students, especially those with special...
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How to Make an Effective Education, Health and Care Plan with Ekaterina Harrison
The SENDcast
Despite being central to support for children with SEND, the Education, Health, and Care Plan (EHCP) process is often overwhelming and confusing for families. Ekaterina Harrison, a solicitor and author of the EHCP Handbook, joins Dale to discuss ‘How to Make an Effective Education, Health and Care Plan’. Ekaterina offers vital legal insights and personal strategies to help listeners take informed, confident steps - whether reviewing an EHCP for the first time or requesting changes to an existing plan. “It's quite a sad state of affairs to have trickery going on in this sector”....
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Sensory Struggles With Eating with Dr Joanna Grace
The SENDcast
Can you believe it’s already December? With the holiday season upon us, festivities often revolve around food, which can be particularly stressful for families with fussy eaters - something I can relate to with my 7-year-old son at mealtimes. Eating is essential for our health and well-being, yet it can become a source of anxiety for many families. In this episode, Dr Joanna Grace, sensory engagement and inclusion specialist, shares her personal journey as a fussy eater and highlights that sensory issues often relate more to texture than taste. “The emotional tension is there because you...
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Adaptive Teaching Through 5 Phases of the Lesson with Sara Alston
The SENDcast
In our latest episode of the SENDcast, we tackle an important topic that often gets lost in the debate over terminology: the practical aspects of differentiation and adaptive teaching. Too much discussion focuses on what to call these strategies, and not enough on how to effectively implement them. Today, Sara Alston, an experienced SEND and Safeguarding consultant, joins Dale in the studio to look at the and how to implement adaptive teaching strategies across them: “There are two key elements; 1. Involving, engaging and supporting all the children in the class and 2. it's about...
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Sensory Processing – Exactly How Does It Impact On Daily Life? with Ali Neal
The SENDcast
It can be difficult to understand exactly how much we use our senses for all daily tasks. Today, Dale discusses the fascinating world of sensory processing with our special guest, Ali Neal, an experienced occupational therapist. She discusses how sensory processing impacts daily life, particularly for children and individuals in educational settings. Ali takes us through a fun and relatable exercise involving sweets, illustrating how sensory processing plays a role in even the simplest tasks. Make sure you grab a sweet before tuning in (a great excuse to enjoy a treat)! Ali breaks down the...
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Breaking the Cycle: How Informed Parents Can Change the SEND System with Samantha Ryan
The SENDcast
Navigating the SEND system can be overwhelming, and many parents find themselves without essential information until it’s too late. Unfortunately, there’s no handbook to guide us. Often, parents only begin to understand SEN processes, the graduated approach, and even SEN law when their child is already struggling. This week, we welcome Samantha Ryan, a neurodivergent mother, SEND advocate, and author. In this insightful episode, Samantha shares her journey as a parent navigating the complex SEND system, advocating for her autistic son who has been out of school since March 2024. With her...
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Introducing ITV’s Play Time - the groundbreaking new TV show championing SEND children with Céin McGillicuddy and Andy Kinnear
The SENDcast
Have you heard of the TV show The Assembly? I’m thrilled to announce that the series director, Céin McGillicuddy and his creative partner Andy Kinnear, have joined Dale on the podcast to discuss their brand-new pilot show on ITV – Play Time! Play Time features six neurodivergent comedians visiting a primary school and are challenged, in the course of one school day, to create and perform an original stage play that’s based entirely on the ideas of a group of 6 to 8 year old school children, many of them from the school’s SEND department. Céin and Andy share their behind-the-scenes...
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Exploring Neuro-Dramatic-Play with Dr Sue Jennings
The SENDcast
In this week’s episode, Dr Sue Jennings, a leading expert in neuro-dramatic play and drama therapy, joins Dale to explore Neuro-Dramatic-Play (NDP). Sue explains that NDP is an attachment-based approach designed to help children, particularly those with negative early experiences, build connections through play. She emphasises the critical role of early attachment, noting that it begins even before birth and is essential for healthy emotional development. Sue shares her incredible stories having worked across over 30 countries, including her time living with a tribal community in Malaysia....
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Specialist Online Provision for Neurodivergent Learners with Cathy Wassell
The SENDcast
The mainstream school environment can be overwhelming for many neurodivergent students, with sensory overload and social challenges often creating significant barriers to learning. Today, we explore an alternative educational pathway that removes these obstacles – a ‘Specialist Online Provision for Neurodivergent Learners’. In this episode, Dale speaks to Cathy Wassall, founder and CEO of the Autistic Girls Network and the Haven Online School. Cathy, a neurodivergent advocate and mother to neurodivergent young adults, shares her journey and insights into how online education can create a...
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The Experiences of Girls in School with Diagnosed/Undiagnosed ADHD with Louise Belshaw
The SENDcast
With ADHD awareness month upon us, we wanted to discuss the important topic of ‘the experiences of girls in school with diagnosed/undiagnosed ADHD’. In this episode, Louise Belshaw, who has ADHD and is a mother to two adult children with the condition, shares her extensive experience as a secondary teacher and her specialisation in ADHD in females. She highlights that: “I've seen too many girls not get the diagnosis, or not go forward with the diagnosis, because they're not being supported by school and the teachers don't know what ADHD in girls looks...
info_outlineHave you heard of the TV show The Assembly? I’m thrilled to announce that the series director, Céin McGillicuddy and his creative partner Andy Kinnear, have joined Dale on the podcast to discuss their brand-new pilot show on ITV – Play Time!
Play Time features six neurodivergent comedians visiting a primary school and are challenged, in the course of one school day, to create and perform an original stage play that’s based entirely on the ideas of a group of 6 to 8 year old school children, many of them from the school’s SEND department.
Céin and Andy share their behind-the-scenes experience of creating Play Time, their inspiration for the show and why they feel it’s important to make inclusive shows like this. Positive representation of SEND in mainstream media, such as Play Time, helps normalise these experiences and reduces the sense of ‘other’ often associated with SEND.
“Play Time is about listening to children that don't usually get heard.”
The show is now available on ITVX and YouTube and will be broadcast on ITV tonight at 11.15pm. Make sure you watch this heart-warming, feel-good show. We hope you enjoy watching it as much as we did! Please tell your friends and family and spread the word!
View all podcasts available or visit our SENDcast sessions shop!
Watch the show on
ITVx, YouTube or ITV
Live on ITV
Sunday 9th November at 11.15pm
Watch the Trailer here: https://vimeo.com/1122234831/b93216bdcb
Would you like Play Time to come to your school?
If anyone listening likes the idea of the comedians visiting their school in a future episode, no matter where in the UK you are, please do feel free to drop Céin an email on cein@nannycaddie.co.uk.
About Céin McGillicuddy
Céin McGillicuddy is the comedy writer/director behind comedies Top Coppers, Sexy Murder and Law Man as well as the director of the most recent two series of the BAFTA winning Horrible Histories. Working across both scripted and unscripted, Céin was also the showrunner and series director behind the return of cult hit GamesMaster in 2021 as well as series directing the bold new interview series The Assembly on ITV. Following a late-stage diagnosis for autism, he was inspired to combine his work in comedy and on The Assembly to co-create Play Time; a brand new, charming comedy entertainment format that champions neurodivergent adults and children. Out now on ITVX and YouTube.
About Andy Kinnear
Andy Kinnear is a freelance comedy Editor and writer. A 15 year editing career working on Bafta winning Comedy and Entertainment from Facejacker and Derren Brown, through to scripted comedy such as Harry & Paul, Trying, Cuckoo, Here We Go and Smoggie Queens has established him as one of the most sought after Editors in the industry. His writing partnership with Céin Mcgillicuddy includes cult hit Top Coppers, Sexy Murder and Law Man and their most recent collaboration: Play Time - a brand new, charming comedy entertainment format that champions neurodivergent adults and children. Out now on ITVX and YouTube.
Contact Céin
https://www.instagram.com/ceinmcg/
Contact Andy
Useful Links
- B Squared Website – www.bsquared.co.uk
- Meeting with Dale to find out about B Squared - https://calendly.com/b-squared-team/overview-of-b-squared-sendcast
- Email Dale – dale@bsquared.co.uk
- Subscribe to the SENDcast - https://www.thesendcast.com/subscribe
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