Wednesday Wisdom
Tooled Up tips for loving parents around the world
17/09/2025
Seeking Balance
As September rolls in, many of us feel the urge to reset. New routines begin, workloads intensify, and family schedules fill up. But amidst the busy, how we can find balance? How can we prioritise tasks and responsibilities with experiences that help us recalibrate?
10/09/2025
Rapid Responses
As usual, September has started with a bang. Schools are back, routines are being re-established and in the Tooled Up office, requests for support from teachers and parents are coming in thick and fast. Questions about classroom practice, concerns raised by families, emerging issues in the media; our inbox is packed full of opportunities to help.
03/09/2025
Back to School Safety
Every parent wants their child to be safe when out and about, crossing busy roads and junctions, going or returning home from school. On school day mornings, things typically feel much more rushed, traffic volumes rise, and children, many of whom are walking or cycling independently, are at higher risk of coming to harm.
27/08/2025
August Angst
There is something about August. It is meant to be a month spent relaxing by the sea or reading nice books and not thinking about anything stressful. Instead, millions of parents have been dealing with the August juggle; exam results, parenting whilst working and the anticipatory anxiety of school return or university/college transition.
13/08/2025
Results-Ready
“Sick to my stomach”, “bracing myself”, “can’t cope”, “scared to death!”, just some of the descriptors parents have used to convey what it feels like to be a relative waiting for their offspring’s high stakes exam results. Across the UK, parents and students await exam results that are released to students tomorrow.
16/07/2025
Holiday Safety
In just a few day’s time (or already, for some schools), children across the UK will finish the academic year and start out on their holiday break. For many parents, it’s a difficult time of year. As well as all the usual work and domestic responsibilities, we’ve got to find ways to keep our kids entertained and occupied. And, of course, safe. Safe in the sun, safe in water, safe on the road, safe on their devices, safe when playing out.
09/07/2025
Talking About Food
At this time of year when, frankly, we might all be running on fumes, food-related stress can quietly build. The long, unstructured days of the holidays loom ahead; days when snacks multiply, routines vanish and worries around eating, exercise and body image can start to simmer.
02/07/2025
Seasonal Overwhelm
Here in the UK, the long summer break is looming. The approach to the holidays is always a busy time of year. For those lucky enough to take some leave, workload often increases, as we rush to finish projects before we put the out of office on. Daily life moves forward in what feels to me like a precarious balance. All the balls can just about remain in the air, so long as nothing unexpected happens, to tip things too far one way.