What if the biggest problem in education isn't too much choice but not enough of it, for the people who need it most?

In this episode, we sit on the other side of the mic as David Cameron puts our new book, Pick 'n' Mix Education, under the microscope. Built around the analogy of choosing sweets at Woolworths, the book argues that education shouldn't be something done to parents and young people - it should be something they actively navigate. David pushes back hard, and the conversation ranges from school choice and social mobility to "place not politics," community regeneration, and why the book ends up working more like a permission slip than a manifesto.

We cover:

• The Woolworths "pick and mix" analogy at the heart of the book
• Why we wrote it for parents, not educators
• Parental choice vs. parental choices and why the distinction matters
• How supplementary education (tutoring, enrichment) favours families with money
• Turning choice into an engine for equality rather than inequality
• Why the book isn't proposing a new pathway, just permission to choose one
• The link between active parenting and continuous, revisable choice
• "Place not politics": rethinking education around community, not just the individual
• "It takes a village" - why schools can't carry social care and mental health alone
• A real-world regeneration case study rebuilding a whole community at once
• The Open School concept and expanding access beyond your local catchment
• Vouchers, online learning, and rethinking who gets access to what

Why listen?

If you've ever felt like education choices are something that happen to your family rather than decisions you get to make, this conversation reframes the whole picture. David Cameron doesn't let Ben and Steve off easy - he opens by saying he fundamentally disagrees with the book's premise - and what follows is a genuinely challenging, well-argued debate about choice, community, and what parents are actually entitled to ask for.

Chapters

0:00 Intro

2:21 A Birthday, the Fringe, and a Lifetime Achievement Award

6:11 What Is Pick 'n' Mix Education? The Woolworths Analogy Explained

10:06 Parental Choice vs Parental Choices: Why the Distinction Matters

14:18 Turning Choice Into an Engine for Equality, Not Inequality

19:04 Active Parenting: Why Choice Should Never Be a One-Off Decision

23:40 Place Not Politics: Rethinking Education Around Community

25:46 "It Takes a Village": Why Schools Can't Fix Everything Alone

32:26 Accrington, Regeneration, and Rebuilding a Whole Community

37:22 The Book as a "Permission Slip," Not a Manifesto

40:50 The Open School Vision and the Girl Who'd "Never Been to Edinburgh"

44:51 Coffee Shops, Vouchers, and Rethinking Access to Learning

49:11 Bringing It Together: Choice, Compassion, and Community

Thanks so much for joining us again for another episode - we appreciate you.Ben & Steve xFind out more about Crown House Publishing

Check out all about EdufuturistsWant to sponsor future episodes or get involved with the Edufuturists work? Get in touchGrab your copy of the new Pick 'n' Mix Education book

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