The Team

Olivia Richards Founder and Primary School Lead

For Olivia, stories have played centre stage for as long as she can remember. Starting out as an English teacher, she soon developed an interest in wellbeing and literacy.

In 2016, she was awarded a prestigious Churchill Fellowship to investigate how schools, charities and prisons in the US and Canada were using reading and writing to improve children and young people’s mental health.

Witnessing the magic of stories used to enhance social and emotional skills, Olivia knew this was something she wanted to bring home and make available to all children. The Story Project was born.

Olivia has worked in many different roles in schools, including as the Lead Practitioner for Wellbeing across a Multi Academy Trust in Surrey, and is continually updating her knowledge and skills. Most recently, she was awarded a Scholarship from St Mary’s University to research the impacts of The Story Project for a PhD.

Unsurprisingly, Olivia is an avid reader and, when not at work, can usually be found under a pile of books, seeking out the next great title for The Story Project collection.

With over 13 years hands-on experience in secondary schools, Sarah knows all too well the need for wellbeing and mental health support for students. Having seen the success of The Story Project at primary level, she is now busy tailoring a programme for use in secondary schools.

In her free time, Sarah enjoys pottering in her garden or playing with her pet pug, Reggie. That’s of course, when she’s not reading!

Sarah Eggleton Secondary School Lead

Sarah is a skilled English teacher and is currently Assistant Headteacher at a secondary school in Manchester, leading on all things literacy. A huge fan of literature herself, Sarah wants everyone to discover the joy of reading and to be able to explore and communicate their own ideas.

Laura Morgan Education Programme and Partnerships Lead

Laura comes from a primary background, having been a Deputy Head in a large Keighley school for a number of years. Since then, she has led an ITT organisation, worked with schools across the country supporting their attainment and progress improvement and facilitated NPQs and the ECF for Teaching School Hubs.

Fiona McCrudden Education Support Officer

Fiona worked at a primary school in Bradford for 14 years in a variety of school business roles, before moving into the charity sector. She is also a School Governor, with a focus on the Quality of Education.

She understands the challenges schools face strategically and logistically and is the behind the scenes back bone of The Story Project. Fiona is here to support you throughout your Story Project journey.

Kate Butler

Our Partners

We’re grateful to the following organisations for their funding and support. With their help, we are building a community to inspire lifelong wellbeing.

Featured In

We’re proud of what others have to say about us. Take a look at some of the media coverage we’ve attracted.

The Story Project Vision

We believe in a future where all children have the tools, skills and knowledge they need to practise life-long wellbeing, making healthier choices for themselves and others.

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