Meet Phil Henry

Phil Henry has spent over 25 years working with children, not from behind a desk but by being present - in the classroom, in the mud, and everywhere in between.

As a specialist SEMH teacher, he works with the children who find school hardest. The ones who shut down, who can't sit still, who don't yet have the words to say what they're feeling. His job starts with understanding that behaviour is communication, and that a child needs to feel safe and believed in before learning can happen. He's been doing this long enough to know there is never a dead end.

That experience is why Phil writes. Big Blue Blob grew from years of helping children who struggle to name their feelings, and Phil admits he sees a bit of Blue in himself. Keepers of the Realm came from Forest School sessions, watching children who struggle inside come alive outdoors, and from knowing that the rise of blended families needed a story that treated change as something that can be hard and amazing at the same time. His books aren't just stories. They're tools for building language, confidence and feelings, written by someone who has spent a career in the thick of it.

For schools, Phil offers more than an author visit. He brings real classroom experience, genuine understanding, and stories children can fall into. Because when children feel understood, that's where everything begins.