Helena shares her background in design & build, what it was like managing pregnancy in a client-facing role, and why transparency, planning, and trust are essential when balancing projects and maternity leave. The conversation explores outdated industry norms around flexibility, the loss of talented mothers due to rigid systems, and why outcomes matter more than hours at a desk.

They also dive into how motherhood reshaped Helena’s perspective on accessibility in the built environment — and why inclusive design should never be a retrofit or afterthought.

This is an episode about leadership, flexibility, and designing better systems — both in our workplaces and in the spaces we create.

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They also explore:

• How parenthood exposed everyday access barriers (and why it changed Helena’s design lens)
  
  
• Why physical accessibility is being left behind in wider inclusion conversations
  
  
• The difference between inclusive design and “retrofit” afterthought solutions
  
  
• Announcing pregnancy on client projects: what works, what doesn’t, and when to share it
  
  
• The “buddy system” approach that protects the client experience and grows junior talent
  
  
• Why the “mothers are less ambitious” narrative is wrong — and what’s actually true
  
  
• The outdated 9–5 model in a two-income world (and why flexibility is already happening elsewhere)
  
  
• Trust + communication as the real foundation of flexible work
  
  
• Examples of accessibility done well — and what most buildings still get wrong

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