Meet Susan and Katie
Katie Brennan
BWY Dip. BSc (Hons) ACMA CGMA
Growing up, sport for me was not enjoyable I struggled with co-ordination and competitive sports at school left me feeling inadequate. It wasn't until I was 21 that I discovered the perfect physical activity for me, yoga. Although this started as a physical practice I soon became hooked on the other benefits it had to offer. Breathing, meditation and relaxation practices became my saviour and left me wishing I had these skills throughout my school life. I qualified as a yoga teacher and a CIMA accountant in the same year and for many years balanced teaching yoga to adults and children with a career at Greater Manchester Police.
Yoga techniques literally saved my sanity from 2007 when my husband was diagnosed with cancer and battled this for the next 8 years until his death in 2015 leaving me with a young child as devastated by grief as myself.
This experience drove me to follow my passion to bring yoga and mindfulness to all children just as was the wish for myself. Susan and I, having been friends since our yoga training days, joined forces in 2016 to consolidate our years of experience teaching children including our own and from self-practice and development to give birth to the Yoginis Yoga Training programme as it exists today.
Susan Hartley
BWY Dip. Youth Mindfulness Teacher
As a child and throughout adulthood I have always had an interest in sport and keeping active. As a family we have enjoyed badminton on a Saturday morning, cycling especially on holiday and walking, usually with a bribe for the children at the finish!!
I didn't discover yoga until my mid 30's, but it resonated with me so much that I chose it as a career path after my son was born in 2005. This is where I met my business partner Katie and we discovered we had a similar passion teaching kids yoga.
Due to my own life experiences including mental health challenges and the loss of my husband to cancer in 2019, I know how much yoga and it's techniques has helped us as a family right up to this day.
I am very passionate about the work we do in helping children to get the best start in life and providing them with ongoing tools to navigate the world as they get older as I have done with my own children and grandchildren.
Getter older has brought some physical challenges but the great thing about yoga is that it can be adapted for any body and any ability and this has been mirrored in my work with special needs groups.
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Yoginis Yoga was Founded by Susan Hartley & Katie Brennan
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Yoginis Yoga have been delivering yoga sessions and training to schools and nurseries since 2006 including special needs
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Sue and Katie are 500hr+ trained by British Wheel of Yoga, the largest UK yoga organisation approved by Sports England, training teachers since 1971
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Yoginis Yoga combine ancient techniques combined with biomechanics and neuroscience
Our Vision
Our vision is that yoga and mindfulness for health, mental and emotional wellbeing is available to all children regardless of ability or socio-economic background.
We implement this by training those who work in early years, primary schools and with young people to deliver our unique and tested yoga and mindfulness programme, based on our four key principles K*I*N*D.
Our schemes of work combine the ancient art of yoga and mindfulness with the latest research in neuroscience and bio-mechanics to offer techniques which contribute to reducing the physical and mental health challenges increasingly faced by children today.
Featuring Yoginis Yoga
Mark Taylor hosts a regular podcasts on Education on Fire, sharing stories and resources to help children live their best life. Susan appeared on his show in 2020, talking about the importance of yoga and well-being for children.
Primary school teacher and PE expert Ryan Ellis hosts regular podcasts on the PE Umbrella, committed to the delivery of outstanding PE around the world. Susan joined Ryan in 2020 to talk about the inclusion of yoga sessions as part of PE and the education syllabus.
Kathy Brodie's Early Years TV features interviews, discussions, and presentations from leading theorists and practitioners to help professional development for early years practitioners and educators. Katie and Sue first appeared on EYTV in 2019 and will be back for more in July 2020.
Award wining author, lecturer and trainer in the field of early childhood education, care and neuroscience. Yoginis Yoga provided content for her 2020 'keep your cool toolbox', a free app designed to help children and young people to manage their emotions.