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| East life<br />
The Levellers'<br />
co-founders Victoria<br />
Dunsdon and Sophie<br />
Dollar are on a mission<br />
to put balance back<br />
into parenting<br />
Image: Ben Hutton<br />
What prompted you to start The Leveller and<br />
how did you choose the name?<br />
We’re old friends and found ourselves on<br />
maternity leave at the same time. We were doing<br />
the usual new parent ‘stuff’ together - music<br />
classes, baby sensory… the dreaded soft play! Until<br />
we realised that while our children were having<br />
fun, we really weren’t. It felt like such a waste of<br />
our precious time together.<br />
So we decided to do things differently. Less<br />
compromise and sacrifice, more time spent doing<br />
things we’d all enjoy. We spent ages researching<br />
exhibitions, restaurants, live music, books, you<br />
name it, that had something for both adults and<br />
kids. Which is where the idea for The Leveller came<br />
from. We wanted to share our experiences and<br />
challenge the crazy, child-centric status quo. Help<br />
families see that there’s another way: one where<br />
everyone’s needs are met, that puts children and<br />
adults on the same level. So The Leveller felt like an<br />
obvious name for it!<br />
'When everyone's happy, everyone's happier' is<br />
such a good tagline; tell us a bit more about that<br />
concept.<br />
When we do things that everyone enjoys, we all<br />
get so much more out of our time together. The<br />
kids delight in seeing their parents engaged and<br />
present and we're more likely to connect as a<br />
result.<br />
What sorts of activity do you promote?<br />
A huge breadth of things from exhibitions, outdoor<br />
activities and restaurants, to books, recipes, games<br />
and music. You name it! The key factor in deciding<br />
whether something is a leveller is that there must<br />
be something in it for both adults and kids. It<br />
doesn’t need to be expensive or a grand gesture<br />
– great memories can be made in the smallest<br />
6 LOVEEAST<br />
moments, like a quick kitchen disco or some cloud<br />
spotting!<br />
You both work and have young families; how do<br />
you find the time to manage this as well?<br />
I guess, like all parents, we just do our best to<br />
get everything done. We’re deeply passionate<br />
about opening people’s eyes to how much better<br />
family life can be with more balance. The changes<br />
we’ve seen in the quality of our family time since<br />
becoming more leveller-minded are definitely<br />
worth the hard work!<br />
What do you see as the biggest challenge for<br />
young families at the moment?<br />
The perception that our children should be the<br />
centre of the universe. Experts believe that<br />
this obsessive focus is resulting in anxious and<br />
exhausted parents, and a generation of entitled<br />
children who lack the resilience to thrive. It doesn’t<br />
make sense for anyone.<br />
Where do you see this going in future - what<br />
would you like to see happen for The Leveller?<br />
We want to see more and more families reaping<br />
the benefits of better balance.<br />
After the success of our Family Food Experience<br />
with celebrity chef José Pizarro restaurants, we’ll<br />
continue to create great Leveller events in areas<br />
where families are currently missing out, plus we<br />
have our own products in development too. If we<br />
can get a groundswell of parents experiencing and<br />
championing family life “on the level” we genuinely<br />
believe everyone will be happier!<br />
THE LEVELLER<br />
W: the-leveller.com<br />
I: the__leveller/<br />
T: 07739 715 353
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