EXCLUSIVE: Channel 4 has greenlit a sitcom described as a “comedic love letter to school support staff and teachers across the UK.”
BAFTA-winning producer Afolabi Kuti is EPing Schooled from Delia-René-Donaldson, which is based on the writer’s experiences in pastoral care at a London academy.
The series follows Kayleigh Clarke, a newly appointed pastoral Head of Year 10 with zero teaching experience and little patience for teenagers as she faces off with everything from inspections and AI-generated scandals to riotous parents’ evenings. Despite the lack of resources, overworked staff and relentless students, Kayleigh is determined to turn her lack of credentials into a strength as she forms unexpected bonds and discovers that sometimes empathy is the best tool for survival.
Produced by Kuti’s indie Broedmachine, Schooled comes from Channel 4 and GroupM Motion Entertainment’s Diverse Indies Fund, a ring-fenced fund set up to support small and medium sized ethnically diverse-led production companies to produce new projects. It has been doing the rounds for quite a few years, having previously been made as a Sky pilot titled Kisses and Bumflicks in 2020.
Channel 4 comedy boss Charlie Perkins said: “We’re thrilled to be working with Broedmachine on their first sitcom, Schooled – a subject matter timely, yet universal; age-old in comedy yet updated through Delia’s unique voice. It’s been amazing to see how many brilliant names have come through the Writers Room alone, to make this show feel contemporary and exciting, and we can’t wait for what’s to come in Schooled’s first series.”
Kuti added: “Delia’s voice was always destined to cut through the noise. She’s created a show that’s wholly reflective of her – fresh, authentic, hilarious and full of heart.”
Kuti, who won a BAFTA for 2016 short Home, is EP and the writing team includes Yemi Oyefuwa (Smothered, Dreaming Whilst Black), Tyrell Williams (Time Bandits, Hoodocumentary) and script editor Jeremy Dyson (We Are Lady Parts, The Curse, Bad Education). Cast will be announced in due course.
