Coaching That Sticks
Many schools have invested in coaching.
Few have made it stick.
The Problem
We know that coaching and coaching approaches to leadership can make a difference in schools, but most training doesn’t survive contact with real school life.
Knowledge and skills fade and aren't used in the moments where they could make a difference: the corridor conversation after a difficult lesson; the team meeting where thinking is stuck; the follow-up that never quite happens.
Conversations default back to advice, direction or quick problem-solving.
That’s the gap this work focuses on.
Not adding something new, but improving the quality of the conversations already happening every day - so they actually lead somewhere.
What this looks like in practice:
Instead of:
“You should do this…”
you hear:
“What have you already tried?”
—
Instead of:
“Here’s what I would do…”
you hear:
“How would you like next lesson to be different?”
—
And instead of conversations ending with:
“Let me know how it goes…”
they finish:
“What will you do next - and when?”
This work isn’t about introducing new conversations.
It’s about changing what people say and do in the ones they’re already having.
The difference shows up quickly - in conversations that are already happening:
Staff move from giving advice to developing thinking
Professional learning leads to real changes in the classroom
Leaders spend less time solving problems for others
Students take more ownership of their learning and leadership
Conversations have clarity and lead to defined next steps
How we might work together
This programme focuses on three areas: mindset, skills and practical application - to close the gap between knowing and doing.
Whole Staff Session - building a shared foundation
Leadership Programme - embedding practice over time
Student Leadership - developing coaching skills in young people
1-1 Coaching - personalised development for individual leaders
What people say
"I can genuinely say that working with Claire on the one-to-one coaching CPD programme has been one of the most valuable professional development experiences I have had to date. I felt truly heard, supported and challenged in a way that pushed me to think differently and, ultimately, grow."
Teacher / Middle Leader, Secondary School, Scotland
I'm Claire Hancox, a qualified and accredited coach and former Depute Headteacher with thirty years experience in Scottish education.
I spent years designing and championing coaching in schools and watched most of it not translate into everyday practice.
It was only through my own experience of coaching and being coached that I began to understand why - and what might work instead.
Make everyday conversations count.
If coaching exists in your school but isn't yet shaping daily practice, that's where I can help.