During the 2025–2026 academic year, six cohorts of leaders and staff from across the Meridian Trust successfully completed the Kanevolve Train the Coaches Programme, designed and facilitated by John Kane (Kanevolve). The programme has developed a growing network of skilled coaches capable of embedding coaching behaviours into leadership, teacher development and organisational culture.

Rather than viewing coaching as a standalone intervention, the programme positioned coaching as a way of leading—one that develops greater ownership, reflective practice, professional dialogue and sustainable improvement. Across three highly practical workshops, participants progressively developed the knowledge, skills and confidence required to use coaching effectively within their own settings. The programme combined theory, deliberate practice, peer feedback and reflection, ensuring participants left with practical approaches ready to implement immediately within their schools.

1. Key Principles Covered

The programme introduced coaching as a leadership behaviour that develops thinking, ownership and accountability rather than dependence on leaders. Participants explored the distinction between coaching, mentoring and directive leadership, learning when each approach is most appropriate.

Central themes included trust, active listening, powerful questioning, reflective dialogue, psychological safety and empowering others to find their own solutions. Throughout the programme, coaching was presented as a means of developing individuals, strengthening teams and contributing to a sustainable coaching culture.

2. Programme Content

Across three workshops, participants progressed from understanding coaching principles to applying them confidently in practice. The programme covered:

• Coaching principles and the TGROW model.
• Active listening and powerful questioning.
• Practical coaching conversations and peer feedback.
• Team and group coaching approaches.
• Instructional coaching and teacher development.
• Embedding coaching within leadership and organisational culture.

Each session built upon the previous one, ensuring participants continually practised, reflected upon and refined their coaching skills.

3. Training Methodology

The programme combined concise evidence-informed inputs with extensive opportunities for practical application. Participants regularly coached, were coached and observed coaching before receiving structured feedback and reflecting on their own practice.

Between sessions, delegates applied their learning within their own schools before returning to share successes, challenges and learning. This cycle of learning, practising, reflecting and applying ensured coaching skills became increasingly embedded and immediately transferable into day-to-day leadership.

4. Programme Outcomes

Evaluation evidence demonstrates consistently high levels of satisfaction and confidence across all six cohorts. Participants overwhelmingly agreed that they:

• understood the role of the coach;
• clearly understood the distinction between coaching and mentoring;
• understood the TGROW coaching framework;
• understood the wider organisational purpose of coaching;
• recognised the values that underpin coaching;
• found both the training materials and facilitation to be of exceptionally high quality.

Conclusion

The Meridian Trust’s investment in the Train the Coaches Programme has established far more than a group of trained coaches. It has begun to create a shared language and consistent leadership approach centred on curiosity, reflection, empowerment and professional growth.

By equipping leaders with practical coaching skills, the Trust has strengthened its capacity to improve teaching, develop leaders and foster high-quality professional conversations. As coaching becomes increasingly embedded across schools, its influence has the potential to extend well beyond individual coaching conversations into leadership practice, instructional improvement, team collaboration and organisational culture.

The next stage of this journey is not simply to do more coaching, but to ensure that coaching becomes an increasingly natural leadership behaviour—one that shapes how leaders think, listen, challenge and develop others across every level of the Meridian Trust.

John Kane
Kanevolve Limited

Case Studies
Podcasts
Buy Online Courses
Insights