25 March 2025
Mrs Tania Carrilero, Director of Coaching
On Tuesday 18 March, the whole of Year 9 joined their form teachers and some of our many experienced staff coaches for a Brain Breakfast, comprising an engaging carousel of activities accompanied by the treat of croissants and juice.
Working in groups, staff coached students to reflect on recent pieces of work to, exploring what went well, and why, as well as how they can make improvements. Students were encouraged to use their Personal Growth Journals to record their thoughts and the next steps they plan to take. Students were also guided to complete a ‘fulfilment wheel’ in their journals - a coaching activity that involves considering all areas of your life and thinking about what you want to prioritise or improve. It was great to see our Year 9s embracing this opportunity and contemplating areas such as school, family, friends, hobbies, health and wellbeing.
We pride ourselves on being a school where coaching principles and approaches are embedded in everything we do, from day-to-day teaching to having coach-like conversations with students during form time. The coaching resources we use are flexible and can be adapted for a wide variety of purposes, from encouraging academic ambition, to working out how to resolve a friendship issue. By including coaching events, such as Brain Breakfasts, in our bespoke THRIVE programme from Year 7 upwards, we aim to equip students with skills which will help them become resilient, confident, independent thinkers.
Around 90 members of staff have been trained on coaching courses, which I and my fellow trained facilitators Mrs Clayton and Mme Poullain run. We are delighted that Woldingham’s coaching programme was recently recognised in the Graydin Coaching School Awards 2025 with the Sprout Award.
