Coaching handbook

Crystal McTigue (she/her)

Coaching Manager

Crystal has experience in client, programme and project management, and focuses on using a relational approach to help support the operational delivery of programmes.

Having previously worked in the commercial sector, she joined Frontline in 2018 as a Relationship Development Manager in the Delivery Team, and has since supported Frontline’s various programmes in the Partnerships & Placements, Leadership Programmes and Programme Management teams.

Contact Crystal via the coaching inboxfor all queries relating to the coaching offer, including any concerns surrounding safeguarding.

Sahra Schuller (she/her)

Operations and Coaching Officer

Sahra started her career in tech, specialising in Project Management, before transitioning to Frontline in 2023. She brings her project management and delivery experience to her role, supporting the coordination and delivery of the coaching offer across our programmes.

Alongside her coaching responsibilities, Sahra works within Operations, managing the operational delivery and readiness for the practice stage for Year 1 participants. She works closely with colleagues to support the ongoing development of the coaching offer and ensure it meets the needs of our programmes.

Contact Sahra via the Coaching inbox for any queries relating to the coaching offer.

Helen O’Grady (she/her)

Lead Coach

“I am a paediatric nurse by background having trained and worked at Great Ormond Street Hospital before moving to Australia with my husband.

I trained as a coach 15 years ago and have had successful coaching practices both in Australia and the UK, where I have been based for the last 5 years. I coach predominantly in the health and social care setting.

I am a coach supervisor and provide individual and group supervision for coaches. I teach coaching skills to health and social care staff, in particular how to have coaching conversations with clients. I have been a Lead Coach with Frontline since 2018.”

The Approach Social Work journey (formerly known as the Frontline programme) starts in summer, with five weeks of intensive study that takes place mostly online, with five days of in-person teaching.  Once they have a solid foundation, they start their placement in a local authority social work team. Participants work in a close-knit hub of trainees, managed by an experienced social worker and supported by their practice tutor.

After the first year participants will qualify as a social worker and register with Social Work England, the professional regulator.  They also become part of the Frontline Fellowship.

• Year one programme handbook 
• Year one support for participants
• Year one coaching guide for participants

Year two is when participants start to manage their own caseload, while continuing to study and develop your skills, knowledge and professional confidence.

They still receive support from their Frontline practice tutor, local authority employer and fellow trainees, including regular meetings with their hub.

The third and final year consolidates everything they have learned, as they carry out a research project and complete the final academic credits of the social work master’s degree.

Coaching is offered in year three to support participants. Sessions are 4 x one-hour.

• Year three coaching handbook
• Year three programme handbook

Fellows can access three one-hour coaching sessions.

All coaching is on a self-referral basis via the Fellowship community platform

Invoices and expenses must be sent at the end of each month for any sessions that have been delivered in that calendar month. Invoices must clearly outline the work undertaken, include your PO number and be in PDF format. Please submit one invoice pdf per email.

All invoices should be sent to invoicing@thefrontline.org.uk and cc’d to coachingsessions@thefrontline.org.uk.

Each invoice should include session details including participant name, programme, session number, date and any ‘spent’ sessions  e.g. 25 Oct 2022 – Thomas Hayes, Frontline 1 (Session 1) (no show).

For any other activity please include a description and date e.g. 21 February 2022 – Coaching Network Day.

All coaching sessions must be booked using Calendly. We use this system to monitor and track all sessions and session attendance. You will be provided with a Calendly account with which you can connect to Microsoft Teams and Zoom.

You can send out a booking link to your participant/leader to schedule their sessions with you. You can also mark these sessions as ‘no show’ or cancelled through Calendly.

Please use follow this guide to set up your Calendly account. You can check out the help centre for user guides on various Calendly functions. Please see this guidance document on Troubleshooting Availability. There is also a live chat function that can put you in touch with a Calendly tech support agent.

If you are still unsure how to resolve your Calendly question, please email coachingsessions@thefrontline.org.uk or book in a support session with the coaching team.

It is required that you provide a minimum of one business days’ notice for session cancellations or changes, otherwise, the session is considered ‘spent’ and this session can be invoiced for.

If a participant misses a session, please get written confirmation that they will be attending their next sessions.

If a cancellation is unavoidable due to exceptional circumstances (sickness, bereavement or ofsted visit) , please reach out to the coaching team and we may be able to reinstate the sessions. Reinstated sessions must take place before the end of the cohort.

Your supervisor, Helen, is available for 1:1 supervision throughout the year if you require additional support.

Book ad-hoc supervision

Group supervision is optional and open to all coaches who wish to take part. The group supervision consists of 2 x 2 hours sessions led by Helen .

If you have not signed up for a supervision group and would like to take part, please book group supervision or contact us on coachingsessions@thefrontline.org.uk

Book feedback supervision session

It is a requirement for all coaches to undertake a feedback supervision session.

The feedback session is a chance for you to reflect on your coaching with support and feedback from our Lead Coach. The session is a one hour session with the Lead Coach, which is billable at £103 for the hour. During this session the Lead Coach will support you to reflect on your coaching to enable your development as a coach based on the recording you choose to submit.

You and the Lead Coach will be reflecting on your coaching in relation to the Frontline Coaching Standards. These standards are based on the standards from the main coaching bodies. If you are working towards accreditation with a particular coaching body or would prefer to use those coaching standards, please indicate this on the feedback reflection form.

Please use this feedback form.

At least 1 week prior to your booked session you will need to submit one video of the session onto SharePoint (see guidance) and email the Lead Coach a completed feedback session reflection form. Please make sure that you have rewatched your session in the week prior to your sessions.

The recording you share can be from any of your Frontline coaching sessions however we do recommend avoiding recording your first session.

After your feedback session you and the Lead Coach will complete the summary section of the form, including a reflection on the coaching and any agreed-up actions. This section only will be shared with the Coaching Manager.

Please review this document for guidance on recording using Zoom or Teams and how to safely store recordings. After you have completed your feedback session, the Lead coach will delete the recording from the SharePoint folder.

We also request email confirmation after you have had your feedback session, to confirm that you have deleted all session recordings from your computer or other device used. Deleting a Teams recording guidance

Frontline Talks

Take 30 minutes to explore new ideas, learn practical skills, and connect with social workers from across the country.

Covering a variety of social work related topics, Frontline Talks invite expert speakers from across our network to share their projects, research and areas of expertise with you all.

Frontline Talks are free, informal and accessible sessions that take place online and are open to all.

Please follow this Frontline talks link to sign up, see what is coming up and and view previous sessions.

Blogs 

Hear from social workers, young people and others on topics and issues affecting social work and young people, as well as the latest news from Frontline.

Frontline Blogs

Thursday 4 February 2027 at the Frontline office (Coram Campus, 41 Brunswick Square, London WC1N 1AZ)

The content of the in person network days varies, and the agenda will provide space for you to connect, share and make meaning from your experiences of Approach and Frontline coaching.

You will also receive updates on the activity of the wider Frontline organisation.

Attendance at the Network day will be paid at £412 excluding VAT.

Thursday 17 September 2026

A half-day briefing will run online, to share information and updates ahead of the cohort launch.

Attendance at the briefing will be paid at £206 excluding VAT.

We expect all LDCs and participants to complete a coaching agreement with their participants or leaders as part of their contracting during the first session. This should include confidentiality, contracting, safeguarding, your ways of working and any expectations you have for both the coach and the coachee.

You are responsible for keeping any personal data you receive/collect secure.

If you are emailing your participants as a group please make sure that you blind copy them into emails. Please make sure that you sure that you secure your data securely; make sure that your laptop or device is password protected and dispose of any handwritten notes securely. If you become aware of a data breach please email dpo@thefrontline.org.uk immediately and cc in crystal.mctigue@thefrontline.org.uk

Please see our policy on Data Protection and Conflicts

The coaching team will ask for feedback from participants and you as Leadership Development Coaches in order to maximise our learning. We will share summaries of participant feedback with you. LDCs will complete one round-up feedback form for all that participants that they coach on the same programme or pathway. This form is for you to share the key themes that have come out of the sessions and be used for the purpose of programme development.

If you have a concern about safeguarding, please contact the coaching manager to share this with us immediately. We will discuss the situation with you and escalate if/when appropriate. Please see our organisational safeguarding policy which gives you a comprehensive overview of our safeguarding policy and procedure.

There may be times where your participant or leader may be hard to contact. If you have attempted multiple times and still haven’t heard back from them for a while, please let the coaching team know at coachingsessions@thefrontline.org.uk and we will follow up.