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Re-Viewing Reviews - February 2025

Writer's picture: Catherine HulmeCatherine Hulme

It’s that time of year when line managers traditionally conduct mid-year reviews to assess staff progress against the targets set for them five or six months earlier. These reviews have historically focused on reaffirming expectations, addressing shortcomings, and ticking the boxes of progress, and process.


Changes to the Teacher Appraisal guidance announced in July 2024, centring around the removal of performance-related pay, emphasised that the appraisal process “should be intrinsically supportive and developmental" and "a non-bureaucratic process". Many leaders have since been reviewing their performance appraisal practices, seeking to encourage team members to reflect on a more personalised basis with their manager - and, more importantly, take time to check-in with themselves - in order to nurture deeper engagement and growth. Enter the coaching approach!

Shifting from a transactional to a relational approach, provides an opportunity for more meaningful professional dialogue and motivational outcomes. Furthermore, in the words of one of our CEO participants this week, a coaching approach “connects us at the core”, building belonging, shared values and discretionary effort. Win-win!


So, this month, we invite you to consider the level of personalised support and development your current performance management practices provide.


Firstly, let us be clear that accountability matters. Setting and working towards shared goals and aspirational outcomes is at the heart of any high-performing school. Courageous, direct conversations absolutely need to be had. One of my go-to reminders to leaders is “Don’t try to coach someone out of a burning building”: if a clear instruction or piece of feedback needs to be given, then you give it. 


Secondly, let us be clear that a performance review is not a coaching session. The former, in its very purpose, is steeped in an expert/novice dynamic and the need for some judgement and reporting, whereas a pure coaching session actively seeks NOT to have these characteristics. 


However, coaching skills can absolutely be applied to the conversation, for example:


  • allowing your colleague to set and lead the agenda (and, ideally, the goals); 

  • using active, empathetic listening; 

  • asking curious, open questions;

  • managing your own temptation to provide all the answers;

  • creating a deliberate pause for deeper thinking.


Normally we discourage participants of our programmes to hold coaching sessions with colleagues they line manage, because it can become muddled. However, managers adopting a coaching-style approach offer a more empowering, intrinsically-motivated conversation.


A recent paper on "unleashing the power of learner agency” explores the evolution of classroom pedagogy towards self-determined learning, and this is equally as relevant to adult professional development:


“To accept that people have agency means being able to see the learner as central to the learning process... Being able to resist the urge to teach is a challenge, as traditionally, the teacher [or manager] is considered the guru or sage-on-the stage (King, 1993) believing that, ‘if I don’t explain it then the student will not understand’. Instead, the teacher needs to become a guide-on-the-side (King, 1993). It is a question of relinquishing control and being partner with learners in designing their learning, in meeting the curriculum outcomes, and in enabling them to explore and expand the boundaries of their learning.”


This approach shifts the role of a manager towards that of a collaborative learning partner, benefitting themselves as much as their colleague.  By listening more than talking, managers will learn a huge amount from what their colleagues are telling them. Plus, witnessing a colleague reflect, take ownership, and grow professionally is deeply rewarding.


Rather than adhering to rigid, twice-a-year “performance review meetings”, a coaching approach works best with regular, meaningful but informal conversations, much in the same way a teacher will have ongoing dialogue with their students. Talking about goals more frequently shifts the conversations away from formal summative judgements towards genuine care about our colleague’s continuous professional development. There is also more scope to be agile and make changes to goals in response to new circumstances.


Inspired by the theme of the recent Schools North East Academies Conference, “Lead, not Plead,” Leoras Cruddas’ speech was a powerful reminder that change starts with us, now. She emphasised that, despite wider systemic challenges, we have the ability to lead by example and revitalise the sector: if we want change, we must take action to make it happen.


"Where previously there has been a focus on safe and achievable targets, there is perhaps now an opportunity for “blue-sky thinking” and to shake off the fear of failure. But all of this will only work in a system that is safe and supportive, where staff are not penalised for trying something new, and where creativity and imagination are welcomed and encouraged. Yes, there is always a risk when things change, but this can be a good change if we take the opportunity to think about professional development in a more creative and innovative way." – Helen Osgood, Performance management: Are you ready to change?

And so we invite you to take a few moments to consider:


  1. How satisfied are you with the current process of performance management in your school/trust?

  2. What idea/principle do you want to keep in mind as you engage in performance-based discussions from now on?

  3. What one small thing can you do next week to act upon this principle, and lead by example?


"Really giving someone your undivided time and listening to them fully makes them feel valued and heard. [Coaching] is now an approach we use within our Performance Management process and as a consequence we meet staff more regularly and they take more ownership of the progress they make. The actions the staff set themselves are their own, achievable for them, within their own timescales. This approach has been great in the development of staff and rewarding for their line manager to see them reflect and take ownership of their own professional development." - Lizzy Rackham, Deputy Headteacher, Broughton Community Junior School

Applying a coaching approach to performance management is a lever for developing a strong and resilient workplace culture, grounded in connection, personal wellbeing and continuous development. By dedicating time to listen and engage, managers send a clear message: “Your challenges matter. Your aspirations matter. You matter.” We can also show them how their growth contributes to the broader vision and a brighter future.


So let’s make these conversations more than just a “review” of past performance and targets, and turn them into a “preview” of what is possible!





Catherine Hulme

Owner Director


Leadership Edge is a growing team of experienced school leaders who have seen person-centred coaching create high-performing, happy and healthy cultures within our schools. Our mission is to empower other school leaders to create positive workplaces where staff are solution-focused and actively responsible for their own personal wellbeing and professional development.


Our 3-Tier Coaching Accreditation Programme is low-cost and self-sustaining, providing a systematic and structured model for staff across your school to become powerful coaches for each other, enhancing colleague relationships and their feeling of being valued as an individual within a supportive school community.


Connect with us: Twitter/X @EdgeSchools | Linked In: Leadership Edge – Coaching in Schools



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