Ongoing partnership with Culham St Gabriel’s Trust supports RE teacher retention over the maternity and return to work period.
Since 2022, The MTPT Project has partnered with Culham St Gabriel’s Trust to offer fully-funded 1:1 coaching to RE teachers working in state schools.
Born from a relationship with CEO Kathryn Wright, whose own “maternityCPD” lead to the career development that saw her take up the leadership of Culham St Gabriel’s Trust in 2019, this partnership has now supported nine RE teachers as they have navigated their maternity leave, and the first 12 months of their return to work with empowering 1:1 coaching.
Coaching participants have held classroom teaching roles, and leadership positions such as Head of Department, Trust-wide consultants and primary subject lead roles, and the coaching has made an enormous difference to them during their maternity transition period.
One participant, an RE teacher based in Kent, said: “I suffered massively from lack of confidence when returning to work following my maternity leave. I struggled with my teacher and mum identity, and I just couldn’t cope with both roles – they were battling against one another. My coach made me feel incredibly understood and gave me strategies that literally made me feel like I could breathe again!
“I can’t thank Culham St Gabriel’s Trust enough for this lifeline. The coaching really came at the right time in my life, and I am so thankful. I have followed them on social media as an RE teachre, and their work has been incredibly insightful.”
Not only has this partnership enabled The MTPT Project to provide this important support, it has also helped us to connect with more RE teachers to inspire our community further. Explore Naila Missous’s case study where she describes how she struck a balance between first time motherhood and maintaining her identity as a teacher, and The RE Podcast’s Christmas special focusing on motherhood in RE teaching, featuring both Naila and MTPT coaching participant, Jemma Brown.
Culham St Gabriel’s Trust have also acted as a sponsor of our annual conference, since our inaugural event in 2022, and our conversations have been the driving force behind refined data collection exploring any link between the motherhood penalty and RE teacher recruitment and retention.
Our 2024 Freedom of Information request shows that – not only is RE a female-dominated subject – we also see a bulge in the number of female RE teachers aged 30-39. These DfE figures suggest that up to 42% of RE teachers could be mothers, so ensuring they are well supported means we’re meeting the needs of a significant proportion of this part of the workforce!
Our funded 1:1 coaching places for 2025-26 have already been snapped up by three RE teachers returning to work in September 2025, or balancing their leadership roles with young families, but you can still enjoy fully-funded group coaching as part of The MTPT Project’s “Cradle to Classroom” programme of parental transition support. This programme enables you to access our Parental Leave group coaching programme, Return to Work workshops and Sustain and Grow group coaching programme, regardless of your subject specialism or phase.
Are you a subject-specific organisation curious about how you can provide similar opportunities for colleagues in your network? Get in touch to hear more about how we partner with Culham St Gabriel’s Trust, the English Association and The Ogden Trust to support their commitment to recruitment and retention in their subject areas.
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