The End of the “Hero Leader”? How education sectors are embracing Peer Coaching

In the latest 1AM Talks episode, we explore two questions at the heart of Further Education: What if leadership in education isn’t about a few senior leaders having all the answers? Does education then need to shift away from the “hero leader” model? And: How can coaching improve quality and inclusivity for students and enhance working life for staff too?

Over two episodes, Kieren Macintosh (Vice Principal, Lewisham College) and Rebecca Henry-Litteck (Head of Learning and OD for SHMS, City St, George’s University of London  and former Learning and Development Manager, Lewisham College) join 1AM Talks ex-FE Senior Lecturer and host Andry McFarlane,  to reflect on the history and current work around coaching in Further and Higher Education. They explore how HE and FE can learn from each other’s relationship to coaching.

Their conversation reveals how coaching in FE and HE can break down silos, build trust, and drive a cultural shift away from the “superhero leader” model—toward collaborative, inclusive leadership that directly benefits students and staff alike.

Kieren’s FE experience underscores the power of coaching to transform both student experiences and leadership. Once feeling “stuck” in his role over a decade ago, he used coaching at Lewisham College to prioritise impact, build a track record of success, and elevate his team’s Student Services performance. The result? More effective student support and outcomes. Rebecca, meanwhile, has championed peer mentoring and coaching in FE and HE  for over a decade, as a practice and methodology to complement traditional leadership. She promotes a model where every staff voice is valued, taking learning about peer mentoring and peer coaching from FE into HE.

We also discuss inclusivity and EDIB (Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging), an area of focus for all FE organisations, what does it look like when inclusive design is baked in. Coaching  learning needs more than an EDIB module in the programme; it’s about embedding inclusive design into the thinking before planning even  begins. Just as teaching and learning in FE recognises that inclusive learning isn’t about adding inclusivity in later, but designing with it at the core. This is humane, respectful and has the added benefit of helping FE organisations work towards OFSTED framework requirements.

For FE leaders, the podcast takeaways are:

• A case study on how coaching can change conversations, empower staff, and improve student services in FE.
• Cross-sector learning for HE and FE: How cross-organisational partnerships, action learning sets, and team coaching are budget-friendly coaching strategies.
• Discovering how collaborative conversations – through coaching – reduce silos.
• How could fewer top-down approaches to mentoring, coaching and leadership, such as team coaching and peer mentoring benefit the FE sector?
• Learning from HE: How to set up coaching communities of practice in FE

The 1AM Talks dialogue highlights a critical moment: mentoring and coaching in FE isn’t about a few leaders having all the answers. It’s about creating spaces where coaching, team coaching and peer coaching conversations can further drive progress and support students.

1AM Talks is a series of short, 20-minute conversations that deep dive into different workplace learning programmes — seen from three perspectives: the learning project lead, the facilitator or coach, and a participant. Listen here to more 20 minute episodes of 1AM talks and all the trailers, for free on Spotify. Also find 1AM talks on Apple Podcasts and Podbean. 1AM talks is produced by Andry McFarlane and team including Miranda Gay (current Group Head of Safeguarding at New City College).