We are looking to engage with a number of external executive coaches who can be available to offer coaching to senior executive healthcare leaders across the organisation for the limited occasions where internal coaching would be unsuitable. Tender responses were invited from suitably qualified and experienced freelance coaches who can provide high quality executive coaching in line with the standards set out in the Global Code of Ethics for Coaching.

Coaching is a proven and recognised developmental tool to support leaders to:

• improve resilience and confidence

• develop skills to drive performance and productivity

• be a confident and innovative leader

• improve relationships.

The Trust has an established internal community of experienced and trained coaches from across the organisation - the Northumbria Coaching Network . A number of coaches are qualified ILM Level 5 coaches and Level 7 Executive coaches, and the network ensures regular CPD as well as coaching supervision, to ensure coaches practice ethically and in line with the Global Code of Ethics.

A 5 year internal Coaching Strategy was approved in November 2021, and this recognised that on occasions, for some very senior or executive leaders, it may be appropriate to access external executive coaches.

This framework will be a multi supplier framework, which will include a number of qualified coaches for our Executive and Very Senior leads to select.