Why Coaching?

Laura Duggal sitting in a chair and looking off-camera

The “Human-Centric” Approach

With around one in five women leaving the workforce after having a child, and one in five dads reporting concerns around burnout, support for working parents has the power to create measurable change in your organisation.

I’m fortunate to work with compassionate, forward-thinking organisations who are creating embedded cultures of support for working parents.

My partner organisations report improved retention of talented team members, strengthened talent pipelines, and inclusive, family-friendly cultures that enhance staff engagement.

Support on your journey to closing the gender pay gap

Around 85% of women leave the full-time workforce within three years of having children, and almost one in five leave work altogether. 79% say they face barriers to advancing their careers (Careers After Babies report, 2023). With so many talented women lost or disengaged after maternity leave, it’s no surprise that many organisations struggle to close their gender pay gap.

If your organisation is working hard to champion the female workforce and improve gender equity, coaching is a tool that can help.

  • Retaining talented women: Through 1:1 coaching sessions, women build confidence to ask for the support they need, leading to greater retention after maternity leave, and strengthening the pipeline for leadership roles.

  • Pathways to leadership: Partner organisations report more women being promoted after or during coaching, as individuals develop self-belief and pride in their achievements, learn to set reasonable and realistic expectations, and improve communication with their line managers.

  • Cultures that promote female progression: As part of your organisation’s suite of support for working parents, investing in coaching helps build a culture of support and recognition for mothers, at all stages of parenthood.

Image shot overhead of a mother, holding her baby whilst trying to write on a sheet of paper.
A father sitting on the floor working on his laptop while his young child sits next to him watching him - Laura Duggal Coaching

Supporting men’s mental health

Becoming a father is a huge life transition, often complex and transformative. And while many admit it can be a stressful time, 19% of working fathers report concerns around burnout for either themselves or their partners (Modern Families Index Report, 2024).

Many of my partner organisations are extending coaching support to men returning from paternity leave, acknowledging the identity shifts, workload pressures, and emotional challenges that can impact men’s confidence and performance at work.

By supporting fathers at this stage of life, employers not only help safeguard men’s mental health and wellbeing, but prevent burnout and begin an open conversation about support before a crisis unfolds.

Clients say…

“One of the best decisions I made while I was pregnant was to invest in some coaching with the wonderful Laura Duggal, a Parental Return to Work Coach who has been instrumental in helping me figure out what I want work to look like going forward. Our sessions have given me the headspace and (self) permission to establish the best path forwards, and shed some of the mum guilt I’ve felt.”

Ginny Radmall, Director, The Ivy Way

“If your employees feel supported, valued, and listened to, you’ve got engagement. And with engaged employees, you’ve got profitability with your customers and happy customers.”

Heather Messenger, Senior HR Business Partner, Arval UK

“It’s our role within HR, and as a business, to educate and inform our people managers on how best to support people when they go on parental leave; how dynamics could change, and what we can do best to support them to return really successfully.”

Heather Messenger, Senior HR Business Partner, Arval UK

“ Laura helped me find confidence and direction during my return to work after maternity leave. She helped me develop simple daily practices that make my workload feel manageable. The tools she shared have changed how I manage stress and plan my days. Her warm, thoughtful coaching helped me manage overwhelm, understand my emotions, and reconnect with my strengths. Every session was more valuable than I ever expected.”

Rose, Product Manager

“The juggle is real. As a working parent there is guilt everywhere you look… what coaching has allowed our working parents to do is work through their experiences so that they can bring their best selves to being a parent and they can also bring their best selves to the workplace.”

Danni Buxton, HR Director, Cherry, Partner Organisation