You were good at your job before maternity leave. You shouldn’t have to prove it all over again.
One-to one maternity coaching for professional women who want to feel calm and confident at work again.
why does returning from maternity leave make you doubt yourself so much?
While you were away, teams changed, systems moved on and important calls were made without you.
Now everyone else seems to know the backstory to a project or conversation – except you. Yet your working day has less room for flex than it used to, so it’s harder to catch up. You simply can’t stay late until everything is finished and there’s more pressure than ever to prove you’re still capable, committed and good at what you do.
Work you once completed like a breeze gets checked again and again. You sit in meetings wondering what everyone else know that you don’t. You hear how well your maternity cover performed and wonder where that leaves you. Even when you finally close the laptop, your work follows you home. An unfinished task plays on your mind at dinner, your phone gets checked at bathtime and that meeting gets replayed just when you should be switching off. At work you feel guilty about home. At home you feel guilty about work. But you know this is more than a time management problem.
It’s a much harder question you need the answer to: Am I still good enough to do this?
Becoming a mother shouldn’t mean choosing between a career you love and being present for your family. My maternity returners coaching programme can help make sure it never comes to that.
Working with Lucy
“Working with Lucy has enabled me to step into this new phase of my career with greater confidence, clarity and self-awareness.” – Lily
“The difference that my time with Lucy has made to my home and work life is immense…” – Jennifer
“The coaching was so insightful and I now feel I have more clarity, self trust and balance than before.” – Charlotte
I now feel more in control of my situation and able to enjoy it, rather than madly scrambling to keep up!” – Hollie
1. Start with a free conversation
Book a free 30 minute introductory call so we can talk about what has changed, what feels difficult right now and what you would like to be different.
2. Find your focus
Across 6 confidential one-to-one sessions, we use The 4 Cs to identify and work through the areas that will make the greatest difference to you.
3. Turn insight into action
You take realistic steps between sessions, supported by resources and reflection, so the changes you make can hold when work and family life get busy.
Find out what needs to change
‘When you’re struggling to juggle everything, the beliefs driving your inner fears can feel like hard facts. You may think, like I did, that working harder will prove your value, that asking for help makes you look less capable, or that your career simply doesn’t fit your life any more.
Coaching gives you the protected headspace and impartial perspective to question those assumptions, work out what actually needs to change and find a way of working and living that lets you feel you’re succeeding at both again.
Self compassion is central to that work. You can care about doing a great job without expecting yourself to get everything right all the time.
That’s why my maternity return to work coaching is built around The 4Cs: a clear, adaptable framework that helps identify the areas you need to focus on that will make the greatest difference to you.
Working with lucy
I know how hard it is to have a baby, return to work and feel like you have to earn your place all over again.
Hi, I’m Lucy. I returned to work twice after maternity leave and remember thinking, “I used to be really good at this but I don’t know if I can do it again.”
For years I believed the only answer was to work harder and do more to prove that being a working parent hadn’t made me less capable. Yet still I questioned my worth and even ruled myself out of opportunities I now know I could have handled.
It was only when I xperienced coaching myself that I saw many of the things I’d accepted as facts were actually beliefs I had the power to challenge. That changed everything. The pressure eased and I started to enjoy my career and spending time with my family instead of the two competing.
Today, I combine that lived experience with PCC-level professional coaching expertise, a postgraduate certification in Business and Personal Coaching and more than 1,000 hours of coaching experience to help you have belief in your abilities again and enjoy your career and family life without constantly feeling you should be doing more.
I don’t help women squeeze themselves back into the person they were before maternity leave. I help them find a way forward that works for the person they are now.
You can be a good parent and still have a career that you enjoy.
If returning to work has left you questioning things that once felt certain, you don’t have to keep working harder and hoping it all gets easier.
Start with a free 30 minute conversation about what’s changed, where you’re struggling and what you want to be different.
Usma Collins, Principal Researcher, Society
I decided coaching would be the best way to really grow in my role and support executive search fully and I was delighted to have the opportunity to be coached by Lucy!
The biggest breakthrough was recognising the skills, experience I bring to to my role and having the opportunity to reflect and articulate solutions in a confidential space was invaluable. I worked on tangible solutions and Lucy kindly shared links to complement some of the topics we discussed during coaching sessions and I now have access to key tips, approaches as well as focused strategic questions, which have all had a positive impact on my work and professional outlook!
I would highly recommend Lucy, as not only is she a great coach, her appreciation and support for B Corps is fantastic and was a real added advantage, as I work in a fab B Corp organisation.
Jennifer Stokes, Operational Finance Manager
I received coaching from Lucy through my place of work after returning from maternity leave. Juggling mum and work life is definitely a balancing act and I was really glad I had the sessions with Lucy to work through this. Through the sessions even the simplest idea was such a god send for me and made me realise what I needed to be able to achieve what I wanted!
The difference that my time with Lucy has made to my work and home life is immense, it’s give me the confidence and tools to tackle the biggest obstacles, those that felt far too overwhelming before meeting Lucy…
I can’t recommend Lucy enough and everyone would benefit from some coaching!
Alison Payne, People Director at COOK trading Ltd
Lucy brings such a wonderful mix of skills to her role as a coach and I can certainly vouch for her calm listening skills and natural energy and enthusiasm with people.
We have had remarkable feedback from people in our organisation who have been coached by Lucy, and are now thinking about things in a different way and setting themselves new challenges. I highly recommend Lucy.
Lily Honey-Summers, Senior Graphic Designer, COOK
I sought coaching with Lucy to help me navigate my return to work after maternity leave. Like many parents returning to work, I was facing a mix of emotions and challenges, from rebuilding my confidence and managing competing priorities to finding my place in a new chapter of both my professional and personal life.
One of the biggest breakthroughs I experienced while working with Lucy was learning how to approach challenges differently. Whenever I brought a problem to a session, Lucy helped me break it down into smaller, more manageable parts. Through her thoughtful questions and guidance, I often realised that what felt like a huge, overwhelming issue was actually rooted in a much simpler challenge that I hadn’t been able to identify on my own. This shift in perspective has been invaluable and is something I continue to apply long after our coaching sessions ended.
Working with Lucy has enabled me to step into this new phase of my career with greater confidence, clarity, and self-awareness. Rather than feeling overwhelmed by uncertainty, I now feel better equipped to make decisions, prioritise effectively, and trust my own judgement. The positive impact hasn’t just been professional – it has also extended into my personal life. Feeling more confident and less stressed at work has allowed me to be more present with my family and enjoy a healthier balance between work and home.
Lucy is compassionate, approachable and an exceptional listener. She has a real talent for asking exactly the right questions, helping me uncover answers and solutions that were already within me but difficult to see amid the noise and pressure of everyday life. Her coaching style is flexible and tailored to the individual, allowing each session to focus on what feels most important in the moment while still driving meaningful progress. I always felt supported, understood and empowered throughout the process.
I would highly recommend Lucy to anyone facing a period of transition. Her coaching has had a lasting impact on my confidence, mindset and overall wellbeing.
