Hi, I'm Coretta, the founder of Coretta Coaching & Consultancy. I am a professional Coach and Mentor specialising in Life, Leadership and Executive Coaching. I am passionate about transforming lives and helping people reach their true potential, especially those from an ethnic minority background.

My leadership journey started at the age of 16 when I was working for Bejam (now Iceland). My manager identified leadership talents and created the role of Senior Saturday Girl for me. Truly an inspirational leader who demonstrated outstanding leadership qualities. He piqued my interest in leadership and started me on my leadership journey. I realised my dream of becoming a Police Officer when I joined the Metropolitan Police in 1991, serving the people of London for 28 years. In 2019 I moved to Kent Police on promotion to Superintendent and served the people of Kent for 3 years, serving 31 years in total.

Despite achieving success in my career and reaching senior levels, it wasn't always that way, and it had its challenges. It took me many years, enduring numerous hardships, frustrations, tears, and emotional exhaustion, to achieve my goals and dreams. I overcame the challenges and persevered, reaching the level of Detective Chief Superintendent and being the first most senior ethnic minority in the Kent Police history and one of only three senior black females in UK Policing.

In the thick of my odyssey, I encountered moments of losing sight of my ambitions, contemplating surrender, and grappling with self-doubt. Experiencing overt and subtle instances of racism and discrimination, both within and outside of my professional sphere, compounded the difficulties.

The additional role of a caregiver to two children further subjected me to disadvantage, often labelled as a "Part Time" or "Flexible Worker" without seeing the contribution and sacrifice.

Just as I believed I had plummeted to the depths of adversity, I discovered I had dyslexia; finding this out in my forties was a blessing and a curse, introducing a fresh array of challenges and associated discrimination.

I am familiar with the erosive impact of racism and bigotry on self-worth, confidence, resilience, and the ability to shine; I empathise with feelings of powerlessness, stagnation, and disillusionment. The sensation of invisibility within one's profession is all too familiar.

Despite these challenges, I have had a varied, exciting and extensive career in policing; with over 31 years of service, I retired as a Detective Chief Superintendent. I hold a PGDip and Masters Degree in Leadership and Management and am a qualified Neuro Linguistic Programming Practitioner (NLP), Life Coach and Mentor. Over the years, I have learnt that no matter what life throws at you, what you believe about yourself decides where you end up.

I have been credited with being an influential leader in relation to Diversity and Inclusion, setting up the only Discrimination Investigation Unit in the world and, more recently, the Head of the Diversity and Inclusion Command, responsible for designing and delivering on the 3-year Diversity and Inclusion Strategy.

I am passionate about Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and have instigated and led many initiatives to promote equality for underrepresented groups. As a volunteer, I was Chair of the Race Equality Network, organising several events to get people talking about racial inequalities and the impacts on people of colour. I was also a Cabinet member of the National Black Police Association, leading learning and development.

What lights me up is seeing others reach their true potential and achieve their aims and ambitions, to that end, I have dedicated my time to coaching and mentoring in both organisational and private settings for the past 20 years. I have always been drawn to helping people achieve their goals and reach their potential. I qualified in Neuro Linguistic Programming in 2009, which I have used to help many people improve their mindset, performance, leadership, and overcome life challenges. Examples of areas I have successfully helped clients with are depression, life skills, overcoming trauma, career coaching, leadership, promotion, lateral development and dyslexia. I developed my skills further by qualifying as a Life Coach, which expanded my skill set in relation to Cognitive Behaviour Therapy and other holistic approaches. I have worked with organisations and individuals, providing coaching and training and tailoring my service to suit individual and organisational needs and desired outcomes.