The value of mentoring
Mentoring partnerships have been one of the cornerstones of Crossing Thresholds since its inception, and over the years we have seen that women who fully engage in this aspect are the ones who gain the greatest benefit from the programme overall. We are privileged to have an active pool of over 2,000 mentors with a wide range of experiences.
Mentoring is a powerful way for leaders to share their experiences and support others to accelerate their careers and achieve their potential.
With our expanding number of courses we are always looking for more volunteers to join our mentor pool, you can register via the button below.
The role of a Crossing Thresholds mentor
- Assisting your mentee in their learning journey throughout the year programme
- Help to clarify and stay focused on their goals
- Encouragement to take strategic actions and assess the results
- Challenging any negative assumptions
- Support to cope with any setbacks and develop greater resilience
"A primary benefit of the course was having a mentor. From our first meeting we clicked. Through the twelve months we looked in detail at what makes me tick at work and what I want from my career. I learned so much about myself from our productive sessions".
Support for mentors
Once you are registered as a mentors you will have access to our dedicated mentor dashboard giving you access to:
- Detailed resources to get you started and offer guidance along the way
- Peer coaching sessions with other mentors
- Friendly emails with reminders and tips
FAQs
No, you don’t need any qualifications to become a mentor, just the time and commitment to support your mentee.
Yes! We offer New Mentor Welcome sessions for our newly registered mentors. Our mentors benefit from ongoing support, including monthly networking and mentor upskilling sessions.
You can find details about all support sessions for mentors on our events page.
Yes! We are proud of the diversity of our mentor pool and our participants are grateful for the varied experiences they can tap into.
If you have a personal preference, mark it on your mentor profile, otherwise both are equally as beneficial
No, just the time and commitment to meet and support your mentee
Totally up to you! Depending on your availability you can work with up to 4 mentees at any one time (we don't recommend more than 4)
Personal Stories From Our Crossing Thresholds Mentors
I find that many of the same themes come up in mentoring – lack of confidence, finding suitable examples for competencies when applying for jobs, relationships with others, etc. And yet each mentoring experience is very different because we are all individuals with diverse backgrounds and different ways of learning. Building a relationship with the person I am mentoring is essential to know how best to mentor them...
Rae Turnbull - Thresholds Mentor
Senior Project Manager
Highways England
I have always been a strong believer in mentoring – I know I would have never have achieved what I have without the help of more experienced individuals along the way. I am also a great believer in ‘paying it forward’ so when I saw Crossing Thresholds advertised I was really keen to be part of it. Women often need that extra push to believe in themselves and build the self-confidence to go after their goals.
Wendy Eley - Thresholds Mentor
Deputy Director
High Speed Rail, Department for Transport
Following feedback I have provided on competence statements and interview techniques, all my mentees have gone on to secure promotions so far. For anyone considering mentoring, I would recommend that the benefits for personal development and the positive impact you will have, make it a thoroughly worthwhile venture.
Roland Cox - Thresholds Mentor
Manager
MOD
It really is a pleasure to mentor Crossing Thresholds participants. They are enthusiastic, committed, energetic and talented women. And it is obvious that they find the programme both challenging and inspiring. Hearing about the issues they want to address, and doing what I can to support them, is very rewarding.
Marie Knox - Thresholds Mentor
Deputy Director
Welsh Government
I have found it hard to think of myself as being senior, or grown-up enough, to presume to give people advice or opine about what they could do differently, or better. It’s been quite challenging for me to remember this isn’t about having a friendly chat (although it can be very similar) but that I am there in a distinct capacity, as someone who has a responsibility to provide thoughtful and hopefully good advice.
Dr Lucy Mason
Office for Security and Counter-Terrorism
Home Office
I found Crossing Thresholds a very helpful process for me and I wanted to give something back. I decided to get involved in mentoring as I think it's important to have a safe space, where you can talk openly to someone about your ambitions, your fears, whatever you want to discuss, without fear of being judged. And knowing that the person you are talking to is on your side and has no axe to grind, but will give you support and a different perspective.
Liz Wigley - Thresholds Mentor
Manager, Government Property Unit
Cabinet Office
Although I’m not a very structured person in most areas of life, I’ve learned that a mentoring relationship is most fruitful when there is some structure around it: for example an agreed schedule of meetings in both diaries and an idea in advance of each meeting about what might be discussed.
Jennifer Hutton - Thresholds Mentor
Deputy Director
DCLG
I get a sense of fulfilment in seeing the transformation of someone from who they thought they were, developing into someone quite different and unique, and being able to push their own boundaries and having the confidence to take that next step in their careers and going against perceived obstacles.
Elizabeth Moriba - Thresholds Mentor
HR Manager
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
For several years I’ve been involved in talent programmes, action learning sets and mentoring. The opportunity to mentor for Crossing Thresholds crossed my desk, so I thought…. Why not? This really was one of the best things I’ve done as I’m finding mentoring someone in another organisation really insightful and refreshing.
Caroline Griffiths - Thresholds Mentoring
Strategist
Department for Work and Pensions
I’ve mentored two people so far on Crossing Thresholds and I feel privileged to have been part of the personal journey they both went on in the year they spent on the course. At the end of each, I was meeting with someone who was much more self-accepting, with a more positive outlook. I think they are happier as a result and better at talking about it when they are unhappy too – which is so important.
Alice Hammond - Thresholds Mentor
Group Strategy & Implementation Unit
Defra
I have found being a mentor inspiring. I have worked with three women who have moved forward into promotion, one making the decision to move to another department. Another colleague decided that a sideways move was for her and I was able to support her by setting up some shadowing in the area she wanted to move into.
Ali Humberstone - Thresholds Mentor
Head of Future Policy
DWP
The first few times I mentored people were a bit scary, as I was a little nervous of how to lead the discussion and what was the right thing to say. I've learned that actually it is very much a joint process, and a relationship can be flexible while at the same time be focused on some clear objectives.
Ahad Rawat - Thresholds Mentor
Head of GESR Operations
HM treasury