Steph Alston

About Me

I am a trauma-informed trainee counsellor, coach and cultural leader, devoted to guiding people home to themselves. My life has been shaped by loss, violence and abuse, drug misuse and abandonment. But it has also been shaped by love, courage, radical self-inquiry, and transformation. I don’t lead from a pedestal. I lead from lived experience.

Navigate exists to honour the truth that healing isn't about fixing what's broken – it's about finding what's been buried. My mission is to create space where truth is named, nervous systems are nurtured, and power is reclaimed. I don’t bypass pain. I sit with it. I walk with people through the mess and the mystery, so they can live, speak, and lead from their inner compass.

My work is the convergence of my corporate leadership background, my awakening, and the truth I have fought to uncover since childhood. It is my rebellion against silence, and my devotion to wholeness.

My Approach

Raised in a household marked by trauma, silence, and emotional survival, I learned to read the room before I ever learned to listen to myself. That journey - from fragmentation back into wholeness - taught me what most leadership books don’t.

I stand at the intersection of surviving and leading. Of truth-telling and strategy-shaping.

My story is proof that when our wounds are met with care, our power can rise - and organisations can thrive.

My Purpose

My purpose is to serve others by leading with integrity, courage, and love. To show that power isn’t about force; it’s about remembering. That safety doesn’t come from perfection; it comes from permission to be. That truth doesn’t have to be loud to be transformative. And that we are not here to be fixed - but found.

I work with people who feel lost, disconnected, or numb - not to change them, but to remind them: Nothing is wrong with you - You are already whole.

You belong exactly as you are. I did too. That knowing changed my life

Background

  • I’ve spent over a decade shaping people-first cultures inside complex organisations—where trauma is often hidden under performance, and silence mistaken for professionalism.

    I’ve held leadership, coaching, and transformation roles in financial services, education, and social impact sectors—guiding executive teams, middle leaders, and mission-driven organisations to move from reactivity to alignment.

    Highlights:

    Leadership & Organisational Transformation

    • Head of People, Culture & Agility, Ecology Building Society (2024–2025)
      As part of the C-suite, I’ve architected a values-led people strategy that strengthened employee experience and realigned ways of working so culture and strategy move in sync

    • Enterprise Agile Coach, Skipton Building Society (2021–2024)
      Led systemic transformation across 200+ colleagues. Coached 23 senior leaders, reshaped team structures, and facilitated cross-functional planning grounded in trust and collaboration.

    Leadership & Capability Building

    • Professional Development Lead, Skipton (2019-2021)
      Created the Society’s first Agile Coaching Pathway and coached multiple product and delivery professionals in high-performance, purpose-driven ways of working.

    • Project Management Coach, PeoplePlus (2017–2019)
      Supported professionals across multiple sectors in developing leadership confidence, emotional resilience, and vocational clarity. 

    Culture, Safety & Truth-Telling

    • Facilitated executive coaching circles rooted in psychological safety and truth.

    • Embedded trauma-informed principles into high-pressure environments.

    • Co-founded thought leadership spaces across the Building Society sector to challenge traditional narratives around leadership, wellbeing, and impact.

  • I believe that holding space for others - especially in the realm of trauma - requires both depth of experience and depth of responsibility.

    That’s why I’m currently undertaking the CPCAB Level 4 Diploma in Therapeutic Counselling, a BACP-accredited qualification. This training deepens my ability to hold trauma safely and ethically, complementing the lived and professional experience I bring to this work.

    The course expands both the theoretical and practical dimensions of my practice, with specialist training in:

    • Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

    • Gestalt Therapy

    • Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP)

    • Psychodynamic Therapy

    Alongside this, I engage in regular Continuing Professional Development (CPD), clinical supervision, and reflective practice- to ensure my work remains accountable, psychologically safe, and ethically grounded for both individuals and organisations.

    This is not just a calling. It’s a practice - rooted in deep listening, lifelong learning, and a fierce respect for the human experience.

True power isn’t found in perfection - it’s reclaimed in the moment we choose to meet ourselves, fully, in the mess, the truth, and the becoming