The role of school leadership in England

This NCSL research associate report aimed to answer the question: How can the role of headship be made possible, maintaining a headteacher’s energy and enthusiasm?


There were two sub-questions to this:
1. What is the nature of a headteacher’s working week?
2. What approaches and strategies can be adopted to help headteachers deal with the demands of their role?



Key findings:
- During the course of the study, on average the group of headteachers worked 42.5 hours per week. There was relatively little variation between individual members of the group.
- 22% of the head teachers time was spent on administration and a further 20% spent on development of self and working with others. Just 1% of time was spent on shaping the future.

- The study identified a range of factors that inhibited headteachers’ effectiveness and threatened the longer-term sustainability of the role. These ‘inhibitors’ could be broadly classified as being either emotional (guilt and anxiety) or operational (such as "fire-fighting"; administering; controlling or procrastinating).

- Headteachers should be encouraged to undertake a critical reflection of the nature of their work, based on the following principles:
1. Headteachers should be supported to focus on the strategic rather than the operational dimensions of their work.
2.While recognising the emotional difficulties involved, headteachers should endeavour neither to carry guilt nor avoid the critical issues they face.
3. Headteachers should model the importance of professional development, displaying a commitment to their own learning.