“Changing Times…..Changing Leadership”

“Changing Times…..Changing Leadership” National Middle School’s Forum 15 October 2007 Toby SaltStrategic Director, School Leadership Development

Future Leadership Roles From Victorian – 21 Century

There has never been a more challenging or better time to be a head:- • Heads have:- • More funding • More influence • More capital investment • More diverse workforce • More delegated responsibilities and authority • More jobs to choose from • More investment in leadership • More focus on the whole child and the community

More workload • Ever higher expectations • More projects to lead • More complicated to lead and manage • More accountability • More people not wanting to be senior leaders • Greater expectations of personalised leadership and escalated promotion • Erosion of Local Authority capacity concern about standards and Children’s Services agenda

A Golden Era? • Demographics - an opportunity or a threat?

How can we make the job more attractive to potential heads? • How can we make the job more sustainable for current heads? • How can we make the job more effective at improving outcomes for children?

What Next ? “The days of the indispensable, singular leader are numbered…”Harris, A & Chapman, C (2002). Effective leadership in schools facing challenging contexts “ Leadership in a modern organisation is highly complex and it isincreasingly difficult – sometimes impossible - to find the traits ina single person…in the future we will see leadership in groupsrather than individual leaders” Crainer, S & Dearlove, D (2005) The future of leadership “ The task of leading a school in the twenty first century can no longerbe carried out by the heroic individual leader single handedly turning schools around ” Gronn, P (2003) The new work of educational leaders. Changing leadership practice in an era of school reform

PWC – some key recommendations “Proactively promote new and emerging leadership models ” “Review policy and practice in relation to accountability in order to facilitate greater distributed leadership ” Review governance Streamline policy Developing people, diversity and succession planning Adopt a new approach towards leadership programme and qualifications Mainstreaming innovative, experience based CPD "Independent study into school leadership" 1/07 wwww.dfes.gov.uk/research or wwww.teachernet.gov.uk/publications ref RR818A

Traditional Leadership Models of School Leadership • Traditional Leadership • Headteacher supported by deputy and/or assistant heads • Predominately single school though may have collaborative arrangements with other schools May have some degree of distributed leadership "Independent study into school leadership" 1/07 wwww.dfes.gov.uk/research or wwww.teachernet.gov.uk/publications ref RR818A

Traditional Leadership Models of School Leadership Managed • Greater degree of distributed leadership • Inclusion of non-teaching staff on SLT e.g. financial, business, inclusion, HR, premises experts. Mainly single school though may have collaborative arrangements with other schools. Includes co-headship models. Managed "Independent study into school leadership" 1/07 wwww.dfes.gov.uk/research or wwww.teachernet.gov.uk/publications ref RR818A

Traditional Leadership Models of School Leadership Multi-agency managed • Greater degree of multi-agency working • More diverse workforce on school premises • Different lines of accountability for staff • Potentially greater sharing/ collaboration with other schools • More potential for new division of leadership role • Multi-agency staff on SLT or post with specific ECM related responsibilities Federated Managed "Independent study into school leadership" 1/07 wwww.dfes.gov.uk/research or wwww.teachernet.gov.uk/publications ref RR818A

Traditional Leadership Models of School Leadership Federated • More formal collaboration arrangements between schools • May lead to appointment of executive head or SLT for whole federation • May have single governing body • May include other providers e.g. WBL and FE Multi-agency managed Federated Managed "Independent study into school leadership" 1/07 wwww.dfes.gov.uk/research or wwww.teachernet.gov.uk/publications ref RR818A

Models of School Leadership System Leadership • Consultant leaders • School Improvement Partners • Executive heads (temporary appointment e.g. in failing schools) • National Leaders of Education • Virtual learning networks • Virtual schools and virtual heads System Leadership Multi-agency managed Federated Managed Traditional Leadership "Independent study into school leadership" 1/07 wwww.dfes.gov.uk/research or wwww.teachernet.gov.uk/publications ref RR818A

Distributed Leadership (Most heads say they do it) …… • What it is not

1. Know absolutely everything that’s going on in your school 2. Always be available …. Your school depends on you 3. Control your pupils and staff 4. Plan every last detail

Distributed leadership is : • Disciplined • Developed • Doable • Durable • ‘Deep’ • Distinguished

The 4 Ds • Distributed • Delegated • Devolved • Dumped

It isn’t…. • Dispersed ! Exams Nutritional standards Health & Safety Healthy Schools Gifted & talented CPD time table Every Child Matters Parent partnership Target setting Time tables Building Schools for the future finance Extended Schools premises SEF School Improvement Plan

“The first rule of leadership is that it is shared” Brighouse & Woods (1999)

“A good leader is also a good follower” American proverb

Distributed leadership is • Inclusive • Evolving • Contextual “There is no blueprint of how to achieve distributed leadership...it needs to be contextual and respond to the capacity, climate and development priorities of each school or groups of schools.”Arrowsmith (2007)

We need to create more diverseand specialist leadership and management positions in schools

Inclusion& extended services

How Creative might you be?

Toby SaltStrategic Director,School Leadership Developmenttoby.salt@ncsl.org.ukwww.ncsl.org.uk0115 872 2595

“Changing Times…..Changing Leadership”