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Frequently asked questions about leadership structures

Questions

  1. Are headteachers increasingly being named differently?
  2. Where there is an executive head responsible for more than one school, what arrangements can be made at individual school level to maintain contact with parents and the community?
  3. Does a school have to have a deputy headteacher?
  4. Are schools increasingly differentiating leadership from management responsibilities?
  5. What is meant by distributed leadership?
  6. More FAQs about leadership structures

Answers

1. Are headteachers increasingly being named differently?

There is some variation in the names used for leaders in schools. It is common, for instance, for academies to use the term ‘principal’. The term ‘executive head’ is used for appointments within some federations and where a head works across more than one school.

2. Where there is an executive head responsible for more than one school, what arrangements can be made at individual school level to maintain contact with parents and the community?

Much will depend upon the size of the schools concerned and the distance between them. In very small rural clusters, the executive headteacher is the only person on the leadership spine and works with the support of the teachers in the individual schools. In this case, there is likely to be a formal structure within the individual schools.

Where the schools are bigger, more disparate or some distance apart, many federations and chains of schools have established school committees to reflect the needs of that school and its community. The committee is often led by the ‘head of school’ or ‘heads of teaching and learning’ who look after the school on a day-to-day basis. These school committees are non-statutory but usually have links by shared membership to the overall governing body and can be a key part of the communication structure within the group of schools.

3. Does a school have to have a deputy headteacher?

No – a school may choose to have a combination of deputy and assistant headteachers to meet its requirements. Schools should consider the importance of these roles in supporting individual career development on the road to headship, especially in light of the succession planning agenda.

4. Are schools increasingly differentiating leadership from management responsibilities?

Yes – the roles of leaders and teachers have been clarified through workforce remodelling. This has included emphasising the difference between teaching, learning and business management responsibilities. Senior leaders in schools are expected to spend time considering a range of strategic leadership issues as well as operational management. This is enabled by the allowance for dedicated headship time in school teachers' pay and conditions documents. Details of this are can be found on the Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA) website.

5. What is meant by distributed leadership?

Distributed leadership is essentially about sharing out leadership responsibilities and accountabilities across the organisation. The case for distributed leadership is based on three ideas:

  • the belief in leadership teams
  • the belief that, as schools become more complex, the power of one is giving way to the power of everyone
  • the belief that ensuring there are many leaders enables us to create pools of talent from which we can develop tomorrow’s leaders

A school that successfully implements distributed leadership is classed as having a shared model of leadership and management in which staff, other than the headteacher or headteachers, are empowered to lead on areas of school life and make decisions. The leadership context is one of support and challenge that is supported and empowered by the headteacher.

More models of leadership FAQs