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Making the Transition into Headship

My journey

Across my 30-year career, teaching in six different schools, being a headteacher was the role I enjoyed the most. It wasn’t easy, but it was so worthwhile, and, in fact, a source of joy. I had far more positive days and enjoyable experiences than dark days and difficult experiences, though they did feature, too. However, I sometimes felt that the joy came from facing and meeting the challenges, rather than being in spite of them. Headship gives you the opportunity to make a difference on a scale unlike anything you will ever have experienced.

Why might you want to be a head?

I fully appreciate that educational leadership is not for everyone, but I found leadership fascinating, and an appealing challenge. As I progressed from teacher to second in and then Head of Department, and from there to be Head of Section and then Deputy Head, I recognised that each new step brought fresh opportunities and experiences that I found energising. As the senior deputy, when my head was out of school, and people looked to me in her place, I found it increasingly rewarding. I recognised that I had the appetite to take the next step and to face the challenge of headship.

If you enjoy leading learning in the classroom and, in time, recognise the appeal of also working with and through your colleagues to try to get the best from them, you may find that in due course headship becomes an appealing proposition. As a head, you have greater autonomy and can make decisions which you believe are right for your context, without having constantly to ask permission. It is crucial that you work constructively with your governing body or, if appropriate, the Trust or overarching organisation your school sits within. You must earn the confidence of governors and trustees, and build and maintain the most positive relationships with them. But you are the leader of your school, and that is a privilege and can be a source of great satisfaction.

How can you successfully navigate the selection process?

When you believe you are ready to apply for headship, you begin to do the research to find the school that suits you and for which you are a good fit. In your written application, and at interview, you have to be able to demonstrate that there is an alignment between what the role and school need at this stage and what you have to offer. You will, inevitably, be thinking about how you will benefit from taking on the headship, but you should keep clearly in mind what you have to offer/give/contribute, and how you will add value in that role in this school.

Target your application carefully: generic applications which are minimally tweaked just to change the name of the school applied for are rarely impressive. A bespoke application takes time and careful thought, but this is going to be a major change in your life (probably for your family too) so it is worth investing the hours and the care that a compelling application takes.

If you find as you try to craft the application that you struggle to show you are a match for this school in this context at this point, that tells you that it may not be the right school or the right time. This is a two-way process – you have to be what the school requires, but this headship should also give you the opportunity to be the school leader you aspire to be. If you manage to talk yourself into a job which is not right for you (and vice versa) you are highly unlikely to be successful and happy.

Recognise that you may have to deal with disappointment, especially if you are fully committed to a specific post, and are not selected. We will not meet with success unless we are prepared to experience failure. If you really do want to be a head, you will find the resilience to pick yourself up and try again.

How can you manage the ‘lead-in’ period between being appointed and formally stepping into the role?

When you do achieve success at the final interview stage, it may be elating and then suddenly sobering! Now you have to prove you can do the job – and do it well!
Use the time in between appointment and starting in the post as positively as you can. It can be tricky, as you are likely to be fulfilling a demanding role in your current school, which does deserve your full effort and attention. However, you may find your thoughts increasingly focussing on what is to come, and how you can ready yourself for that. Be intentional about how you divide your time and your energies and find a balance that works for you, your present school and your next school.

Consider who you should meet and get to know better. Are there areas of experience you want to spend time developing before you embark on your headship? Who can you talk to? Are there meetings you could sit in on to observe and learn? Are there gaps in your capacity and confidence that you are committed to beginning to fill? I found that during the lead-in period I began to ‘know and to be known’, tuning into the context of the school I was about to join, and the legacy I was stepping into, and also establishing the kind of leader I was committed to becoming.

What makes for the most effective transition into headship?

Listen and learn. You may be pushed to make statements about your early plans and intentions. But be cautious: if you are externally appointed there is much you have to understand before you are in a position to make firm decisions about what needs to be done first. Ask more questions than you make statements, listen carefully to the answers and respond in a way which shows you are learning from, and appreciative of, those who inevitably currently know the school and the context better than you possibly can do.

Build the most positive relationships with staff, students, parents, governors and members of the wider community within which the school sits. Be intentional about your plans for how you will do this, and don’t underestimate the time it will take. Communicate carefully, and be aware that everyone will be weighing you up, and initially, wanting to make a positive impression (the honeymoon period!)

Show your enthusiasm for the opportunity to make your contribution – you will want to put your stamp on the role and you hope to leave the school stronger than you found it – but you also need to respect what you are inheriting and build on the achievements of your predecessors, towards which many of the current staff will have contributed, of course.

Don’t promise minimal change, however – you can’t yet know what you may have to take action to address – and you will, and must, act in due course. Your tenure will be shaped by what you choose to do (and also what you choose NOT to do) as you make the transition into the role, but ensure that action is underpinned by clearly thought through and articulated vision and values, indicative of sound judgement which is based on knowledge: knowledge of your domain, your context and your people.

It can be a joyous ride – relish it!