So you want to be a headteacher? Great. It’s a rewarding role and, with your CV in shape and a spring in your step, there’s nothing to stop you getting the top job.
But how much thought have you given to where you want to be a headteacher or what sort of school you want to be in charge of? We asked some experienced heads for their advice and they came back to us with these four tips.
1. Turn it around or carry on the mantle?
As you look at job adverts for headteacher posts, you will have to decide whether you want to take on a project or an existing success story.
Rob Jones, headteacher of Rendcomb College in Gloucestershire, emphasises the importance of looking beyond where the school is at the moment.
“I think that the most important consideration when choosing a school is to find one that resonates with your ideals and beliefs.”
In addition to this, Jones warns against thinking that the hard work has been done when applying to a successful school.
“A good head should always be thinking about how they can improve the education for their pupils. Every school can be a dream and a nightmare at different times of the year, month and even day.”
2. Try something new?
If you’ve spent your career working in a particular phase or specialism, then you could think that it makes sense to stick with that for your first headship. However, Gary Smith, headteacher of Market Field Special School, advises that you shouldn’t rule out options before you apply.
“Before taking up the headship at Market Field School, I had been working in a mainstream school and then a special provision. I think that all experience is relevant. The aptitude for the job is what counts,” he says.
3. Move over, boss
An internal promotion to headship comes with a whole heap of benefits: you have already built relationships with staff, parents and children; you will already know where the strengths are; you’ll know the areas of weakness, so there won’t be any nasty surprises to catch you out.
However, just as there are benefits, the fear of failure is something that can put some internal applicants off. If you’re unsuccessful, will you want to work alongside the person who beat you to the job?
Daniel Wagstaff, headteacher of Hilltop Primary School in Essex, advises potential applicants not to be put off applying because of what could happen, and to put trust in the school to manage the situation whatever the outcome.
“A good school would manage that situation to make sure the candidate did not feel undervalued,” says Wagstaff.
Instead, he suggests you focus on the positives, even if you don’t get the result you want. “Make sure you get clear feedback about why you were unsuccessful, and ask to have a clear career action plan to help you achieve your goals.”
4. Sparkly and brand new?
Building your own school from scratch can be an exciting proposition. But if you have been put off from applying because it is a new school and this would be your first headship, you shouldn't be, says Hannah Wilson, headteacher of Aureus School in Oxford, which opened to Year 7s only in 2017.
“Being the headteacher of a brand new school is a fantastic opportunity to grow the culture and ethos from scratch. As a new headteacher, I saw it as an opportunity to grow with the role and the school,” she explains.
Wilson feels that, as a headteacher of a new school, she was able to create the school she wanted without having to push change on to an existing model – instead you have people buying in to your idea.
“We have made some choices which, had it not been a brand new school, would have been harder to initiate, as they would have needed school-wide consultation. As a start-up school, we had a blank piece of paper, which was exciting but also a tad overwhelming at times.”
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