The hardest thing about no longer being a college principal, Sir Frank McLoughlin says, is not having his own office. After retiring from City and Islington College (Candi) last summer, he’s still getting to grips with the open-plan layout at his current workplace, the Education and Training Foundation (ETF).

“There’s lots of ambient noise, and people making tea and coffee,” he says. “I just like to get my head down and get on with my work.”

Be that as it may, McLoughlin has become one of the most recognisable faces in the sector. He first became a part-time lecturer 37 years ago; shortly afterwards, he joined the former North London College, which went on to become part of Candi. He rose through the ranks, and held the role of principal for 14 years.

I’ve got quite a high profile, I’ve got a strong personality. For me, this is about giving something back

In addition, he chaired the highly influential Commission on Adult Vocational Teaching and Learning, and in 2015 was awarded a knighthood, before he retired from college leadership a year later.

McLoughlin didn’t stay away from the sector for long, though: in August he was unveiled as the ETF’s director of leadership. And today marks the beginning of what McLoughlin regards as one of the most important projects in his long career. It brings the official launch of the new FE strategic leadership programme, to be delivered by the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School.

Thanks to more than £1.2 million in funding from the Department for Education, 100 leaders of colleges and training providers will be selected to go through the new programme by March 2018.

‘Going round in circles’

The course’s creation, McLoughlin points out, is not before time: “We haven’t had a principals’ programme for at least eight years. So, therefore, the last cohort enrolled on to a principals’ programme 10 years ago. That’s two generations of principals who have gone through without any leadership programme. I met a principal the other week who told me, ‘I’ve been a principal for nine months and I’ve been turning round in circles.’”

Since McLoughlin first picked up a copy of the Harvard Business Review a quarter of a century ago, the field of leadership and management has become a passion. And overseeing the creation of the new programme at one of the world’s leading business schools fits his determination to leave a lasting legacy for the FE sector.

“If you’ve been successful, you give something back,” he says. “I’ve got quite a high profile, I’ve got a strong personality. For me, this is about giving something back.”

He pauses. “So why? And why now?” He flashes a grin. “I thought you would ask, so I’ll answer the questions anyway. Skills are at the centre of the government’s industrial strategy for UK plc. Colleges are the major delivery vehicle, and the success of any organisation is down to its leadership.

“What a fantastic opportunity this is for a college principal to study at the University of Oxford, at the Saïd Business School. It was critical for me to find someone who brought prestige, and they have just been fantastic to work with. This is about allowing the FE sector to realise more of its potential.”

And the launch of the programme (see box, below) could just be the start, McLoughlin believes. “We’ve got 300-plus FE colleges and sixth-form colleges. It would be invidious if we only ended up developing 100 of them. I hope that we can demonstrate the huge value of this to the [DfE] and they will release funding for other people [to take part] down the road.” Long-term, McLoughlin has ambitions for the creation of a permanent FE leadership college at the business school.

In recent years, an increasing number of principals and CEOs with no prior experience of working in the sector have been appointed, such as Joe Docherty at NCG and John Thornhill at the LTE Group.

For McLoughlin, this is a positive development: “I think it’s very healthy to have people in from outside. Joe Docherty is a good example of that. He’s worked in a number of different industries - he’s worked in banking, worked in housing.

“But even if you’re a CEO in a group, I think it’s a real mistake if people think the person at the top can be divorced from the core business of the organisation. Even if you’ve never worked in FE before, you have been in education. You need to be part of the conversation.”

The recipe for success

So what does it take to be an outstanding college leader? There are three key elements, McLoughlin believes: looking inward, looking upward and working with the board of governors, and looking outward.

I don’t think there’s anywhere else in the education sector where you have more to do. It’s a huge challenge

He rattles off a list of the key attributes. “You need to be able to dynamically lead the project. Thinking at scale. Financial and business acumen. Rigorous performance management. People development. Succession planning. Talent management, bringing people through.

“If that weren’t enough, you’ve got to have fairly well-attuned political antennae to be aware what’s going on, and you’ve got to enjoy working externally.”

McLoughlin laughs. “That’s a big skill set. I don’t think there’s anywhere else in the education sector where you have more to do. It’s a huge challenge. But fantastic. The best job I ever did was being principal of a college. People say it’s scary at the top, it’s lonely at the top. I’m not sure about that. If, like me, you’re committed to our sector, to be at the helm of an organisation and lead its success is just fantastic. You’re in control of your own destiny. You’re not clocking in, you’re not clocking out; nobody’s telling you what to do. If you enjoy taking responsibility, for the right people it’s fantastic.

“I don’t think it’s too much to say that the success of the colleges is inexorably tied up with the success of the country. We’ve got a big role to play.”

Stephen Exley is Tes’ FE editor
@stephenexley