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School leadership supply ‘teetering on the brink of collapse’

Aiming for headship Senior leadership Middle leadership Trade unions Staff wellbeing Workload Leadership Teaching workforce
A majority of senior leaders in schools do not aspire to headship because of concerns about personal wellbeing, Ofsted inspections, and the burden of responsibility the role brings.

A survey of 2,047 school leaders found that 53 per cent of those who were not currently a headteacher did not want to become one. This figure is up from 46 per cent in 2020 and 40 per cent in 2016.

Furthermore, the more experienced a teaching professional becomes, the less likely they are to want to take the final step to headship.

The research report has been published by the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT, 2021). It finds that a vast majority of the respondents say their health and wellbeing has been affected by their role this year, with the most common symptom being disrupted and disturbed sleep (88 per cent of respondents).

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