Supporting Potential

Future Leaders

 

 

 

 

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The background: Future Leaders is an accelerated development programme for aspiring headteachers. The programme is focused on urban secondary school leadership in particular and currently operates in London and Manchester, with expansion plans for other major conurbations. Each participant joins the Future Leaders programme on a twelve month contract, which they spend as part of the senior leadership team in a school working in an area of urban challenge. At the end of their year with the programme, they seek permanent employment, typically at deputy or assistant headteacher level.

The challenge: The Future Leaders programme managers invest a great deal of effort in ensuring that participants are fully supported during their year (and, indeed, beyond it). This includes supporting participants through the process of seeking a permanent placement at the end of their twelve month contract, assisting them with the process of applying for leadership roles on the open jobs market.  Navigate has been working with the programme since 2006/7 to help prepare participants for the cut and thrust of job applications.

The solution: Navigate starts work with programme participants as early as November in the year before they start making job applications. The career development inputs offered combine a mixture of group sessions (eg, briefing candidates on the nature of the recruitment market) and one-to-one work (eg to explore strengths and weaknesses at job interview).  A variety of techniques are used, such as inputs from experienced heads and school leaders who have recently been through the recruitment process, to role plays and interactive exercises. Each participant also has the chance for one-to-one video analysis of their interview presentation skills.

The result: Navigate’s inputs have evaluated well with participants, and the team’s contribution has expanded each year as the commission has grown. In 2008, Navigate will be working directly with more than 50 Future Leaders to support them through the challenge of finding their first permanent leadership role.