Women in Headship

With the headteacher recruitment crisis looming Meg Maunder and Eve Warren look at the reasons why Women are under-represented in the role.

Where do all the women leaders go?

Women account for the majority of the teaching profession and yet are underrepresented at headship level in all our schools. What’s going on? Is there still a glass ceiling? At a time when recruitment is a major issue, can we continue to ignore the facts?

Men are still over represented in senior leadership roles in schools in all phases (DfES 2004).  In primary schools, 83% of teachers are women and only 62% are headteachers.  Similarly in secondary schools, 55% of teachers are women and only 31% are headteachers. (DfES 2004, reported in Coleman M in ‘Gender and Headship in the 21^st Century’, paper presented to NCSL 2005).  NCSL Formal Advice to the Secretary of State on Succession Planning identifies that: ‘The data on the gender of senior leaders and headteachers suggests that increasing the number of female heads to reflect the proportions of females currently at deputy level would generate a further 330 potential heads a year.’

Is there a glass ceiling?

The gender equality of opportunity debate seems long over, and yet the evidence is that current practices do not produce equality of outcome. And no one would argue that men are intrinsically better at the job, would they?  So what are the obstacles to greater parity in school leadership? Are women not applying? Do they encounter subtle – or not so subtle - discriminatory processes when and if they do? Do the reasons run deeper? Does the ‘glass ceiling’ still exist?

Clarissa Williams, President Elect NAHT observes: ‘I see many examples of women who would be excellent headteachers, but feel deterred….for a range of reasons women do not seek the ultimate leadership role.’ So do they fight shy of the top job in schools? Do women actually want to become headteachers?

There is now a headteacher recruitment crisis that is predicted to get worse.  There will be a critical shortage of headteachers between 2009 and 2011 - five years earlier than predicted by TES research. (The Times 22 January 2008). Therefore encouraging more women into the role is vital at this crucial time. There are many women who could make a significant difference to the quality of leadership – and we must take action to harness their difference.

Gender related barriers

Research shows that there are gender related barriers to headship, including both the impact of gender on the working life of headteachers and the differences in leadership styles of female headteachers (Coleman M 2005). 

For example, women will often favour a collaborative approach to leadership. Whilst this has many benefits, including the effective harnessing of talent within the school, and the ensuing buy-in to vision and strategy, it does prove counter-productive when thinking about – and selling yourself into - the big job. Knowing that you are achieving results with others can take the focus away from your own strengths, reinforcing any self-doubt. Evidence suggests that women in general do feel less confident in their abilities than men, and consequently express less confidence.  By communicating the collegiate approach, which not only feels more comfortable but is also recognised by them as more effective, they can underplay their own achievements with serious implications for the recruiting panel’s assessment.

Linda Bamford (Headteacher, MayflowerHigh School) points out: ‘Women are incredibly collegiate and don’t put themselves forward, but we can do it as a team….. (they) think of what they can’t do, rather than what they can do.’

From a busy deputy position, it is not surprising to view the role of headteacher as incompatible with a healthy work-life balance. We often hear women reporting that they are so busy with their current job, and their home responsibilities, that they cannot imagine any spare capacity: they fear the big job will demand even more. A feature of WiSH courses is the panel of women headteacher, who speak openly about how they manage the balance. In contemporary society, surely it is not too much to expect that a school leadership job can be combined with a family, without the additional job requirement of someone to shoulder all the domestic responsibilities?

Role models who are doing just that can do much to dispel doubts about the feasibility of managing what is, of course a different, more strategic job. As one participant said:‘The course showed that you do not have to be a ‘super head’ or a super person. There are many different styles of leadership and no one ‘right’ answer.’  As Pav Saunders (Headteacher, Fawbert & Barnard’s School) says: ‘Many excellent senior women school leaders find juggling family and work very demanding, however, if you wish to make a greater impact on the lives of children and their families and you believe in yourself, you can do it.’

Getting on in education depends on a number of factors: ability and doing a good job, we would expect of course. However,  getting noticed, being encouraged, playing the system and participating in career management development activities, is where we often see marked differences between men and women. Women frequently report that they are not interested in any of these activities or simply do not have the time. Clearly current talent-spotting practice is not picking up all the potential, and there is a big danger that the quietly effective at doing the job do not get noticed. If we consider differences in male and female communication styles, limited career management support and the anticipated and normal setbacks in the application process which attack confidence, it is easy to see how women are still not going for nor indeed getting the top jobs.

A WiSh come true

The work of WiSH - Women into School Headship - is unique in that our courses are designed for women only: a major untapped resource at senior leadership level in our schools.  We confront issues that relate directly to the role that women play in school leadership and the challenges they face in securing headship positions and base our work on sound research and best practice.

WiSH delegates have identified many ways that they benefited form Wholehearted for Headship, including:

• Listening to experiences from existing women headteachers
• Appreciating that others have similar concerns
• Identifying real practical ideas to overcome self-doubt
• Realising their own ability and potential
• Discussing roles and expectations and finding answers to challenges
• Networking, and sharing experiences with like-minded colleagues

Clearly there are obstacles, both external and internal, to headship. We offer an effective structure and practical strategies for addressing these issues, and believe that training and personal development in single sex groups can make a huge difference.  Whilst this does not suit everyone, for many, women-only training provides support to take that next step to headship. The untapped pool of potentially great headteachers who are currently either not applying or not successful in getting appointed, represents a potential waste of skilled, qualified and gifted senior leaders who have much to contribute to education. 

Our vision is to get more women into headship and to improve the quality of leadership in our schools.  At this time of impending crisis we cannot afford to leave women leaders stuck in roles where their skills and experience are underutilized. 

The next Wholehearted for Headship course will be held in London on March 18 2008. Other courses will be run across the country throughout the year.   

Meg Maunder and Eve Warren