SECONDARY NEWS
Leadership training at Cumbria secondary school sees 25% boost in staff confidence
A former headteacher of a school in one of England’s most deprived communities has issued a stark warning that burnout, inspection pressure and a lack of preparation for leadership are driving good leaders out of schools – failing pupils in the process.
Glyn Potts MBE, who led Saint John Henry Newman RC College in Oldham before becoming CEO of the Greater Manchester Youth Federation, warns that the current system fails to properly equip headteachers for the role, and that senior leaders in schools are often too fixated on their next Ofsted inspection and a need to show they are taking policy direction from government as a priority. At a state secondary in Cumbria, early survey data linked to new leadership training shows a 25% increase in staff confidence. Potts, part of the implantation team at Dallam School in Milnthorpe, says: “Education hasn’t improved in the way we believe it should have over the past 50 years. There are too many young people with an abundance of talent not being recognised. Too many leaders are being burned out and leaving the profession; as a society we simply can’t afford that.
“Often in education you’re promoted based on your classroom practice, rather than on your ability to manage, inspire and lead an organisation. When I was appointed as a head teacher, they never even asked me about leadership,” Mr Potts adds, which was something he had to learn for himself.
This leadership crisis in the UK’s schools and education institutions at all levels and across sectors is undermining confidence, hampering curriculum teaching and policy implementation. Weak leadership is also fuelling concerns over adequacy of safeguarding and an alarming rise in indiscipline in some schools, issues such as free speech in teaching and whether to ban under-16s from social media.
During his time as a headteacher, Mr Potts wasn’t afraid to speak out on controversial issues including child sexual exploitation, knives, drugs and vaping in schools, restricting use of mobile phones or access to social media. He saw this as a key part of his leadership responsibilities. “My job was to be the mouthpiece for my children and my staff,” he says. “If that meant challenging institutions or government, I was comfortable doing that.” Parents, staff and fellow school leaders came to recognise “these are the issues young people face”, he adds, and that it’s about getting “policymakers to understand we need greater collaboration and discourse to find solutions”.
“I firmly believe the position I took on these issues helped me recruit staff,” he says. “They came because it inspired them to take up the challenge; it was this school and culture that they wanted to be part of. We were stronger for all the challenges we faced – including Covid and lockdowns.”
His comments come amid mounting concern nationally around recruitment, retention and a shrinking pipeline into leadership roles,
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with fewer teachers willing to step up to headship, as well as rising indiscipline, threats of disorder and violence, even at primary level. All of which are motivating factors behind the introduction of the new How to Lead a School programme by Leader Connect. Neil Jurd OBE, a former Army officer and Sandhurst instructor, founded Leader Connect to make high-quality leadership development accessible and relevant to real workplaces, and works extensively with schools, universities and educational trusts to improve leadership training and boost confidence among senior leadership teams. Mr Jurd says the realities of modern headship are too rarely acknowledged: “Senior leaders in schools too often have no space to think. It’s relentless. That isn’t how you build sustainable leadership. Ofsted frequently identifies weak leadership as a factor in poor inspection outcomes.
“According to a recent study by Newcastle University Business School, replacing an ineffective headteacher with an effective one can increase a pupil’s GCSE grades by two, as well as reducing staff turnover and staff absenteeism – that’s a significant impact and certainly worth investment.”
Mr Potts agrees that strong, values-led leadership are what schools need, improving pupil behaviour, boosting attainment, helping attract and retain staff. Being visible and available “at the school gate, in classrooms or at break time is important” to win the confidence of staff, pupils and parents alike, he says – something he learnt very quickly on becoming a head teacher himself.
Leader Connect’s approach is already being borne out in practice – Mr Jurd, Mr Potts and Vicki Maguire, a former deputy headteacher, form the implementation team delivering certified leadership development training to senior teachers at Dallam, a state secondary in Milnthorpe, south Cumbria.
Steven Henneberry, Dallam’s headteacher, says: “Like many schools, Dallam faces complex challenges. Though the Leader Connect programme only began recently, we are already seeing signs of impact: The latest staff survey showed a 25% increase in confidence in school leadership since the beginning of the school year, with improvements across all departments.
“Every teacher is a leader – of classrooms, of young people, and of key moments that shape the culture of the school. By upskilling all our leaders, we raise the standard of consistency, clarity and direction across the school.”
How to Lead a School has been launched at a time when education leaders warn that stress and fear of negative inspection outcomes are deterring the next generation of heads. Mr Jurd says he is optimistic that education leaders across the country will find it offers “value and utility”. It is now available to heads, deputies, senior leaders and governing boards and can be delivered as bespoke leadership development or blended into internal CPD programmes.
February 2026
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