For Governors & Trustees

We know you want the best for your school leader because a happy and well supported school leader is a successful one, which in turn leads to a successful school.

Our sole purpose is to support school leaders and we hope to work in partnership with you to achieve this. We define a School Leader as being the most senior leader in school, typically an Executive Headteacher, Headteacher, Principal or Head of School.

As we explain on our ‘what we do’ page, we support leaders in 5 key ways:

Listening to leaders

Providing advocacy

Providing knowledge

Creating a collaborative community

Protecting wellbeing

Below are some examples of what we offer to both new and serving heads; supporting them both professionally and personally. School leaders often struggle to prioritise themselves and their CPD above the needs of others and the school. Regular ‘check-ins’ to make sure they are fully engaging and feel supported to prioritise and access this offer is very helpful.

Newly appointed head

School Leader Induction

Email kirsty@norfolksla.co.uk to ensure they are enrolled. As part of this programme new leaders begin to develop a network of peers with whom they can collaborate with and lean on for support. They will also learn about the system in Norfolk and many of the basic skills needed to be an effective leader. Signposting to relevant CPD to develop new leaders further is also provided.

*To ensure this is accessible to every leader, we do not charge for this programme*

Norfolk School Leaders’ Updates (NSLU’s)

Encourage your school leader to attend the termly NSLUs to receive updates and hear guidance from experts on current challenges facing school leaders, both at a national and local level. In addition, these sessions provide networking opportunities with other serving heads and key Norfolk education personnel, creating opportunities both for the leader and the school.

Encourage them to engage with their local Teaching School Hub Julian or Inspiration to identify CPD that may be relevant to them such as the EHCO or some of the NPQ’s

Serving School Leader

Norfolk School Leaders’ Updates (NSLU’s)

Encourage your school leader to attend the termly NSLUs to receive updates and hear guidance from experts on current challenges facing school leaders both at a national and local level. In addition, these sessions provide networking opportunities with other serving heads and key Norfolk education personnel, creating opportunities both for the leader and the school.

Peer Support Sessions

Encourage your school leader to set aside time to attend our peer support sessions that take place on line every other Wednesday morning during term time.

Ofsted Peer Support Sessions

Encourage your school leader to attend these sessions if your school is in, or recently out of the Ofsted window. Not only will this monthly group provide an element of wellbeing support, it will also help leaders to ensure they have processes and resources in place to make the visit as painless as possible and to decompress and share their experiences following an inspection.

Phase committees

Whilst it might seem counterproductive to encourage your school leader to join a group, that means spending time outside of school, it is a fantastic CPD opportunity.

These help leaders to be better informed about the Norfolk landscape and upcoming changes. Committees develop leadership skills as they work with others and sector specialists to co-develop areas of policy and practice. They can also help create further opportunities for them and the school.

Encourage them to engage with their Local Teaching School Hub Julian or Inspiration to identify CPD that may be relevant to them or upskilling the team around them, helping support them operationally.

More details on all of the bullet points listed above can be found on other pages in the website, click on the name of the item to go directly to that page.

We welcome feedback on developing our offer to school leaders further, if there is something you feel your leader/s would benefit from please contact kirsty@norfolksla.co.uk. It this is not be provided by us, Kirsty will ensure the message reaches the correct provider for further investigation.