Verify the evidence presented in the application form and provide any relevant additional evidence. Give your assessment of the applicant’s achievements and the impact of his/her leadership, providing quantified evidence of the positive difference his/her work has had in the organisation and on meeting its goals. State that, in your professional opinion the applicant will be ready to take up a headship as his/her next post. Commit to supporting the applicant through NPQH, providing the necessary funding (if appropriate) and the time to undertake relevant development activities. Your evidence as a sponsor is equally important as it will be assessed alongside the applicant’s evidence. Without adequate supporting evidence from sponsors applicants may be unsuccessful in their application. For your sections, you have a word limit of 200 words As a sponsor, you are asked to verify the evidence provided by the applicant, provide any relevant additional evidence and give your assessment of the applicant’s achievements and the impact of their leadership. Please provide quantified evidence of the positive difference their work has had in the organisation and on meeting its goals where appropriate. If the applicant is providing evidence from another school/organisation they are asked to make arrangements to put you in contact with someone who can verify their evidence to enable you to cover this in your reference. In such circumstances it would be especially helpful if you provide additional evidence of the applicant’s demonstration of the competency in their current setting.
to take on new challenges to improve their performance. They are decisive, work for the best interests of pupils and account for their performance to the governing body and other stakeholders. Why it matters Headteachers need to be motivated to reach the highest possible professional standards, to deliver tough objectives and take on challenges in order to achieve and be accountable for high performance throughout the school. Delivering continuous improvement Someone who is ready for headship will have a clear vision of the central importance of leading teaching and learning in terms of driving and sustaining school improvement and creating improved life chances for pupils, their families and their community. They use their skills to quickly gain a full understanding of the overall performance of the school and make a judgment about what requires improvement. They work with the governing body and other stakeholders to successfully identify, strategically plan for and lead delivery of the necessary and appropriate improvement strategies. Why it matters Headteachers need to be able to develop vision and to identify the priorities lead to improvements in teaching and learning and to implement these to achieve a high quality education to improve outcomes for all pupils. Modelling excellence in teaching Someone who is ready for headship will have a deep understanding of the characteristics of excellent/outstanding teaching, informed by current research and be able to articulate this effectively to others. They will have a systematic approach to monitoring, make sound judgements about the quality of the teaching and learning across the school, and develop and deliver a wide range of improvement strategies. Why it matters Headteachers need to be able to recognise excellence in teaching and be able to demonstrate how teaching can be improved and improvement sustained so that the learning and achievement of all pupils is maximised. Learning focus Someone who is ready for headship will be passionate about learning and will embed a culture of learning for all members of the school community and foster equality of access. They have an unswerving belief that schools have a crucial role to play in changing lives and improving life chances and will monitor learning systematically to ensure progress. Why it matters Headteachers must have the desire and passion to want to help others to improve themselves and those around them. They must be committed to improving the life chances of all pupils and work with others to ensure that every pupil has the opportunity to succeed.