What does a headteacher do?

As a headteacher, you will: set the school's values, strategic direction and vision work closely with students, staff, parents, governors and the community create a healthy and safe space for learning develop and monitor the quality of teaching use data to track performance and produce reports inspire and motivate…

How do you become a headteacher?

You can get into this job through working your way up.

How much does a headteacher earn?

Starter salaries are around £59,000 a year, rising to about £144,000 with experience.

How many hours does a headteacher work?

Typically 40 to 48 hours a week.

Headteacher

Headteachers manage schools and create the right conditions for children and staff to achieve their best.

Also known as: Head, deputy headteacher

Starter salary£59,000 a year
Experienced£144,000 a year
Typical hours40 to 48 a week

What you'll do

As a headteacher, you will:

set the school's values, strategic direction and vision
work closely with students, staff, parents, governors and the community
create a healthy and safe space for learning
develop and monitor the quality of teaching
use data to track performance and produce reports
inspire and motivate staff and students
control school finances and attend meetings, sometimes outside of usual working hours

Working environment

You could work at a school.

Skills and knowledge you'll need

You'll need:

knowledge of teaching and the ability to design courses
knowledge of English language
leadership skills
business management skills
the ability to work well with others
to be flexible and open to change
the ability to accept criticism and work well under pressure
customer service skills
to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently

How to become a headteacher

You can get into this job by working towards this role.

Work

You can become a headteacher after working as a teacher in a school.

You'll also need several years' experience as a senior manager or deputy head. You can take professional development training to help with this. For example, by completing the National Professional Qualification for Senior Leadership and the National Professional Qualification for Headship .

Restrictions and requirements

You'll need to:

pass enhanced background checks

Career path and progression

There are opportunities to move between different types and sizes of school due to the variety of schools in the UK.

You could also train to be an Ofsted inspector , an education adviser, or become a teacher training lecturer in a college or university.

Registration

you'll usually need qualified teacher status (QTS) to teach in a state school in England

Guides for this industry

Education & Teaching: pay, interviews and getting started →

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