What is the NPQSL?
What is the NPQSL?
The National Professional Qualification for Senior Leadership will equip you with the knowledge, skills, experience and network to know how to lead at a whole-school level. This course builds on the knowledge you already have as an experienced teacher and middle or senior leader, and focuses on what you need to know and be able to do to effectively lead at a whole-school level. You will learn:
- How to contribute to creating and sustaining your school’s strategic direction
- How to establish and sustain a positive school culture for pupils and adults
- How to implement effective curriculum and lesson planning at whole-school level
- How to design and implement whole-school assessment practices that produce reliable and valid data without creating a workload burden for teachers
- How to establish and maintain quality teaching across a school so all pupils can experience success in learning
- How to lead pupil behaviour and culture at whole-school level
- How to develop colleagues and manage them well
- How to work effectively with all stakeholders in the school community
- All aspects of statutory compliance associated with senior leadership, including safeguarding, exclusions, HR and finance
- Relevant aspects of governance and external organisations for senior leaders
Who should take the NPQSL?
The National Professional Qualification for Senior Leadership is aimed at experienced and effective teachers and middle or senior leaders who have, or aspire to have, whole-school responsibilities as a senior leader. You might be a current or aspiring Assistant Head or Deputy Headteacher, or a phase leader or Head of Department looking to prepare yourself for the wider remit of a senior leader. Whatever your current role or career aims, the NPQSL will develop your ability to lead effectively at a whole-school level.
Why the NPQSL with the NIoT?
Our programmes are school-led: they are delivered by individuals who work in schools, right now. That means they have the in-depth, domain-specific knowledge to help you grapple with content at the right level, and to support you to problem-solve and apply learning to your own context.
Our programmes are centred on impact: our aim is for your practice to improve and develop in your current context, and for you to be ready and to take the next step in your career as a result of learning with us. We have designed our programmes carefully, and work closely with school leaders through our regional structures, as well as working with participants, to ensure our programmes are impactful in your context.
Our programmes are respectful of your time: we know you spend most of your time doing the most important job there is – serving the children in your community. That’s why our programmes are designed to be flexible, to deliver exactly what you need in the most time-efficient manner possible, and to have impact.
Our programmes are rooted in research: every aspect of what you learn is based on the best available research as well as what we have seen and experienced to work best in our founding multi-academy trusts and associate colleges.
Our programmes allow you to build a community: our in-person local seminars are focused on peer learning and problem solving together. As well as applying your learning to your own context, you will have the opportunity to build your network and support one another’s development beyond your time learning with the NIoT.