Leadership and Leadership Development in Education

Remarkable growth has occurred in England within the space of little more than a generation in what is now commonly referred to as leadership development for staff in the education service. The first master’s level courses were offered during the 1960s in what at that time was called ‘educational administration’, following usage in North America, where there had been provision since the late 19th century. The term ‘management development’ was probably first applied within the education context by the present author (Glatter 1972: see Bolam 1997) following a development project at the University of London Institute of Education which included courses run in collaboration with the London Business School. Central government interest in the area began in 1983 and has grown steadily since then, culminating in the establishment of the National College for School Leadership (NCSL) in 2000 and, more recently, a leadership college for the postcompulsory or ‘learning and skills’ sector.1