Nobody can have missed the terribly sad story emerging from the Ruth Perry inquest in the UK over the last few weeks.
A fellow head taking their own life is a traumatic thing to hear of, and I won’t be the only current or former leader who has reflected on just how close they have been to that edge themselves.
Leaders in schools, whichever sector they work in, have a high-pressure job, no question. They bear an enormous responsibility, to keep children safe, provide them with outstanding opportunities for personal growth, and increasingly to support entire families when the safety net provided by external agencies has so many holes that they slip through.
They try to balance a system designed for mass education with increasing recognition of the needs of the individual. On top of that there is the pressure to make sure that there are enough staff, and the right staff, not just in front of the children but also in the kitchens, cleaning the classrooms, supporting teachers, unlocking, and locking the buildings and answering the phones.
“At the moment the gap between income and outgoings can look insurmountable.”
Those staff must be thoroughly checked to ensure they are safe to work with children and they need a firm grasp of employment law to navigate through any tricky issues which arise. They’re managing finances, and at the moment the gap between income and outgoings can look insurmountable.
And on top of that they have governors, usually volunteers, who are generous with their time but who can need educating in how schools work, and inspectorates (who perhaps, it is alleged, need the same education).
It’s a lot to think about and be responsible for.
As a head, you can’t point to anyone else and say “it’s not my fault” because the buck stops with you, every time, and at all times, whether it’s 8am on a Monday or midnight on a Saturday. Heads need to be constantly alert to what might happen, thinking two steps ahead, because if things go wrong, you are the one to whom people look for the plan.
“Heads need to be constantly alert to what might happen.”
Now, school leaders are resilient. They have to be. As a leader, very few people come to see them because they’re happy with things, and even fewer to acknowledge that they’ve done a decent job. To survive, they need a hide thicker than a rhinoceros when it comes to their own feelings, but thinner than tissue paper when it comes to the feelings of others. They put others’ needs before their own all the time.
The problem with this, of course, is that they eventually become so good at shelving their own feelings that a) people assume they can cope with anything and b) they become unable to tell people when they aren’t coping.
The statistics are terrifying. 95 per cent of headteachers report feeling stressed, with 55 per cent experiencing insomnia, and 41 per cent reporting recurring headaches or migraines.
“Heads become so good at shelving their feelings that people assume they can cope with anything.”
A total of 26 per cent of senior leaders reported that they felt their symptoms were caused by depression. A whopping 84 per cent of senior leaders reported at least one behavioural, psychological, or physical symptom related to their work (mood swings, depression, panic attacks, high blood pressure etc), with 13 per cent of senior leaders suffering from burnout and isolation- both considerable risk factors for suicide. (Education Support Teacher Wellbeing Index 2023)
“All leaders need to know they are not alone. “
If you are a school leader, who has your wellbeing in mind? Not many people, it seems. When the government attempted to put in place online mental health support for headteachers, it failed because headteachers couldn’t find the time in the day to attend the sessions. So how can we improve things for the headteachers we know?
- All leaders need to know they are not alone. They need a friend, or mentor, who knows what it’s like to do the job – a supervision relationship. Whilst they can’t give the answers, at least they can have a reasoned perspective. If you’re a head, find yours. If you were a head, make the offer to a colleague. My role sees me in regular contact with several heads and whilst most of the time it’s strictly school- related business, all of them have used me as a sounding board for a knotty problem, and someone to let off steam to, at some point.
- Supervision needs to be regular, and in both your diaries. Don’t let the other person cancel it- too soon it’ll become irregular, then non-existent.
- Cultivate strong relationships with your governing body – be open about the challenges, how you are intending to tackle them, and what you need them to do (or not to do!)
- If you are supporting a head, make sure that they take a break, especially in the holidays. They will say “of course,” and then ignore you. Keep nagging, nicely, until they do make the effort to get a proper break from things.
- If you are worried about the head, for whatever reason, tell them so. Try to have an open conversation about your concerns. Let them know you are there for them, even if they don’t want to talk at the moment.
Our school leaders are valuable, and we need to keep them. There already aren’t enough to go round, and with fewer and fewer people willing to step up to the role, they deserve to have the same care and support they are working to ensure that everyone else in their school community has.