Workload and stress force school leaders to quit jobs

The majority of school leaders said their mental health has been negatively affected in the last year - with some quitting their jobs, a poll has suggested.

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Only one in five senior leaders in schools now aspire to be a headteacher, according to the survey by school leaders' union NAHT.

Paul Whiteman, (inset, below) general secretary of the NAHT, has called for more to be done to restore school leadership as an attractive proposition and for “real ambition” on pay, funding, inspection and workload.

The findings were published at the end of April ahead of the NAHT’s annual conference in Harrogate in North Yorkshire.

Conference delegates debated a motion which said school leaders have been pushed to “crisis point” and have quit due to the pressures of the job.

The motion called for an “urgent focus” on supporting the mental health and wellbeing of school leaders.

A poll, of 1,517 NAHT members in England, found 65% of school leaders said their role had a negative impact on their mental health in the last 12 months.

The survey, which ran between September and October in 2024, suggests only 20% of senior school leaders aspire to headship or beyond in the future which is a record low since the NAHT began its wellbeing survey in 2016.

The poll found more than two in five (45%) of school leaders said they needed mental health and wellbeing support over the last 12 months.