Primary heads ‘quitting’ in growing numbers, NAHT warns

The proportion of primary head teachers leaving their posts within five years has risen to almost one third, according to new research by the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT), which says many leaders are being lost to the profession entirely.

NAHT’s analysis found that 30% of primary heads appointed under the age of 50 in 2019 had stepped down by 2024, compared with 21% who left within five years in the period to 2016. Of those who quit, 71% were no longer working in primary schools. The union said their age on appointment meant they were unlikely to be retiring early.

The figures come as schools continue to face acute recruitment and retention pressures. Although turnover rates in secondary schools were already higher, the proportion of secondary heads leaving within five years rose from 35% to 38%, with 80% no longer working in secondary teaching roles.

Retention issues extend across other senior posts. NAHT said more than a quarter of primary deputy heads appointed in 2019 had left within five years, and a third of their secondary counterparts. For assistant heads, the share leaving primary roles rose from 27% to 31%, while the proportion in secondaries dipped slightly from 36% to 35%.

A new survey of more than 1,500 NAHT members recorded the union’s highest levels of concern about the appeal of leadership roles. Almost two thirds said they would be very unlikely or unlikely to recommend school leadership, up from just over half last year. The same proportion of senior staff said they did not aspire to headship, compared with 40% in 2016.

The union said the trends reflected a prolonged period in which leaders experienced real-terms pay cuts – estimating that salaries were now worth 16% less than in 2010 – alongside rising expectations and workload. It also cited the impact of what members described as high-stakes Ofsted inspections on morale and wellbeing.

Respondents pointed to several changes they believed would improve the attractiveness of leadership. More than four fifths said greater professional recognition was needed, while a similar proportion called for a different approach to inspection. Two thirds highlighted workload pressures, and just under half identified the need for protected leadership time. Six in ten backed fully funded, above-inflation pay rises.

Paul Whiteman, NAHT’s general secretary, said: “Leaders play an absolutely vital role in the direction and ethos of their schools, and in creating the conditions which allow their talented staff to flourish – and leadership can be and should always be a hugely rewarding undertaking.

“We can’t just rely on people wanting to do the job as a labour of love because the challenges facing school leaders from so many angles are too overwhelming and pervasive – and they are increasingly harming people’s health and wellbeing.”

He added: “We need proper recognition and respect for the crucial role leaders play, for them to feel valued, and for their concerns to be addressed. That means government action to ease unsustainable levels of workload, further encourage flexible working, restore the real-terms value of pay to 2010 levels, and truly mitigate the harm caused by high-stakes inspection which will continue under the new Ofsted framework.”