The challenges and resolutions of moving middle curriculum managers on to principalship

Frearson (2003), Clancy (2005) and Colinson and Colinson (2006) all argue that there is a chronic shortage of suitably experienced candidates pursuing principalship, a situation which is being made worse by an ageing workforce amongst currently serving principals. Hargreaves and Fink (2005) suggest that this is a result of the principals’ role becoming increasingly complex and demanding which has deterred potential candidates from pursuing principalship. At the same time Hargreaves and Fink (2005) and Davies (2009) argue that sustainable leadership offers a viable mechanism for developing individuals and organisational capacity resulting in a greater pool of suitably experienced and skilled candidates. This research reviews current literature on sustainable leadership and argues for an alternative framework for further education colleges. It also considers the current challenges faced by principals and middle curriculum managers and the resolutions which need to be put into place in order to develop individuals capable of becoming the next generation of principals.The research was achieved through a three phase design: phase one was a questionnaire to principals of all general further education colleges in the south east of England, including London; phase two was a series of interviews with principals and phase three were focus groups with middle curriculum managers.The research demonstrates that the role of the modern principal encompassed three main elements: public; internal private and internal public, all of which need to be balanced by incumbents in order to fulfil their duties effectively to both stakeholders and spectators. The research also suggests that the development of future principals should take place prior to commencing the post and rather than focusing on knowledge as per existing approaches, there is overwhelming support from participants for an evidence based approach