Challenges for school leadership and management in the four nations of the United Kingdom during the pandemic: conceptual shifts and implications for future thinking

Hamilton, Lorna, Beauchamp, Gary, Hulme, Moira ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4095-3880, Harvey, Janet and Clarke, Linda (2023) Challenges for school leadership and management in the four nations of the United Kingdom during the pandemic: conceptual shifts and implications for future thinking. In: Research Handbook on Public Leadership. Research Handbooks in Business and Management . Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd, pp. 80-96. ISBN 9781786439666 (hardback); 9781786439673 (ebook)

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Abstract

This chapter draws on research carried out during the pandemic into the responses of head teachers in diverse school and community contexts. A need for a deepening sense of shared identity with leaders binding people together and being seen “to stand with them” was needed enabling a shared understanding of goals in moving forward together. In developing relationships across the school community (staff, pupils and parents), the importance of trust and fairness is highlighted, led by moral imperatives focused on the collective good of the community. A framework emerging from this work highlights dynamic elements as school leaders adapted and negotiated new ways of being part of the school imaginary while holding on to principles and values and a sense of leadership as an essential part of investment in education and education communities as vehicles for the common good.