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Sustaining Depth and Meaning in School Leadership: Keeping Your Head

Editor : Emil Jackson, Editor : Andrea Berkeley

Reviews and Endorsements

"I found this book impossible to put down! A compelling blend of well-researched theory and historical context set alongside real stories from real people from the frontline of schools and education, it offers a powerful narrative on the power of relationships to support leadership effectiveness in schools. As an absolute convert to the power of coaching, albeit later in life, this impressive book with an equally impressive set of contributors, manages to capture the reality of leading in schools, with all its highs and lows, whilst leaving you, as the reader, clearer and more optimistic about the future. Essential reading for any school leader!" - Andy Buck, CEO Leadership Matters.

"At a time when the educational system is in one of its regular states of crisis, and when head teachers are leaving the profession at a worrying rate, Keeping Your Head is a vital contribution to understanding leadership in schools. Writing from a sophisticated psychodynamic and systems perspective but maintaining clarity and a practical focus, the highly experienced contributors to this book offer hugely important insights into ways of managing the enormous stress of school leadership. The book will prove to be a landmark collection for those who want to understand the emotional and psychological pressures of being a school leader - and how to survive them." - Stephen Frosh, Professor of Psychology, Birkbeck, University of London.

"This book reflects deeply on the experience of school leadership - both the highs and the lows. The authors explore the complex and varied pressures on leaders and the many means to mitigate them, with insight and humanity. I recommend this book to anyone interested in education and especially those making or implementing education policy." - Francis Listowel, The Earl of Listowel (PhD), Officer: All Party Parliamentary Group for the Teaching Profession; Vice Chair: All Party Parliamentary Group for looked After Children and Young People and Care Leavers.


"This a great book to add to any school leader's 'go to' pile of leadership books. However, what makes this one stand out is that it talks to the reader and really gets to the heart of what it means to lead a school in such challenging times.

I read with avid interest and appreciated the current voices of school leaders reflected throughout the book. Many chapters really resonated and confirmed the belief that remarkable people lead remarkable schools - but they are human and do also need support and guidance. Having worked in a range of challenging schools as a senior leader and in two as headteacher, I truly value the shared experiences that are captured in this book.

Andrea and Emil have got under the skin of the enormity of the job, the fact that it can be an all-consuming and lonely job at times. In doing so, they offer solutions and suggestions which I think are invaluable to current and aspiring headteachers". - Evelyn Forde, headteacher Copthall School.

"Everyone who knows about our schools is aware of the challenges and difficulties experienced by headteachers and other school leaders. As Keeping Your Head says, "school leaders today require higher degrees of self-awareness, emotional intelligence and political literacy than ever before." The book is in effect a manual not only for school leaders at all levels but also a range of others from school governors and inspectors to training providers. It is informed by a range of approaches from its thoroughly knowledgeable authors, including insights from the theory and practice of psychotherapy. There are numerous case studies, some of them quite emotional, and the whole work is supported by extensive research. It is hard to think of anyone needing but not yet benefitting from its advice who would fail to be helped by this book." - Professor Robert Cassen, OBE, Emeritus Professor, London School of Economics.