Setting headteacher objectives

Use our guidance to help you set challenging, SMART objectives for your headteachers to support their professional development and drive school improvement.

Last reviewed on 25 February 2022
School types: AllSchool phases: AllRef: 44089
Contents
  1. Check your own procedures
  2. Consider your scheme of delegation
  3. Understand what makes a good objective
  4. Agree the objectives with the headteacher
  5. Case study: setting headteacher objectives

Check your own procedures

Unlike with maintained schools, you've got freedom to set your own appraisal procedures in your trust. So refer to your procedures to decide:

  • Who will set the objectives
  • When objectives will be set in your appraisal process

Use the following guidelines, provided by our associate education experts and Michael Pain, CEO of Forum Strategy, to inform your objective setting.

Consider your scheme of delegation

What's the role of the LGB?

Make sure your scheme of delegation makes this clear. Local governors who were on the governing board before the school joined your trust may be used to conducting the headteacher appraisal but this may be