Teaching schools and system leadership: December 2020
Updated 2 July 2021
Applies to England
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Overview
The purpose of this publication is to provide updated figures on the number of system leaders currently working within the school system in England. There is variation between reports due to the natural churn of the system, including designation processes, changes to eligibility and staff turnover.
Designation rounds for national leaders of education (NLEs) and teaching schools closed in May 2018, and designation rounds for national leaders of governance (NLGs) closed in May 2017. There will be no further NLE designation rounds until the Department for Education (DfE) has implemented the recommendations of the review report on NLEs published in February 2020. The teaching schools programme will end in August 2021 and there will be no further designations to this programme.
The application round for teaching school hubs closed on 30 October 2020 and we are currently in the process of reviewing applications. DfE is considering recommendations for NLG reform, published in September 2020, and there will be no further NLG designation rounds until this work is concluded.
The number of system leaders that are currently designated is actively managed and DfE keeps these matters under review.
This information is correct as of 1 December 2020.
As at 1 December 2020, across England there were:
- 604 teaching school alliances - a decrease of 8 from 1 September 2020
- 735 teaching schools - a decrease of 10 from 1 September 2020
- 991 national leaders of education - a decrease of 27 from 1 September 2020
- 330 national leaders of governance - a decrease of 8 from 1 September 2020
Teaching schools and teaching school alliances
As at 1 December 2020, there were 604 teaching school alliances across England and 735 teaching schools. The number of teaching school alliances decreased by 8 and the number of teaching schools decreased by 10 from September 2020. Around 85% of teaching school alliances had one teaching school although a few had as many as 5 or 6.
Teaching schools were present in all 8 English regional schools commissioner (RSC) areas, and in 148 out of 150 local authorities: City of London and the Isles of Scilly are excluded from the analysis as each has only one maintained school.
Lancashire and West Yorkshire had the highest number of teaching schools with 123 (16.7%). The North had the fewest with 63 (8.6%).
Number of teaching schools by RSC area
| RSC area | Number of teaching schools | Change from September 2020 | Percentage of all teaching schools |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Midlands and Humber | 82 | 0 | 11.2% |
| East of England and North-East London | 94 | 0 | 12.8% |
| Lancashire and West Yorkshire | 123 | -2 | 16.7% |
| North | 63 | 0 | 8.6% |
| South Central and North-West London | 89 | -5 | 12.1% |
| South East and South London | 111 | -2 | 15.1% |
| South West | 80 | -1 | 10.9% |
| West Midlands | 93 | 0 | 12.7% |
| Total | 735 | -10 |
(Source: DfE management information. Please note that as the percentages are rounded, the total value will not always be 100%.)
National leaders of education (NLEs)
As at 1 December 2020, there were 991 National Leaders of Education, a decrease of 27 from September 2020.
The majority of NLEs belong to different schools and only 36 schools have 2 or more NLEs. NLEs were present in 148 of 150 local authorities.
Lancashire and West Yorkshire have the highest number of NLEs with 186 (18.8%). The East of England and North East London has the fewest with 82 (8.3%).
Number of NLEs by RSC area
| RSC area | Number of NLEs | Change from September 2020 | Percentage of all NLEs |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Midlands and Humber | 144 | -2 | 14.5% |
| East of England and North-East London | 82 | -4 | 8.3% |
| Lancashire and West Yorkshire | 186 | -3 | 18.8% |
| North | 88 | -1 | 8.9% |
| South Central and North-West London | 111 | 0 | 11.2% |
| South East and South London | 150 | -8 | 15.1% |
| South West | 96 | -5 | 9.7% |
| West Midlands | 133 | -4 | 13.4% |
| Not applicable | 1 | 0 | 0.1% |
| Total | 991 | -27 |
(Source: DfE management information. Please note that as the percentages are rounded, the total value will not always be 100%.)
Not applicable refers to NLEs who are currently in between schools or alternatively have a BFPO address.
National leaders of governance (NLGs)
There were 330 NLGs as at 1 December 2020. This was a decrease of 8 from September 2020. A total of 118 local authorities had at least one NLG.
Lancashire and West Yorkshire had the highest number of NLGs with 63 (19.1%). The North had the fewest with 24 (7.3%).
Number of NLGs by RSC area
| RSC area | Number of NLGs | Change from September 2020 | Percentage of all NLGs |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Midlands and Humber | 62 | 0 | 18.8% |
| East of England and North-East London | 30 | -1 | 9.1% |
| Lancashire and West Yorkshire | 63 | -2 | 19.1% |
| North | 24 | -3 | 7.3% |
| South Central and North West London | 41 | -1 | 12.4% |
| South East and South London | 53 | 0 | 16.1% |
| South West | 31 | -1 | 9.4% |
| West Midlands | 26 | 0 | 7.9% |
| Total | 330 | -8 |
(Source: DfE management information. Please note that as the percentages are rounded, the total value will not always be 100%.)