Participants in the course for leaders of children's centres are gaining a confidence in their practice which is enabling them to develop new initiatives, according to a study of the National Professional Qualification in Integrated Centre Leadership (NPQICL).
The impact study carried out on the course is not yet complete, but initial findings from the international evaluation of the programme, which was developed in partnership between the National College of School Leadership and the Pen Green Leadership Centre, are very positive.
'The course has helped participants conceptualise themselves as a leader,'
says a spokeswoman, 'giving them a stronger and clearer understanding of their own capabilities. This has meant that they are much more confident in their practice and better able to develop new initiatives, and have a deeper understanding of what constitutes quality.'
She adds, 'They understand that they have to be learners for the rest of their lives and that they need to provide opportunities for all their staff teams. One participant said, "I'm not a head teacher, I'm a head learner".'
By 2010 there should be 3,500 children's centres in the UK and although the DfES currently has no plans to make the NPQICL a mandatory qualification, graduates of the year-long programme feel it is invaluable.
While most NPQICL graduates have gone back to their settings with their leadership skills enhanced, some have been promoted within the sector (see case study) and others have become involved in delivering and managing the qualification.
One of these is Leo Chivers, who was on the pilot course and is now NPQICL programme leader for the eastern region. He reports that the programme has remained ostensibly the same as the pilot he undertook.
'I truly believe it is of great use to children's centres and that it can be transformational for leaders struggling with the knotty dilemmas that are all too common in inter-agency working,' he says.
One of Mr Chiver's concerns is that local authorities have a huge task in growing many children's centres very quickly. 'For the sake of expediency and for economic reasons, such as status and pay, the brave individuals charged with the task of developing integrated services at centre level will be perceived as purely administrative or co-ordinating in nature,' he says. 'However, you cannot simply co-ordinate or administer services together from across agency and professional boundaries. It requires strong leadership, courage, emotional intelligence, an in-depth knowledge of professional heritages, and an awareness of complex organisational and psychological dimensions. The NPQICL provides participants with a chance to develop all these capacities in a safe and stimulating environment.'
Working strategically
Helen Brumwell, who leads the Bentley Children's Centre in Doncaster and completed the course in July, believes she is definitely a better leader as a result of the course. She says, 'I delegate more, so now my team leaders deal with the daily operational management and I am more strategic.'
The centre now runs a business planning exercise involving all the agencies working with children under five, looking at what they plan to achieve. 'We also have focus groups and each one works to one of the five outcomes,' Ms Brumwell says. 'They involve people working across the community who are likely to be able to address these targets and objectives.'
As an example, she points to the Stay Safe focus group which involves the police, community safety wardens, social services, the Home Start team, people from healthcare, and parents.
'This way, people know what everybody else is doing and thinking and we can have a joined-up vision of what we want to do,' she says.
Breeda McQuillan, who is responsible for two children's centres being developed in North Huyton, Liverpool, says she is paying more attention to interpersonal relations as a result of the course.
'In a very busy environment you do not always give enough consideration to them. You bring groups of people together and expect them to work effectively without thinking what needs to be in place,' says Ms McQuillan.
'I always tried to develop leadership in others, but I became more aware of the type of leader I am and what helps people develop leadership skills and what maybe hinders them.
'As the children's centres are developing, we are engaging with more and more partners, and these skills are increasingly needed on a strategic level.'
Leading lights
* The NPQICL pilot ran from September 2004 to July 2005 with 40 participants. The first year of national roll-out ran from September 2005, with just under 400 people taking part. A similar number have enrolled on the second year which began this September.
The application round for the third year will run from 5 March to 30 April 2007. It will be promoted both nationally and regionally. Candidates can apply via the website of the National College for School Leadership at www.ncsl.org.uk/npqicl.
The course is run by providers across nine regions of England. Their details can also be found on the NCSL website.
Applicants have to be the leader, deputy or equivalent of either a designated children's centre or of one that has gained local authority approval to be designated in 2007. It is anticipated that they will hold a UK honours degree or equivalent qualification.
Case study: Kay Jacques
Kay Jacques, who completed the NPQICL course in July, has been running the New Parks Children's Centre in Leicester but is moving to a new job managing the children's centre managers in the city.
She says, 'For me the important thing was not so much achieving the qualification as doing the course. Leadership can be quite lonely and the course gives you support. You are able to share and discuss difficulties with others.'
She cites another reason she undertook the course. 'I know that when I study, my practice improves. I like reflecting on what I am doing and how it affects the team and the families and children.'
Ms Jacques, a former nurse and midwife, says, 'People tend to work in silos within their own professional boundaries. I wanted to look at integrated working and how I could get new people into a new building to work together.
'In a team-building event the group looked at how we worked together, what was required from a leader, what kind of leadership behaviour that involved and what leadership behaviour I had.
'Some staff were confused, as they felt they had two managers: their manager within their employing body and their manager within the children's centre. This got them reflecting on how they worked together. They would have worked to their own goals, but now it is much more joined up.'
