The impact of the NPQ programmes on the work engagement, wellbeing and retention of school leaders

The research will provide nuanced evidence to inform system and school level decision makers about how better to attract and retain high-quality school leaders.

The new suite of National Professional Qualifications (NPQ) is part of the government’s recruitment and retention strategy for school teachers and leaders.

Research is an integral part of the UCL-led NPQ programmes and this includes a four-year research study to examine their impact over time.

The research is a key aspect of the NPQ programmes as it will provide nuanced evidence to inform system and school level decision makers about how better to attract and retain high-quality school leaders.

Upcoming events

23 June 2025, 5:00 pm–6:30 pm

About the research

This research will fill a gap in knowledge about how factors relating to individual leaders and their work environments may work in combination with their learning experiences on the NPQ programmes to influence their professional practice, and their decision making about remaining in teaching and leadership.  

More specifically, we will research effects upon teachers’ and school leaders’ work lives, including their workload, engagement, resilience, and wellbeing, and investigate how such effects – individually and in combination – impact on retention over time.

We will use annual surveys and interviews to investigate the outcomes and build longitudinal databases to track participants over time.  This approach will provide robust evidence to enable us to understand:

  • Who the intended leavers, movers and stayers are over time.
  • The extent to which and how their experiences on NPQ programmes have influenced their professional dispositions and qualities, how effective they are as leaders, and why they intend to leave or stay.

There are four core elements to the NPQ programmes research:

  1. Tracking of leaders’ destinations through unique teacher IDs and school IDs.  
  2. End of year survey of all IOE NPQ participants.
  3. A sub-sample of leaders from each NPQ programme (n=120 from all NPQs) are invited to take part in an annual telephone interview to discuss their learning experiences of the NPQ programme and its impacts.
  4. An additional sub-sample of 28 schools are invited to take part in a more in-depth case-study. This will involve two school visits (year 1 or year 2) for interviews with leaders for each cohort, and one visit per year subsequently.

Outcome

  • Gu, Qing; Seymour, Kathy; Shao, Xin; Eleftheriadou, Sofia; Leithwood, Kenneth. (2025). Workload, Wellbeing, and Retention: Do NPQs Make a Difference? (Interim Research Report 4). Publication series of the research into the impact of the National Professional Qualifications (NPQ) programme on the work engagement, wellbeing and retention of school leaders: a longitudinal study, 2021-2026. UCL Centre for Educational Leadership: London, UK.

Research teams and committees

  • Professor Qing Gu
  • Dr Lisa Baines
  • Dr Sofia Eleftheriadou
  • Professor Kenneth Leithwood - University of Toronto, Honorary Professor at UCL IOE

  • Professor Peter Earley
  • Mark Quinn
  • Stephen Calladine Evans
  • Dr Andy Hodgkinson
  • Dr Alyson Colman

  • Ruth Smith – East London Teaching School Hub
  • Janet Roberts – TSH Berkshire
  • Andy Ash – Inspire Learning NW Teaching School Hub