System leadership is about recognising the importance of the connections between different issues, different individuals and different institutions. These publications look specifically at how leaders work within this system.
Delta 6 (2006)
This two-part booklet and resource pack is for use with leadership teams or wider groups such as governing bodies or a network of schools. The resource, which was developed with school leaders as part of the NCSL/Innovation Unit Next Practice in System Leadership project, can be used to think about and prioritise the key global, national and local challenges we face and how your school can respond to them. It includes think pieces from leading figures as well as interactive activities and a facilitator’s guide.
Delta 6 is available as a printed version only and is free of charge.
School leaders leading the system
The development of multi-agency partnerships and collaborative working have come to characterise local responses to system level issues which currently challenge all school leaders. These reports build upon the outcomes of NCSL’s Leadership Network Conference in 2006, looking at the contributions, discussions and ideas generated by the participants.
School leaders leading the system 
(2006) (239kb, 12 pages
System leadership in perspective (276kb, 12 pages)
System leadership in practice (376kb, 12 pages)
System leadership in discussion (145kb, 2 pages)
(Download only)
Schools leading schools: the power and potential of National Leaders of Education (2008) (825kb, 78 pages) Warning: large document
This booklet summarises the growing evidence that the NLE programme is becoming one of the most effective levers of school improvement in recent years. When accompanied by other changes that are promoting partnerships between federations, academies, trusts and other schools, we potentially have the means to consign mediocre schooling to history and to ensure that every child experiences a good education. The NLE programme is showing how it is possible to harness the power and commitment of excellent school leaders to lead and improve the wider school system.
To order a printed copy of the report, email [email protected].
System Leadership – lessons from the literature (2006) (297kb, 24 pages)
NCSL
System leaders recognise the importance of the connections between different issues, different individuals and different institutions. System leaders understand how important the connections they make are and how they create the systems. This paper argues that system leadership has a consistent set of principles that can and should be applied within and between institutions.
A printed copy, priced £5, is available by clicking on the order button below.
System leadership in action
Distinctive features of successful school networks are the first places we would search in order to understand more about the practice of system leadership and the roles of system leaders. Four booklets offer perspectives of system leadership and what it might look like in practice. They set out to explore the interface between the practice of what we have called ‘networked learning’ and the practice of what has been identified as system leadership in action.
Where do system leaders come from? (171kb, 8 pages)
What does a system leader do? (163kb, 6 pages)
Leading networks leading the system (1.03Mb, 12 pages)
System leaders in profile (830kb, 16 pages)
(Download only)