At the hard edge of change: views from secondary head teachers on a public‐private partnership

Abstract

The work presented here follows up the authors’ paper, in the previous issue of this journal, which (i) explored modernizing leadership in a public‐private partnership, principally from the perspective of the senior managers of a private company contracted to run school support services by a local education authority (LEA), and (ii) suggested that their leadership approach resembled what was termed an adaptive public service (APS) model. This second, companion paper analyses data from secondary school head teachers to see if their perceptions and experience confirm or challenge the APS model as an interpretation of the leadership approach of the private company’s senior managers. It was concluded that the model, with its basic commitment to a public service ethos, is largely affirmed as a way of reflecting the latter’s leadership, particularly in its early stages. However, by the end of the period of study, a change in strategy and leadership approach was creating a more target‐driven culture. With regard to the impact of outsourcing, although some improvements in services were identified by head teachers, it was also evident that other core support services for schools had continuing deficiencies. This is consistent with experience of private participation in public sector education which has generally not lived up to the expectations placed on it. Tensions were found between the practical power relationships within this public‐private partnership, and the idea of partnership that is built into the policy discourse that labels it as a partnership.