Renewing spiritual capital: the National Retreat for Catholic Headteachers and the National School of Formation: the impact on Catholic headteachers in the UK

Abstract

This paper draws on the findings of a small-scale research study based on interviews with twenty serving Catholic headteachers from the primary and secondary phases and from the maintained and independent sectors. The focus of the study was to explore the concept of ‘spiritual capital’ among the headteachers and to evaluate the impact of two major new initiatives in England and Wales: the National Retreat for Catholic Headteachers and the National School of Formation. Gerald Grace and others have raised concerns about the depletion of spiritual capital among Catholic headteachers as more lay people take on the responsibility and the Catholic culture which sustained such capital continues to decline. My initial conclusions are that Catholic headteachers are still drawing on spiritual capital from their own resources and the wider community, but these resources are maintaining rather than developing or deepening their spiritual lives. The new initiatives have had a significantly positive effect on the spiritual resources they draw upon in their role as Catholic headteachers.