Out now with SAGE Publications – use code SAGEAUTH25 for a 25% discount and with free next day delivery on Amazon.
For every headteacher and school leader who has ever felt both the joy and the weight of leadership, HeadsUp4HTs: Supporting Purposeful School Leadership is a book written with you, and for you.
This book grew out of the lived experience of hundreds of school leaders across the UK, leaders who have inspired, struggled, led with courage, and sometimes fallen through the cracks of an unforgiving system. It is, at its heart, a book about rediscovering purpose, nurturing well-being, and reconnecting with the human side of leadership.
A book born from the HeadsUp4HTs community.
The story of HeadsUp4HTs began back in 2019, when a small group of headteachers gathered in Liverpool to share their experiences; the pride, the pain, and the passion of headship. What began as a conversation has grown into a thriving network of thousands of leaders who connect to reflect, reframe and remind one another that they are not alone.
Through their voices, and ours, this book tells the story of what it means to lead with heart in today’s education system. You’ll hear from leaders who have weathered inspection, crisis, and personal doubt, and from those who have rebuilt themselves and their schools with renewed purpose and integrity.
Inside the book
Part 1
HeadsUp4HTs, explores the mission and evolution of the HeadsUp4HTs community, how it began with one headteacher’s painful story (James Pope’s own, powerfully told in Chapter 2), and evolved into a movement for collective well-being and sustainable leadership.
You’ll find chapters that speak candidly about the joy of school leadership and the challenge of it, as well as reflections on the importance of purpose and intentionality in a demanding educational landscape.
Part 2
We introduce our Nine Steps to Well-being — practical, human strategies to support self-awareness, sustainability, and joy in the job. From ‘Being honest with yourself’ and ‘Recognise the need’ to ‘Amplifying the things that bring you joy’ these steps are built on years of listening to what school leaders truly need. We share the experiences of headteachers and school leaders from our community who talk honestly about their experiences of headship, and the impact of being intentional about focusing on their well-being.
Part 3
What Next? is both a reflection and a call to action – to build systems that sustain leaders, not exhaust them. It invites all of us to think differently about how we support the people who hold our schools and communities together. This part of the book invites all of us; governors, trusts, policymakers, local authorities, and leadership associations to think differently about how we nurture and protect the people who hold our schools together. It’s about moving from reactive, short-term responses to intentional, sustainable support.
For every school leader’s bookshelf
we are so proud of our book! This isn’t a theoretical text or a leadership manual that tells you how to do the job. It’s a collection of real stories, shared wisdom, and compassionate guidance that reminds us that leadership is a profoundly human endeavour.
If you are a headteacher, senior leader, or aspiring leader, this book is an invitation to pause, reflect, and reconnect with your ‘why’. To remember the joy of making a difference. To find courage in community. At HeadsUp4HTs, we often ask ourselves just one question:
“Have we helped one school leader feel better about themselves and their impact today?”
If this book can do that, for you, or for someone you know, then it’s done its job.
About the authors
James Pope has worked in education for 20+ years. Since resigning from his post as a Headteacher in 2018 he created Inspireducate Ltd and founded the HeadsUp4HTs community. With a passion for school leadership, education, vision and strategy he works with schools around the world as a coach, mentor and thought leader. Through the founding of the HeadsUp4Hts network he has also become something of an expert in Headteacher well-being, working with and influencing organisations and policy makers.
Kate Smith is a former primary headteacher and ICF accredited coach who has supported thousands of school leaders across the UK and beyond through her values-driven coaching, facilitation and peer support work. A passionate advocate for intentional well-being, sustainable leadership and authentic communication, she specialises in coaching leaders through the rollercoaster ride of headship. Through her work with HeadsUp4HTs, Kate is influencing how the system supports – and sustains – the people at its heart.
HeadsUp4HTs: Supporting Purposeful School Leadership is available now from SAGE Publications and all major booksellers.
📚 Use code SAGEAUTH25 for 25% off
📒 Available on Amazon with free next day delivery