National Professional Qualification
for Leading Teaching (NPQLT)

For teachers who have, or are aspiring to have, responsibilities for leading teaching in a subject, year group, key stage or phase.

Deepen your understanding of pedagogy and the science of learning

Awards 30 Master's Credits

Develop the skills to help colleagues plan effective lessons

Month Programme

Department for Education DfE NPQ Providers

National NPQ Provider delivery map

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What our candidates, partners and network are saying about

Outstanding Leaders Partnership

Neil Coe

NPQH Rochdale Spring 2019

I have secured a headship in a secondary school in Bolton from September 2021 and in terms of the impact of NPQH - it’s a number of things for me:

1. Knowledge that I didn’t have. Especially ar...

Headteacher, Barkston and Syston Church of England Primary School

I would like to express how delighted we are as a school with the NPQSL so far. I have two members of staff participating and the skills and knowledge they have gained so far is incredible. Both membe...

NPQH Participant

The NPQH has been invaluable in terms of the theory and reading I have undertaken - this was picked up during the interview so I can safely say that the course has played a key role in my new appointm...

NPQH Candidate, Autumn 2019

Embarking on the NPQH course in September 2019 was a daunting prospect. Having said that, the NPQH has proved to be the best CPD I have received during my time as a teacher and leader in school. The t...

NPQH Autumn 2019

After only a term on NPQH, I secured Headship post at my current school after quite a grilling interview! I have to say the Strategy and Improvement module online tasks and the associated reading real...

NPQSL Candidate, Autumn 2018

I would just like to say a huge thank you to Best Practice Network for all the support and guidance given throughout the NPQSL course. My online tutor helped me immensely with her constructive feedbac...

Annemari Merilainen-Ottridge

NPQEL Candidate

I feel that the course has given me new skills, knowledge, confidence and resilience to work in my role, share best practice and engage in genuine and meaningful collaboration with other schools. I kn...

NPQH Candidate

I got the headship! There were 19 applicants, 6 on the day and 4 for face-to-face interviews. The course was absolutely instrumental in my success at interview - I used my vision, talked about leade...

NPQH Candidate

I'm so glad I did my NPQH with OLP, rather than another provider. Made it so real and prepared me so well.

NPQH Candidate

Without this qualification, I would certainly not have been able to navigate through my first year of headship and all the challenges that were thrown at me. This helped me develop a strategic plan to...

Timothy Patteson

NPQH Candidate

It has had a huge impact! I now have greater knowledge of whole-school leadership and how to manage change. I now also feel confident in managing whole-school finances/budgets!

NPQML Candidate

This course has been very useful to me as a leader as it is the area of leadership with which I have the least experience. I feel that I have gained a much more secure understanding of identifying pos...

NPQH Candidate

I highly recommend Best Practice Network. My personal learning and CPD has had a significant impact on the understanding of how to lead a school. Support network through tutors and forums was fantasti...

NPQSL Candidate

I genuinely feel like a more confident leader within a school community. The NPQSL course has provided me with practical tools to effectively evaluate my own performance and the impact of my team on t...

NPQSL Candidate

I have really enjoyed this course. The leading professional development has been my significant leadership learning from this course. This has been a big eye opener, and reading what others are doing ...

Amanda Costello

NPQEL Candidate

Firstly, I would like to say I have enjoyed engaging with the resources and working group with my peers whilst learning more about ‘Teaching and curriculum Excellence. Using the NPQEL learning resou...

NPQSL Candidate

I cannot even begin to tell you how beneficial and relevant this unit has been to me personally. It has helped me to get through certain situations far better than I ever would have had I had not done...

Jo Noble

NPQML Candidate

An outstanding day. The perfect balance between presentation, reflection and activities…Our facilitator is inspirational and manages to get people who don’t know each other working, thinking and l...

NPQSL Candidate

Today was really refreshing – to spend the time with aspiring leaders with such a range of attributes and understanding was very inspirational. The environment was set up beautifully so that we unde...

Mary Ann Cooper

NPQH Candidate

"I didn’t have enough self-discipline to fully utilise the online modules but the contact days and the prep work, prior to each contact day, helped hugely in keeping me on track (and better aware of...

National Professional Qualification (NPQ): Leading Teaching

NPQLT gives participants all of the essential knowledge, skills and concepts that underpin the successful leadership of teaching. Participants will cover ‘learn that’ and ‘learn how to’ statements in nine areas:

1 – Teaching
2 – School Culture
3 – How Pupils Learn
4 – Subject and Curriculum
5 – Classroom Practice
6 – Adaptive Teaching
7 – Assessment
8 – Professional Development
9 – Implementation

See NPQLT Framework tab for full programme content.

What are the benefits?

The fully blended learning approach combined with performance coaching and enrichment activities make this an exciting and valuable opportunity for those who have, or are aspiring to have, responsibilities for leading teaching in a subject, year group, key stage or phase.

The NPQLT qualification is aligned to Masters credits and can act as a springboard on to Liverpool Hope University’s MA in Leading in Education or the MBA in Educational Leadership.

Benefits for Participants

Become adept at supporting effective teaching across school
Develop expertise across a number of specialist areas related to their role (e.g. curriculum and assessment)
Purpose-built virtual learning environment enabled for mobiles and tablets
Guaranteed support to pass the final assessment
Content contextualised for your locality and updated to reflect national developments and legislation
Facilitation and support from serving school leaders in outstanding schools and delivery at local venues

Benefits for Schools

Regular progress updates for mentors and headteachers
Support succession of school leaders and build a cohesive, impact-focused school leadership team
A professionally aware and informed leader who can make evidence-based decisions and approach the leading of teaching in an effective and efficient manner
The ability to review and evaluate practice in order to bring about change and get the best outcomes for young people and staff within the organisation

NPQLT At a Glance

12 Month Programme

3 Face-to-Face Events

38 Hours of Online Learning

6 hours of Performance Coaching

82 Total Learning Hours

1500 Word "Open Book" Assessment

How is NPQLT delivered?

NPQLT makes use of a blended delivery model consisting of face-to-face events, online study, webinars and coaching.

NPQLT participants will attend 3 face-to-face events via the blended delivery model. Our nationwide partnership delivery network allows us to bring face-to-face training to a school near you and facilitated by local school leaders.

Participants access online learning and support via our virtual learning environment (VLE) Canvas. Through Canvas, participants are able to engage with learning communities of peers and access multimedia content. They can also access research and expert school-led practice aligned to the curriculum content for the qualification and receive high-quality feedback from experienced online mentors and in-school coaches.

NPQLT Qualification Structure

In-School Performance Coach

Participants will need to nominate an In-School Performance Coach who will undertake a minimum of 6 hours in-school performance coaching throughout the 12 month development stage of the programme.

It is the role of the In-School Performance Coach to set specific goals to support the completion of the NPQ and to support with programme study, direction and learning development. Professional training and development is provided to the coach before the NPQ commences. See the In-School Performance Coach guide for more information.

Who is this for?

The National Professional Qualification for Leading Teaching (NPQLT) – is for teachers who have, or are aspiring to have, responsibilities for leading teaching in a subject, year group, key stage or phase.

Leading teaching is complex. Although the role varies, many phase leaders, key stage leaders, heads of department (or similar titles) are considered to be part of the middle leadership team. They often directly manage a team of teachers and their work is focussed on supporting effective teaching across the school.

Requirements

Applicants must have completed 2 full years of teaching.

All applicants must have either QTS, QTLS, a Level 5 (or higher) qualification (any subject), or an international equivalent (see below). You must be able to evidence this with a copy of your certificate.

For those with QTS, you can download a copy of your certificate here https://teacherservices.education.gov.uk/SelfService/Login.

For those with QTLS, you can download a copy of your certificate here https://set.et-foundation.co.uk/my-set/my-profile. If for any reason you are unable to provide a copy of your certificate, you will need to ask a representative from the school where you are teaching to contact Capita Teachers' Pensions. Your employer should know how to do this via the Capita employer portal https://www.teacherspensions.co.uk/.

If do not have QTS or QTLS, you will need evidence completion of a Level 5 qualification (any subject). For International applicants, you will need to apply for a UK ENIC Statement of Comparability https://enic.org.uk/Qualifications/SOC/Default.aspx to demonstrate your Level 5 qualification is comparable to UK qualifications.

What does it cost?

The National Professional Qualification for Leading Teaching (NPQLT) costs £895 plus VAT if applicable.

VAT will not be applied to DfE funded candidates or state-funded schools.

Scholarships

Full scholarship funding, with no cost to the participant, for the NPQ in Leading Teaching is available to all teachers who meet the following criteria:

have, or are aspiring to have, responsibilities for leading teaching in a subject, year group, key stage or phase
work in a state-funded school in England that is within the top 30th percentile in relation to pupils on pupil premium as of the end of the previous academic year

To view the full range of NPQ scholarships and funding pathways available please visit NPQ Funding 2021

Access to funding remains conditional on successful verification of participants’ registration information against Teaching Regulation Agency records, so you must ensure that the information supplied to your NPQ provider matches your teacher record. You can check and update your record via the Teaching Regulation Agency’ Teacher Self-Service Portal.

NPQLT Framework

Please see the NPQLTD Framework below. If your computer or device does not support the Adobe plugin you can download the framework pdf here.

Next Steps

When you are ready to apply please visit the Online Application Form.

You will need to identify and nominate a sponsor. This should be someone with a detailed and professional knowledge of the applicant’s work, impact, professional characteristics, and leadership behaviours.

You will also need to identify an in-school performance coach who might be the same person as your sponsor. Please see In-School Performance Coach for more information about the role.

NPQSL+

Stand out from the crowd and complete NPQSL whilst at the same time working towards the Level 5 Manager Standard with the Senior Leaders Apprenticeship with NPQSL.

This programme is funded by the Apprenticeship Levy and comes with a whole raft of extra support, resources and content compared with the standalone NPQSL.

Participants on this programme receive added support in the form of monthly meetings with a dedicated Apprenticeship Tutor. Our Apprenticeship Tutors are themselves experienced school leaders and headteachers and are able to offer invaluable assistance and advice as you complete the programme.

Give the team a call on 0117 920 9428 to find out more about this programme.