Information on professional development for school leaders and governors, includes our NPQML, NPQSL, NPQH and NPQEL qualifications.

There’s separate information about the National professional qualifications (NPQs) reforms.

Qualifications for school leaders

  1. National Professional Qualification for Middle Leadership (NPQML)
    • Guidance
  2. National Professional Qualification for Senior Leadership (NPQSL)
    • Guidance
  3. National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH)
    • Guidance
  4. National Professional Qualification for Executive Leadership (NPQEL)
    • Guidance
  5. National professional qualifications (NPQs): list of providers
    • Guidance
  6. National professional qualifications: frameworks
    • Guidance

For school governors

  1. Academy and school governance: professional development
    • Guidance
  2. Providers: governance leadership and clerking development
    • Guidance

Published 18 March 2014
Last updated 3 July 2020 + show all updates

  1. Added a link to the policy paper on NPQ reforms.

  2. Added ‘National Professional Qualification for Executive Leadership (NPQEL)’.

  3. First published.