Why Your Head Should Be On Social Media
At any school, headteachers take on the role of ‘Ship Captain’ ensuring that morale is high, teachers are pulling together in the same direction, and that their cargo is the most valuable plunder on the high seas! So why is it so important that they themselves have a strong social media presence? We’re so glad you asked!
It’s important to remember that the Head should be running their own accounts and telling their own stories, in order to share authenticity and a familiar tone of voice. As part of an effective #ContentStrategy, Heads should be using multiple channels to reach their intended audiences. As per our previous blog, Heads may also consider using a scheduling software to share their stories to multiple networks at once, while remembering to tailor the language to the requirements of those audiences:
Now for the key reasons why your Head should be using social media…
Community Engagement
Heads must maintain good relationships with all stakeholder groups: past, present and prospective families, staff and pupils; the local community and the governing body. A head’s social feeds can be effective tools to communicate to all of these invested parties, just remember to make it poignant for each network!
It’s perhaps more important than ever that Heads are able to engage and check-in with members of their community. Post-Covid, communications are more virtual than ever, so to engage with the various stakeholders of any school, why not follow suit?
This level of personal engagement can quickly come to empower those members of the school community.
By sharing regular updates of pupils’ and colleagues’ work, Heads can recognise and celebrate their accomplishments, thereby uplifting the individuals involved, and encouraging others to strive for success.
They can also engage with organisations, colleagues and counterparts at other schools, in order to share their ideas on educational advocacy or thought leadership. In doing so, they are sharing their own industry experience and portraying their dedication and commitment to the education sector.
Crisis Management
As with any organisation that works within a community, schools will have an abundance of good news stories to share on a daily basis. However, it is inevitable that schools and their leaders will also have to share not-so-good news stories. These may reflect the passing of a valued community member, or relate to a topic which may cause damage to the reputation of the school.
Heads are often looked to at these times to provide direction and to reflect on the situation. They are Ship Captain, so they are leading the stance and morale of the whole crew:
Heads should lean into these occasions to share a heartfelt and meaningful message with those affected.
Whilst this can be difficult, silence can come at a cost to reputation.
The leadership and direction from the Head will also demonstrate their own values, in turn reflecting the values of the school.
This may be the deciding factor for a prospective parent.
In terms of mitigation, Heads are also key players to nip the rumour mill in the bud. It is natural for teachers and community members to speculate, but with proper and effective communication from the Head, gossip and conjecture from within the community can be left at the gates.
Networking, Partnerships, Fundraising and Development
While a school may be partnered with any number of organisations, charities or influential people, a Head is likely to have their own network of like-minded colleagues. They may be from an association, like HMC, BSA or the ISA, Heads of other schools or former colleagues from their former roles. These relationships often result in the sharing of thought leadership and educational advocacy which benefits the schools and communities within.
Celebrating these partnerships is a great opportunity for Heads, as they can leverage their own network to share their experience and expertise further. They will come to be seen as leaders of the industry.
Gregg Davies’ post on phones in schools
A prime example is how Former Head at Shiplake College, Gregg Davies, took to social media to share his thoughts on the use of mobile phones in schools in 2016. In turn, his social media story was shared on social media, and resulted in a Daily Mail article and an appearance on Good Morning Britain!
Gregg Davies, Former Head at Shiplake College on Good Morning Britain
These relationships and associations can also provide excellent opportunities for fundraising and development. Not only will Heads utilise their partnerships, they are also at liberty to reach out to a huge number of parents and families, both past and present. They will be able to appeal effectively to the priorities and needs of the community, so they could be the perfect person to lead the way on a fundraising campaign.
Professional Development and Recruitment
Here at Interactive Schools, we promote that teachers should use social media to reflect on and display their own professional development. We promote the same for Headteachers as we believe that they should never stop learning about their area of work. They may also provide professional development for their communities, or further-afield.
When Heads reflect on their own professional development, they reflect that they are still learning. This is valuable for community members who respect modesty. The level of professional development Heads are sharing should be considered. If it is basic professional development, then it should be promoted as a ‘refresher’, while more complex PD should be presented as evidence of the innovation or industry-lead the school may be taking.
In turn, stories centred around professional development may also feed into a positive return on recruitment, so should certainly be shared on LinkedIn. Prospective teachers or members of staff will come to understand the culture of a school through how the Head reflects or celebrates their colleagues and their professional development. By sharing these stories, teachers will see that the school will also invest in them.
A Head’s presence on social media is fundamental to the storytelling of a school, as they will set the tone, pace and expectations of their colleagues. Often, we are told that teachers are too busy to engage with social media, but we find that the schools whose storytelling output is highest are often led by the Head’s online presence, as they - as the Ship Captain, remember! - are leading the voyage.
If your Head needs any advice or training on how to use social media, please reach out to the storytelling team at social@interactiveschools.com.