A leadership programme for aspiring headteachers in Yorkshire

Headteachers for the schools and communities of Yorkshire.

A year of preparation for headship in Yorkshire, rooted in place and sustained by a cohort of peers who will stay with you long after it ends.

Apply now Register your interest

100 leaders per region, a new cohort every year.

Applications are open for the September 2027 cohort.

Apply now

Often the most stable institution left.

Across Yorkshire, schools sit where post-industrial towns, rural villages, coastal communities and big cities meet. Headteachers are asked to be civic leaders and anchors, as well as to run good schools.

  • 32%

    Nearly a third of children in poverty

    Yorkshire and the Humber has one of the highest child poverty rates of any region in England.

  • +1.6 grades

    Post-16 gaps are widening

    Doncaster and Kirklees were two of the five local authorities where the post-16 disadvantage gap widened most between 2019 and 2025.

  • Many kinds of disadvantage

    Post-industrial, rural, coastal and urban: disadvantage looks different across the county. Leaders need to read their own place well.

Bright spots

Eleven trusts from across the region chose to build the Yorks100 together, a deliberate bet on collaboration over competition.

Sources: Education Policy Institute, Annual Report 2026 (2025 data); IPPR (2025), child poverty 2021/22 to 2023/24.

How it works

Personal leadership development and collective learning, designed to sit alongside a senior role in school.

You cannot lead a school well without knowing its community.

Close attention to how place shapes children’s lives, families’ relationships with school and the decisions that matter most.

Leadership grows through difference.

Small rural primaries, coastal secondaries, federations, special and alternative provision, and urban schools learn together.

Ambition grows when you see what is possible.

Study tours to excellent schools beyond the region, with time to adapt what you see rather than copy it.

Leadership starts with self-knowledge.

Coaching and structured reflection to clarify your values, your judgement and the head you want to be.

Schools thrive when they are rooted in place.

Deep inquiry into your community's assets and history, and a focus on the levers that matter most for fairness.

The year

Demanding at times, reflective at others. Full dates and details

  1. September

    Opening residential

    Trust, shared purpose and a common language for the year.

  2. Through the year

    Workshops and webinars

    New perspectives and structured reflection with peers.

  3. Autumn and spring

    Study tours

    Excellent schools, within and beyond the region.

  4. Ongoing

    Online community

    Curated content and connection between live sessions.

  5. Termly

    Headteacher tasks

    Real decisions, practised in your own setting.

  6. June

    Closing residential

    From insight to sustained leadership action.

Who it's for

  • Leaders aspiring to headship in the next few years
  • Committed to leading in Yorkshire
  • Committed to leading in complex or under-resourced contexts
  • Who value collaboration over competition
  • Who want their school to be an anchor for its community

What it asks of you

  • Time and attention across the whole year
  • Full engagement with cohort learning and reflection
  • Honesty about the challenges of your context
  • Willingness to test new approaches
  • Generosity to a shared regional network
Apply nowNot ready yet? Register your interest

What changes

When it works, we see change at three connected levels.

In leaders

Confidence, clarity and readiness for headship, particularly in complex and isolated contexts.

Between people

Isolation reduces as lasting professional relationships form across the region, creating support where there was none.

In schools and trusts

Leadership pipelines steady, schools become more resilient, and communities benefit from leaders who stay.

In their words

“He continues to lead the school with remarkable vision, clarity and compassion. Drawing on his Yorks100 learning, he leads with quiet confidence and strong values.”

Sponsor

“I’m not sure I’ve ever worked so hard and had more fun at the same time.”

Participant

“Each visit added more tools to my leadership toolbox, especially seeing schools beyond Yorkshire.”

Participant

Built in partnership

Our partners shape the programme, host school visits and support leaders to apply what they learn. It was built together, and it is stronger for it.

Our partner board

  • Astrea Academy Trust
  • Beckfoot Trust
  • Brigshaw Learning Partnership
  • Ebor Academy Trust
  • Exceed Academies Trust
  • Focus Trust
  • Nexus Multi Academy Trust
  • Northern Star Academies Trust
  • The Education Alliance
  • Thrive Co-operative Learning Trust
  • Waterton Academy Trust

The team

Verity Howorth

Verity Howorth

Programme Lead

Leads the Yorks100 with a deep commitment to place-based leadership, relational practice and the power of strong cohorts.

Shelley Gonsalves

Shelley Gonsalves

Programme Director

Leads leadership development at The Reach Foundation, shaping the x100 programmes and overseeing coaching.