Professional Qualification for Headship in Northern Ireland
Placement Schools
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What does it involve?






Hosting a ‘trainee head teacher’ for a period of up to 5 days;
Identifying a leadership activity/task for the trainee head to complete;
Liaising with PQH(NI) as to posting school information on the ‘Placements’ database;
Modelling leadership skills;
Mentoring the ‘trainee headteacher’; and
Concluding by writing a statement on the individual for the PQH (NI) Graduation Board.
What is a suitable activity/task?


Please see section 5.4 in the attachment, Guidance for Principals of Placement
Schools. This gives a list of activities that colleagues identified as activities for their most
recent cohort.
Some schools simply state, ‘Please contact school’ as a title for the activity/task. Either
because they have not yet identified an activity/task by the date of posting or they are
open to ‘negotiation’ with the trainee headteacher.
Is there a format for the placement?
No, it is entirely at the discretion of the Placement School - however the following is a typical
model:



Meet with Principal, discuss activity task, agree attendance dates, meet relevant
staff, access relevant data.
School-based research and write up of report.
Presentation of findings to principal then to SLT, rest of staff or Governors if
applicable.
As a school of high leadership status there is an expectation that leadership skills would be
modelled for the trainee headteacher during the placement. A sharing of expertise in a mentoring
capacity would also be beneficial.
1
Professional Qualification for Headship in Northern Ireland
What do I do next?




Complete the on-line Placement pro-forma for PQH (NI), details in the guidance booklet.
Contact is made directly to the placement school by one or more trainee headteachers.
Once placement has been agreed the trainee headteacher registers on-line. An automatic
email will be sent to both the Principal of the host school and the trainee headteacher.
At the end of the placement a statement on the trainee headteacher for PQH (NI)
Graduation Board must be completed. [Graduation Board Placement Report]
What if I still have some questions?

Contact Michael Kealey on 90 564101 or by email at michael@.kealey@rtuni.org
2