Horton, Juliet; (2023) Navigating motherhood and headship in 21st century English state-funded schools. Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).

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Abstract

Women remain underrepresented in secondary school headship and executive headship in England. A patriarchal discourse on mothering and an education system shaped by neoliberal policies have reproduced hierarchical structures that disadvantage women and favour men. However, in the last decade, equality legislation, family policy, and a reconceptualisation of school leadership have enabled men and women to transgress dominant gender discourses to perform leadership and parenting differently. The study explores the influence of societal expectations and organisational structures on women’s leadership careers in education, specifically those with younger families. English state-funded secondary schools provide the setting for an in-depth case study detailing the opportunities and challenges of leading while mothering. Interviews were undertaken, and analysis of data and discussion formed an understanding of how a cohort of women, mothers, overcame potential barriers to achieve headship and how their motherhood enriches their leadership. Foucault and Butler inform the discussions and demonstrate how women leaders successfully challenge the hegemonic Western leadership model. Enacting leadership that can produce cultural shifts, these women leaders challenge neoliberal claims and perceptions of power to recognise and open up different approaches of power. These different approaches have important implications for school staff's well-being and work-life balance. Essentialist binary concepts of gender continue to influence women’s careers and how they perform leadership and motherhood. However, resistance to the patriarchal discourse on motherhood and the enactment of fathering aligned with the discourse on participative fathering challenge the traditional breadwinning model. The dissonance with the traditional patterns of mothering and fathering allows women the space and time to invest in their careers. The study contributes to the debate on women’s school leadership, specifically along the lines of gender roles, parenthood, well-being, and institutional and policy arrangements that may serve as facilitators or barriers to achieving equality.

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