A research team led by Professor Carol Aubrey of the Institute of Education at the University of Warwick found that there was no single style of adult leadership suitable for all types of daycare provision, reception class or children's centre.
Their report, How do they manage? An investigation of early childhood leadership, funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, suggests that the most successful early childhood leaders create a 'participative culture' and give their staff the licence to exert pressure from below to influence the way a centre is led.
Professor Aubrey said the study 'had uncovered the need for greater application of models of leadership that are not hierarchical, that distribute responsibility and acknowledge the wide range of skills available in a multi-professional team'. But she added that a level of maturity in the organisation needed to be achieved for this to be effective.
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