National Professional Qualification for Leading Behaviour and Culture

This course is designed for teachers who have, or are aspiring to have, responsibilities for leading behaviour and/or supporting pupil wellbeing in their school. 
 
If you aren’t sure if this is the right NPQ for you look at the pages for the other courses or contact us for a personal chat via enquiries@llse.org.uk 

The course is comprised of three modules. Each of the modules takes 12 weeks to complete. As part of each module, you will undertake some online study (approximately 2 hours per week of the 12 weeks), participate in two live interactive webinars (90 minutes each), and attend a face-to-face session (half day).  
 
As part of the online learning, you will have the opportunity to engage with relevant research and evidence, learn how leaders in other schools carry out their role and participate in discussion forum activities with everyone else completing the same qualification as you. You will also complete a series of activities to build a personal online learning journal. This will record your progress, help you to reflect on the new knowledge, understanding and skill you are acquiring and act as a repository for all of the key information you don’t want to forget.  
 
You will be expertly guided through your modules with support from your two facilitators and your in-school coach. 
 
The key topics covered over the course of the three modules are:

• Effective teaching
• School Culture
• Enabling conditions for good behaviour
• Complex behavioural needs
• Professional development
• Effective implementation

Within each module there are opportunities for you to complete formative assessment activities which will enable you and your facilitator to reflect on and evaluate the progress you make whilst completing the qualification.  

Formative assessment takes place throughout the programme, helping you to understand the progress you are making, and facilitators to adapt your learning experiences. 

There are two overall criteria to achieving the qualification:

• Engagement with a minimum of 90% of the course
• Successful completion of the summative assessment

Summative assessment takes the form of a 1500-word response to a case study, completed in a single 8-day window at the end of your programme. The assessment will give you the opportunity to demonstrate how you would deploy the knowledge, skills and understanding gained through the NPQ to lead and implement a specific aspect of change. 

Find out further information about assessments

UK - £890.00 + VAT

Funding Information Autumn 2026 - The NPQLBC programme will continue to offer scholarship funding only to participants from schools/settings eligible under the PP50 criteria. Details of eligibility lists based on disadvantage are set out here

Full guidance on funding for the Autumn 2026 NPQ cohort can be found here.

As with any professional development the more you put into the process of learning the more you will be able to take from it. This qualification requires commitment and time as well as a willingness to try new things, make mistakes and extend your knowledge, skill and understanding. We have designed the course with flexibility in mind and whilst you might complete the online elements of the course on your own and at a time which best suits you and your wellbeing, you will be part of both a local and national cohort of other teachers and leaders studying exactly as you are, we refer to this as your community of practice. You will gain most from the course by seizing each opportunity to engage with your community of practice – an enquiring mind is a must.  
 
We recognise that each school and college, whilst similar to others will operate with its own unique culture, set of strengths and challenges, it is for this reason that we have engaged with practitioners across the country to provide contextualised case study input and allow you to see how the ideas covered in the course work in the real world. This means we welcome collaboration with you as the course participant to create new content for others to learn from, so, as you complete the course, if you think you have a case study within your own school or college, get in touch and let us celebrate what you and your colleagues are achieving.  
 
In short, we expect that participants are teachers and leaders who will be able to meet all of the following criteria:

• Active engagement in every aspect of the programme - face-to-face and online elements 
• A commitment to accurate, evidence-informed self-evaluation and reflection                       
• The ability to proactively arrange and participate in coaching sessions                                 
• A commitment to submit a 1,500-word assessment within 8 calendar days of it being set at the end of the programme   
• A commitment to thoughtfully engage with evaluations about their entire programme learning experience that will support our continued quality improvement 

The taught elements of your course will take place over a 12-month period. This will be followed by the completion of your summative assessment which must be submitted within an 8-day period following completion of your course. The whole of the assessment process including submission of your summative assessment, marking and moderation will take a total of 3 months. 

"I enjoy the range of ways in which I am being taught. I am an independent learner, but I also value the interaction with others, particularly in the seminars, both online and face-to-face."
  
"I am more confident as a head of year because of what I am learning in the NPQ. I have greater confidence because my opinions are informed by research. "
  
"My leadership style has developed dramatically in the time spent on my NPQ course. I have been building relationships with pupils, staff and wider school community. An example of this success is I was relied on to delivery PSHE to support/guide other members of staff due to topic being sensitive and needing my pastoral approach to show colleagues how to approach this. of trust and mutual respect between the individuals involved. My role within my own department has become more reliant on me to use my ability to share my expertise and support colleagues’ individual needs an example of this has been me conducting CPD, or conversations in our department that are adaptable due to subject matter i.e. less facilitative, dialogic or directive to support colleagues in completion of certain task, training etc. "
 
"I find the facilitators really supportive and I always feel like they really get me thinking about my own practice. As this is done away from work it means I have time for my own reflection and discussions with other professionals."
 
"The course leaders are amazing and I wish we could have more contact time with them on our cohort because the networking and sharing of experiences is invaluable." 

"It is very insightful to work with the SLT to gain a greater understanding of the wider culture of the school. Through meetings with my coach and other senior staff, I have had to think more deeply and widely about whole school practice and staff development, particularly in terms of behaviour policies and communication with parents."

“I am enjoying the research element of the course as I feel I am gaining an insightful understanding into different cultures of behaviour and making reference to highly recommended sources.”  

Recruitment for the Autumn 2026 Cohort is now open.

Applications to join this cohort, either with a funded/non funded place are now open. Funded places are limited, and we would encourage you to start your application early by following this link.

DfE registration
All NPQ applicants are required to register with the Department for Education (DfE). This service is now open,  and you can start your registration here. Everyone applying for an NPQ (regardless of funding pathway) will be required to have a One Login account. We recommend people set this up now to avoid any delays in the registration process. You can do that by visiting  Register to get started with GOV.UK One Login - GOV.UK One Login

We encourage Teaching Assistants and Support Staff to join one of our NPQLT or NPQLBC cohorts. It is an excellent opportunity to strengthen classroom practice, grow in confidence, and make an even greater impact on pupils’ learning.

These programmes not only enhance individual skills but also add value to schools by building expertise and capacity within the team.