Leadership Academy

The Leadership Academy Programme is recognised by The Institute of Leadership, the UK's leading award winning body for leadership and management.

Local politicians are facing an environment of multiple challenges and opportunities; from reducing budgets and re-shaping services to diverse community challenges and complex political alliances. Developing the skills for effective local leadership is vital to ensure councillors can rise to these challenges and make the most of the opportunities to benefit their communities.

2024/25 Leadership Academy dates

Benefits of attending

• understand your own leadership style and improve your leadership capabilities
• understand and implement effective leadership strategies for the current environment
• work on your own specific challenges relevant to your councils
• develop a ‘leadership toolbox' of techniques and strategies for different situations
• taking your learning back to your councils
• working with peers from other parties and councils
• become registered Members with The Institute of Leadership for 1 year, providing access to all their brilliant resources, including their award-winning platform MyLeadership. Participants also receive a certificate of achievement upon completion, along with a digital credential and are able to use after their name: MIoL

About the programme

The Leadership Academy is a modular leadership development programme with three, two-day residential modules which take place over a three month period.

Module 1: Personal Leadership. This module explores how councillors can develop, maintain and use relationships – both internal and external – to provide effective leadership at the political, organisational and wider community levels.

Module 2: Political Leadership. This module will develop councillors' ability to lead and manage complex change to improve effectiveness and efficiency and to achieve better outcomes for the community.

Module 3: Leadership of place. The focus is on helping councillors to communicate with and provide leadership to their communities and within partnerships to achieve growth and prosperity.

All modules are underpinned by the following principles:

• grounded in the challenges and opportunities provided by the current local government context
• draw on leading edge thinking
• sharing of best practice
• focus and building on participants' own experiences and challenges
• provide time for reflection and self-evaluation
• encourage bold and ambitious leadership.

Who is it for?

 Councillors who recognise the need to improve their leadership capabilities to meet the challenges they are facing day-to-day and for the longer term future of their council. The programme is designed for councillors in leadership positions:

• council leaders and executive mayors
• deputy leaders
• group leaders
• portfolio holders
• policy committee chairs
• portfolio shadows
• scrutiny chairs

Fees: We recognise the financial challenge facing councils and so have substantially reduced the cost of attending the programme. The cost for the first place booked for each authority is now just £1,000. The cost for each subsequent place will be £1,250. The fee covers all the costs of the programme including accommodation, meals and materials except travel costs.

For more information contact Grace Collins
Telephone: 020 7664 3054
Email: [email protected]