ABSTRACT
Leadership within children’s centres is a highly complex and challenging task, most particularly because the very role itself demands individuals who will cause disequilibrium by challenging the status quo to bring about change. Both local and national government purport to wish for a change in the way in which services are offered to families; however, it is often left to those working on the ground to initiate and manage that change. This can cause considerable tension and stress. Central to the role of the children’s centre leader is the understanding of a vision that inspires practice and is the momentum to move practice forward in all areas of integrated working. If we refer back to Bronfenbrenner and his concept of the child within the context of family, community, culture and media, and the ongoing affect of all those contexts upon a child’s perceptions of themselves and their possible life chances, then we need a leader with the will and capability to affect change in all those spheres of influence.
