Europe · School leadership and professional wellbeing
Administrative workload is a source of stress for 77.5% of EU school leaders
A new European Commission analysis of school leadership combines very high job satisfaction with a warning sign: 77.5% of principals identify administrative workload as a source of stress and 37.2% expect to leave the profession within five years.
- Source published
- Effective date or period
- Comparative analysis · TALIS 2024 data from 23 EU countries
- Article on this portal
European Commission report · Evidence, not legislation
Our interpretation
Why it matters
School improvement cannot be sustained when routine administration consumes leadership time and increases turnover. The findings turn a broad concern about bureaucracy into a measurable agenda for simplification, support and training.
Editorial recommendation
What to do
Schools can map repeated reporting, duplication and tasks that displace instructional leadership over a four-week period. Authorities should simplify requirements and provide support; the report does not itself create a new legal duty.
Verified facts
Headline findings
- 94.3% of principals are satisfied with their job and 96.4% enjoy working at their school, while 42% are satisfied with their salary.
- 77.5% cite administrative workload as a source of stress; 64.7% cite changing requirements from authorities; and 55.3% cite concerns from parents or guardians.
- 30.7% of principals report high stress, compared with 16% of teachers.
- 37.2%, including those approaching retirement, intend to leave the profession within five years.
Context and timetable
Scope and limits
The analysis focuses mainly on lower secondary education —ISCED level 2— and draws on TALIS 2024 data from 23 Member States. Germany, Greece, Ireland and Luxembourg did not participate at this level. EU averages must not be presented as exact figures for Spain or for every school type.
This is evidence for the future EU Teachers and Trainers Agenda. It is not a directive, regulation or binding instruction for schools.
Editorial recommendation
A practical reading for leadership teams
- Separate legally required work from inherited internal routines and duplicate requests.
- Measure time and frequency before redesigning a process or requesting administrative support.
- Protect time for classroom observation, teacher support and safeguarding coordination.
- Review preparation: only 63.8% received training in school administration and 45.9% in instructional leadership.
Primary source and reading standard
European Commission · School leadership in the EUCheck the original document and its date before acting. The portal’s proposals are labelled as editorial recommendations and do not replace applicable rules.
Disclosure: Luis Manuel Tolmos has a professional connection with Brains International Schools, described in his profile. This analysis is independent.
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