If successful, you will become part of a strong, growing, influential and diverse network of like-minded people who want to develop and drive forward the school business leadership professional standards and build the reputation of the profession.

You will be a recognised advocate for excellence in school business leadership , working alongside ISBL and our sector stakeholders to ensure that school leaders and governors fully recognise the contribution of our profession to school improvement and development.

Being recognised as an ISBL Fellow demonstrates that you are a leader within the profession, have achieved a high level of professional expertise, and are committed to developing your knowledge and skills to meet the ever-changing demands of the education sector.

You are also showing your commitment to upholding the very highest ethical standards.

Our Fellows receive:

• A digital ISBL certificate

• Inclusion on our public register (subject to agreement)

• The right to use the designation FISBL after their name

• Exclusive access to the ISBL Fellow Forum, which meets virtually every half-term and provides the opportunity for rich dialogue with Fellow colleagues

• An invitation to have their achievements showcased in The Voice, ISBL’s member magazine

• A variety of opportunities to be involved in ISBL projects and initiatives, e.g. special interest group membership

1. Have at least three years’ recent experience working at a senior level in a school business professional role or equivalent.

2. Hold a qualification at Level 6 or above in school business or in a subject that supports your professional practice in at least one of the areas of school business outlined in the ISBL Professional Standards.

   Don’t have a Level 6 qualification? For individuals who do not currently hold a level 6 (graduate qualification), the Certificate in Strategic Educational Leadership, which accredits prior learning and experience, may be the best route to Fellowship.

3. Demonstrate significant experience, knowledge and skills, including evidence of individual impact, in the key area of Operational Leadership, plus one other area from the list below:

   • Finance

   • Procurement

   • Estate Management

   • Human Resources

   • Marketing and Communications

4. Provide evidence of ongoing commitment to, and impact of, continuing professional development (CPD).

5. Provide evidence of leadership within your school/trust and system leadership within the school business profession.

6. Demonstrate the highest standards of professional conduct.

Providing evidence means submitting documents that confirm your work and impact against the requirements. These documents should be submitted in addition to your application form. Please read the guidance for applicants for more information.

Exemptions

ISBL offers school business leadership practitioners the opportunity to validate previous achievements that meet the requirements of ISBL Fellowship and therefore exempt them from some or all the items that are required to be assessed to be awarded ISBL Fellowship. Please read our exemptions policy for more details.

• Guidance for applicants – read this prior to completing your application form and gathering your evidence

• Exemptions policy – read this in conjunction with the guidance for applicants and application form

• Application form – use this for your application

• Personal development plan template – the format of this template is supportive and not prescriptive

• Example – this is an example application submitted by a previous successful applicant (use the application form above for your own application)

ISBL requires submission of a personal development plan in relation to requirement 4. If you use the template above, you are free to add and remove columns and content to ensure the information you provide within it best reflects your personal development considerations and plans.

The two applications windows each year are:

• between 1 October and 31 March

• between 1 April and 30 September

ISBL requires your application and supporting documents to be sent electronically. Paper copies are no longer accepted.

By email: Completed applications can be submitted via email to fellowship@isbl.org.uk. We suggest submitting your supporting documents as a single Zip file. If the combined size of your supporting documents is too large for an email attachment, you may use an online file transfer service, such as WeTransfer, to send us a download link.

Fees: Please note that an administration charge of £75 applies to all applications. Please read our guidance for applicants for full details.