EDUCATION chiefs say they are finding it almost impossible to recruit new headteachers, says the Bolton Evening News on Thursday.

School governing bodies say it is particularly difficult in the more socially deprived areas of Bolton.

They say the right people are not putting themselves forward for the jobs. Education bosses estimate there will almost be a 100 per cent turnover of headteachers in Bolton secondary schools within the next seven years because of the number due to retire.

Nationally, a study by Education Data Surveys found one-in-three schools were unable to appoint a new headteacher when the position was first advertised.

In Bolton, Sharples School recently faced a headteacher crisis after the governing body failed to find a replacement for Kevin Clarke when he left the school last year.

The school advertised the vacancy twice. Finally, John Baumber, the executive principal of Rivington and Blackrod High School, as well as Ladybridge School, was drafted to take on the responsibility - giving him powers over three schools.

Cllr Hilary Fairclough, chairman of governors at Sharples School, said: "There were applicants but we did not feel they were suited to what we were looking for.

"We feel it is a very important job and can make or break a school. We are very fussy.

"We felt the applicants did not fit in with our vision for the school. Mr Baumber is doing a good job."

Cllr Martyn Cox, Bolton Council's executive member for children's services, said: "You only have to talk to governing bodies to find out how difficult it is to appoint headteachers today.

"A wage of between £60,000 and £70,000 might sound like a lot of money but you have to take into account the responsibilities and the increasing demands on heads.

"Schools like Hayward, Sharples, Withins and Smithill are in areas of social deprivation and they have problems and issues to deal with which schools like Canon Slade, for instance, do not have.

"They are a challenge. Heads of these schools are doing a much more difficult job and double the work, so it is harder to appoint headteachers to them."

At Withins, there have been six headteachers since Easter, 2003, with Phil Mather, aged 56,currently in charge.

Val Malcolm left the school in March, 2003, and was replaced by seconded replacement Dr Chris Gerry, who had to leave just months later when his school in Kent burnt down. His replacement, John Murphy, left for personal reasons within weeks.

Bolton Council is now working with schools to develop potential leaders from within their present staff to stave of the crisis.

It follows the LEA's age survey of headteachers in both primary and secondary schools carried out recently, the results of which show that all are likely to retire at the same time.

Cllr Cox said: "Schools need to be giving teachers more responsibility and more of a managerial role to equip them to become future headteachers."

Barry Conway, secretary of the Bolton branch of the National Union of Teachers, said: "Headteachers do an incredibly hard job.

"The way things are going, we will have managers as leaders in school with no experience of teaching."

Brian Essex, secretary of the Bolton branch of the National Association of Head Teachers, said: "To attract more teachers to come forward as headteachers the Government needs to reduce their workload."