Wandsworth Borough Council has recognised a shortage of black and Asian head teachers in the borough and has launched a bespoke coaching programme to rectify the situation.

The council is working with Integrity Coaching to deliver training to black and minority ethnic teachers who wish to progress their careers to the highest level, in the hope of increasing applications from a wider and unrepresented talent pool.

Brendan Ryan, recruitment and remodelling manager at Wandsworth Borough Council, said: "The decision followed an in-depth analysis of the teaching workforce across Wandsworth, which showed while 29% of teachers in the borough were from minority backgrounds, the number of leadership positions was not representative at 8.7%.

"The findings indicated black and minority ethnic teachers may face unique barriers to securing positions of leadership.

The council plans to re-commission the programme in 2010 and increase its scale to include six other local authorities in south west London.