Leadership, Planning and Resource Management in Four Very Effective Schools. Part II: planning and performance

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Abstract
This article concludes the earlier one in School Organisation, Volume 16, Number 2 on the differing ways in which four secondary schools which were commended overall in their OFSTED reports implement a rational approach to resource management. The ‘official’ view recommends a highly rational approach in which school aims are achieved through formal processes of strategic and developmental planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation. Our case studies were conducted in order to attempt an assessment of whether effective schools do actually adopt such a rational approach to school development planning and resource management. This article summarises our findings and suggests that there is a continuum between the systems‐based and the integrative culture forms of school development planning and resource allocation. We conclude that where the integrative culture is maintained with strongly shared values and flexibility of approach it can promote schools which are as effective as those following the rational planning model.