Education is already a key battlefield in the run up to May’s elections. Much is being made of the extent of the Scottish Government’s success, or lack of it, in addressing issues such as the attainment gap and teacher shortages. The Conservatives have opened another front, focusing on headteacher recruitment problems in parts of Scotland.

The gravity of the problem, particularly in primaries, depends on how the figures are interpreted. Towards the end of 2015 more than 50 primary schools had no headteacher. One person’s crisis is another’s acceptable situation as the figure represents only four per cent of Scotland’ s primaries. Additionally, more than 30 per cent of those vacancies were in the then economically buoyant areas of Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire.

Crisis or not, the Conservatives correctly identified diminishing interest in headteacher posts throughout Scotland. In the days when I was applying for headteacher posts 20 or 30 applications were commonplace. Shortlists rarely consisted of fewer than six candidates.

It’s changed days. Three councils average fewer than two applications per headteacher post. For Scotland as a whole, the average is 4.2 per post, although there are significant variations between councils.

This is not new. A 2009 study carried out for the Scottish Government identified a wide range of issues affecting the recruitment and retention of headteachers. A re-reading of the report suggests little has changed in the intervening years, perhaps explaining why even fewer teachers aspire to the headteacher’s office.

Few would disagree that an effective headteacher is pivotal in ensuring every child in a school receives the best possible experience and realises his or her potential. The Scottish Government has decided that a professional qualification for headship is an essential prerequisite for uniformly high quality. The new mandatory qualification will be in place for 2018/19.

Training and preparation for the role are essential. Yet the proposed qualification is not groundbreaking. The Scottish Qualification for Headship (SQH) existed for many years. My experience as an SQH tutor did not convince me there was a close correlation between the programme and the creation of a cadre of high quality headteachers. Some have even suggested that the proposed qualification will present another obstacle and disincentive to those who may be considering headship.

Another professional qualification will not bring forth a flood of prospective headteachers. Instead, a much closer look is needed at why headteacher posts are increasingly unattractive and, more importantly, what action needs to be taken. The causes of the negative perceptions identified in the 2009 study are still with us.

Headteachers are increasingly caught between a rock and a hard place. They absorb the pressures and stresses exerted by pupils, staff, parents and their local authorities. They are held accountable by inspectors and council officers often with no personal experience of what the job entails. At the same time heads are denied control of levers such as budgets and staffing that would truly make a difference.

As long as there is increasing accountability with no corresponding increase in autonomy, the law of diminishing returns will continue to prevail.