The statutory representative of the facility is the managing employee of a facility of care for children up to three years of age (nursery), which is a social service facility under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs and Family. The minimum qualification for the statutory representative of the facility is a master's degree. Another requirement is a clean criminal record.

Each school and educational facility is managed by a principal and a managing pedagogical and professional staff. In addition to the school head, the managing pedagogical and professional staff includes the deputy school head, the head of vocational education, the head educator, and the head of the professional unit.

See chapter Administration and governance at local and/or institutional level.

Requirements for appointment

The conditions to be met by a pedagogical staff member to be appointed as a managing pedagogical staff member are set in Act 138/2019 on pedagogical employees and professional employees (Zákon 138/2019 o pedagogických zamestnancoch a odborných zamestnancoch). All managing pedagogical staff and managing professional staff, including the school head, must meet the qualifications to work in the respective managing position.

Minimum qualifications for management staff

• in kindergartens: secondary vocational education in the kindergarten teacher and carer training study field (ISCED level 35),
• in primary and secondary schools: Master's degree in teaching and educational sciences. (ISCED level 7)
   

More detailed information on the qualifications required for pedagogical staff is available in Chapter Initial education for teachers working in early childhood and school education.

The second condition is at least 5 years of experience and the career grade of an independent pedagogical employee or independent professional employee. At the same time, candidates must complete the basic module of functional education before taking up the post of school head. (A transitional provision of the Act effectively postpones the requirement to complete the functional education until 31 August 2026).

The school head is appointed to the post by the founder based on a successful selection procedure. Terms and conditions of employment for the term of office are set in the employment contract, and the salary is determined according to the relevant regulation. The term of office of the head of each type of school is five years. The school head can be removed from office only by the founder.

Conditions of service

The school head shall be bound by the relevant legislation, regulations, and guidelines in the performance of his/her duties.

In addition to their managing duties, school heads of all types of schools also carry out direct educational activities. The scope of such activities is set out in Government Decree No. 201/2019 Coll. on direct educational activity (Nariadenie vlády č. 201/2019 Z.z. o priamej výchovno-vzdelávacej činnosti), depending on the number of pupils in a particular school. The number of hours of direct educational activities is highest for kindergarten heads and lowest for secondary school heads. School heads of primary and secondary schools with a higher number of pupils are exempted from direct educational activities.

School heads receive a special management allowance for the performance of their duties. The management allowance is determined by the employer within a range of percentages of the salary scale of the highest salary grade of the salary class to which the school head is assigned.

More detailed information on statutory and actual salaries as well as allowances for school heads is available in the report Teachers’ and School Heads’ Salaries and Allowances in Europe.

In addition to the basic functional education module, which is a prerequisite for the performance of the function, all managing staff must complete an extension programme. A member of the managing pedagogical staff other than the school head must complete the extension programme within five years of taking up their duties. The school head must complete the extension programme before taking up their second school head term.

Completion of the extension training programme is not required of a school head or other member of the managing pedagogical staff who has attained at least a bachelor’s degree in a higher education programme of study focusing on school management.

Being pedagogical or professional employees, managing staff are also obliged to undertake appropriate types of continuing education (see Chapter Continuing professional development for teachers working in pre-school and school education for more information).

The weekly working time of managing pedagogical staff is 37.5 hours and is governed by the Labour Code and the collective agreement. Working hours are flexible and depend on the needs of the school and the employer, and are regulated by the internal regulations of each school.

The filling of the post of school head as well as the termination of the school head's office is regulated by Act 596/2003 on State Administration in Education and School Self-Government (Zákon 596/2003 o štátnej správe v školstve a školskej samospráve). The post of school head is filled based on a selection procedure. As part of the selection procedure, candidates must submit a proposal for the development of the school or school facility. The selection committee is the school board, on whose proposal the school head is appointed by the founder for a five-year term of office.

The office of the school head ceases to exist with:

• the expiry of the term of office,
• school head's resignation,
• removal from office,
• court decision on the restriction of the school head's legal capacity,
• the date specified in a final decision of the Ministry on the removal of a school or school facility from the school network, or
• school head's death or declaration of death.
   

A school head may also resign voluntarily for reasons that they deem to be serious. If a school head resigns for objective or subjective reasons, they may reapply for the post of school head in the future for the same or another school.

The employment of a school head terminates no later than the end of the term of office in which the school head reaches the age of 65.