Headteachers are to become part of an online 'community', where they can talk about their problems and chat on the internet with government ministers.

Over 1,100 recently-appointed headteachers in England, who have received free laptop computers in a government initiative will take part in a pilot study.

The full online service becomes available to all heads and senior staff later this year.

When headteachers enter the Talking Heads chat-rooms, they will be able to join or begin discussions about their professional lives, swapping experiences, ideas and advice.

High-profile 'guests' will be allowed into this password-protected internet site, such as government ministers or civil servants, or education experts, who will answer questions from the headteachers.

Common circumstances

The software has been designed by Professor Stephen Heppell of Ultralab, a research centre based at the Anglia Polytechnic University.

An important aim of the confidential, secure discussion areas, he says, will be to offer headteachers an opportunity to talk among people facing similar problems - overcoming what can often be an isolated and pressurised role within a school.

It is expected that they will form discussion groups based on common circumstances - such as heads of rural schools or heads of schools under special measures.

These can take the form of brainstorming sessions or conversations extended over long periods of time, with the system allowing contributions in the form of text, pictures, audio and video.

Headteachers are pressed for time, have little scope for working with other heads and need to keep up with a fast-changing education system, says Professor Heppell - all of which makes the online community a practical way of supporting them.

This initiative is part of the 'virtual' leadership college, which along with the bricks and mortar version at Nottingham University's Business School is intended to raise the level of leadership in schools.