Top independent schools may have to start headhunting the business community to fill key headmaster posts, according to experts from the London School of Economics.

They estimate that nearly half of present staff could retire in the next 10 years, leaving a hole in the middle to upper management of schools.

Staff with a business background could take up these positions as there are currently not enough candidates in key head of year or departmental roles to fill the gaps.

Fiona Eldridge, chairman of Teaching Personnel, a teaching recruitment firm, said independent schools were more likely to employ non-sector staff in the future.

She added: “Someone with a business background could join in a supporting position then, as they gain experience, they could take on a headship. In the independent sector you are effectively running a small business.”

Jane Mercer, managing director of London-based MSM Education, said she used to joke about the likelihood of recruiting for the independent sector when the firm was set up, but now regularly gets requests from private schools.

Chris King, educational director of national teacher recruitment agency Timeplan, believes that a ‘search’ type recruitment operation is already happening in some independent schools.

“It makes sense for them to do it that way,” he said. “There’s a huge demographic issue. The average age of a teacher is around 47 so in five to 10 years’ time we’ll face huge difficulty recruiting senior teachers.”