This paper draws on findings from an ongoing research and development project, Leadership on the Frontline, which has brought together headteachers and principals from schools in challenging urban contexts. The project is a partnership between the London Leadership Centre, Institute of Education London, the Northern Ireland Regional Training Unit, local education authorities in England and Wales (Greenwich, Tower Hamlets, Liverpool, Cardiff and Manchester), School Boards in Northern Ireland covering schools in Belfast and the City of Derry, and headteachers and school principals. The study has focused on issues of school and community context, values and beliefs. It aims to contribute to a greater understanding about the ways in which school context shapes the nature of the leadership challenges; how values play out on a day to day basis; and the degree to which school and community beliefs and aspirations can be aligned. Participating heads are leaders of schools in urban, front-line contexts which include high levels of social and economic deprivation, transient populations and divided communities. Many leaders of urban schools are stimulated by the opportunity to have a significant impact on the lives of children and young people. They relish the creativity, the energy, the resilience and exuberance of the children, and the rich cultural understanding and experiences of their parents. However, many also experience relentless social and community pressures, frequently becoming the interface between disempowered communities and a range of public institutions. The paper will outline the methodology for the project and the key findings from phase I which involved 18 participants from London, Liverpool and Belfast and some of the initial findings from Phase II which has involved a further 28 participants from London, Manchester, Cardiff and the City of Derry. The authors will argue that successful school leaders in challenging urban contexts have much to teach their counterparts in less challenging suburban and rural areas. Urban schools grapple with issues and pressures which may confront other schools and communities in future years. What school leaders in challenging contexts have to know and be able to do on a daily basis is what their counterparts in less pressing contexts will need to know and do in future years. There are issues about social justice. British society, as other societies across Europe, is changing fast and the ethnic, cultural and socio-economic complexities and pressures which characterise our inner urban areas have an impact on society as a whole. There are also issues about creativity and energy. Inner city schools are all too often portrayed as problem schools which are failing children and communities. In the mêlée of urban schooling, flourishing leaders of challenging schools have learned to find creative solutions to problems, and to reap the benefits of the richnesses of the lives and experiences of the children within their schools, and of their families and communities. The paper will conclude by discussing the implications of the findings of the project for existing research knowledge on school leadership and for the professional development of school leaders. Contributors will also pose questions which are of interest to those involved in urban schooling across Europe: o What are the distinctive features of Urban School Leadership? o Is there an International Urban School Leadership? o What are the implications of the findings from the project for policy-makers and for leadership development providers?