Wahroonga Public School P&C AssociationGeneral Meeting Agenda

Date: Wednesday 7th December 2016

Time: 7pmVenue: Staffroom

Please ensure you have signed the attendance register

1. Acknowledgement of country and welcome all attendees

2. Apologies

3. Previous minutes - General meeting held 19th October 2016

• Item 9(c) should read "LH resigned from the Executive Committee of the P&C"4. Presentation of Lifetime Membership Certificates - IVL

5. Business arising from previous minutes

• Proposed procedure for tabling complaints 'All emails of complaint or concern received by the P&C to be logged and recorded as evidence of complaint and will be tabled at subsequent P&C General Meeting'.

• KH to contact AS to advise how to remove 'Band Option' from Flexischools.

6. President's report -RL

7. Principal's report - TM

8. Treasurer's report - AM

9. Uniform Shop Committee report - NH

10. Events and Fundraising Committee report - KW

11. Environmental report - AU

12. Correspondence• Sport at WPS - KC• Parent workshop by Dr Kirsty Goodwin, computer educator - KG• Volunteer Grants Program - SLC

13. General matters

Next meeting 8th February 2017

Wahroonga Public School P&C Association

General Meeting

7pm, Wednesday the 19th of October 2016 in the Staff room

1. Acknowledgement of country, welcome all attendees and President's address

KC opened the meeting at 7.15pm

Present: KC, LR, JW, SN, NH, AM, DK, KG, KC, VH, RC, TM

2. Apologies- GS, TS, RL, JH, LH, IVL, KW

3. Previous minutes - General Meeting held 7th September 2016

Accepted as a true and accurate reflection. Proposed: VH Seconded: NH

4. Business arising from minutes of previous general meeting

No business arising

5. President's report

KC read the President's report on behalf of RL (Appendix A)

6. Principal's Report

TM read to his report (Appendix B). In addition:

• TM welcomed RC to the meeting as a staff member

• As the Band Program is no longer administered by the P&C, the category 'Band Option' to be

removed from Flexischools online payment system. Any band funds received by P&C via

Flexischools to be returned to WPS.

Action: KH will contact AS to advise how to remove 'Band Option' from Flexischools.

• TM plans to update one item of school policy every term. TM has introduced the 'Parent/Carer

Participation and Home Partnerships' policy document. All strategies noted in document are

currently employed by the school with the exception of 'Suggestion Box' and 'Read-alongs for

toddlers in the library' which will be instituted once this policy takes effect.

• KB suggested that signage in different community languages should be made available at school

office. NH discussed the need for the Kindergarten Orientation pack to be translated. RC

advised that DoE already provide Kindergarten Orientation information packs in several different

languages.

7. Treasurer's report

AM read to his report (Appendix C). In addition:

• AM outlined the need for scoping work to provide a separate set of accounts for each of the

three sub entities. AM will work with external auditors and bookkeeper to determine cost of

completing this task. If decided to proceed, then this would make all future interactions with

ATO easier if documentation available for separate accounts

• Motion raised: Approval sought for scoping initiative for legacy accounts (approx $500)

Proposed: AM Seconded: KB

All in favour: Motion passed

• TM advised members that a parent recently contacted the ATO as the parent believes that the

handling of GST has not been managed appropriately by the P&C. As per the President's report

(Appendix B) the ATO have advised that no action is currently required by the P&C.

• AM highlighted the need for the school community to be made aware of emails received by

P&C where complaints or issues have been raised by parents. Confidentiality of the individual

making complaint would be maintained. Important to log these emails to ensure an accurate

account of events and thereby encourage transparency. TM recommended that all complaints

received by email to the P&C will be sent a standard response to advise the parent that their

concern will be raised and discussed at subsequent P&C meeting.

Action: Motion for procedure: 'All emails of complaint or concern received by the P&C to be logged

and recorded as evidence of complaint and will be tabled at subsequent P&C General Meeting'.

8. Uniform Shop Sub-Committee report

NH read to her report (Appendix D).

9. Events and Fundraising Sub-Committee report

VH read the report on behalf of KW (Appendix E).

10. Correspondence

Email received from VN (School secretary) regarding the inclusion of P&C information in the 'Kindy

Orientation Pack'. HG noted that KW previously created a flyer for 'Tears and Tissues' which could

be copied and used. KW will organise flyer to be included in Kindy Pack

11. General Business

• LR advised that Wahroonga OOSH was recently assessed by the DoE. Wahroonga OOSH received

the highest rating of 'Exceeding National Quality Standard (E)' in each of the seven different

quality areas, with the service rated overall as 'Exceeding National Quality Standard (E)'.

• KC stressed the need to assign the role of Spring Fair Coordinator as soon as possible. KC

offered to assist anyone considering the role.

Meeting closed 8.35pm

Next Meeting Wednesday the 30th of November 2016

PRESIDENT’S REPORT

Dear Bush School P&C members and guests.

We've continued to engage with a parent regarding the handling of GST in the past. In an effort to try to put the issue to rest, I called the ATO multiple times and queried them on the complaints and what could be done by us to resolve them. They have assured me that there is nothing to do unless the ATO contacts us and they've noted that I have called offering our cooperation. At this stage, there is nothing further I can do and hence I consider the matter 'resolved' unless the ATO does indeed contact us in the future. I've discussed this with the parent and feel they agree with me on there being nothing more we can do at this time.

I wish you all a great final Term for 2016, we've got some fun events coming up to and I will see you in November for the final meeting of the year.

Cheers,

Rob.

Social Committee Report - October 2016

The social committee met briefly on Thursday morning to discuss upcoming events for Term 4.

This terms Brekky BBQ will be held next Friday morning and is currently being advertised in the newsletter. The notice will also be sent home via class parents next week. We will meet at the school at 6.30am on Friday and all assistance will be greatly appreciated.

Organisation of the Halloween event is well underway - the Committee will meet next Monday morning to discuss plans. Thank you to the lovely group of ladies who have volunteered to co-ordinate the event - it will be great fun for all who would like to take part.

The next Barefoot Bowls evening will be held on Friday 11th Nov at Warrawee Bowling Club. We are waiting for the club to confirm details, after which time we will promote the event enthusiastically to the school community.

Thanks to everyone for your support and assistance.

Karen Welsh

P&C Principal’s Report – Term 4 Week 2 2016

MOVEMBER: This year I encourage all men associated with Wahroonga PS to grow a mo’ during November and help raise money and awareness of men’s health issues including prostate cancer and depression. This is a cause close to many people. For me, I watched my uncle live with the devastating effects of schizophrenia, unable at the time to comprehend his behaviour or reconcile his varied moods. I loved him and looked up to him but only wished that organisations such as Beyond Blue, Lifeline, Men’s Shed and others were as notable then as they are now. I will be writing messages in newsletters and talking to students appropriately about it as the month progresses. Thank you in advance for your support. Beyond Blue day tomorrow also supports the same cause. FUNDING REQUESTS: In 2016, the P&C kindly donated $20,000 towards school staffing. This year it took the form of a contribution towards the Enrichment and Extension program, which, unlike previous years, supported all teachers develop capacity which in turn yielded positive results in the classroom. The focus of the teacher mentoring by Mrs Hutchinson was in relation to writing. This year WPS’s writing results in NAPLAN were our standout. They went from being the biggest area of concern to one of our relative strengths. Our Year 3 group outperformed other ‘like’ schools on statistical measures for the first time in… ever! In 2017 I again seek assistance from the P&C in providing a further $20,000 to continue this program of teacher support and mentoring. I intend on utilising Mrs Hutchinson’s expertise and warm manner with colleagues to provide professional learning for staff in modifying the curriculum to cater for the individual needs for students (particularly the upper end) in language conventions as well as writing. My other request is that the P&C consider making a contribution to the air conditioning of the school. Electrical works will be cheaper than expected to bring the site up to speed, but the overall job of installing 28 split systems will be extremely expensive. I do not have quotes yet as this is procured through the Department of Education, but I would imagine the total cost will be in excess of $100,000. SCHOOL ORGANISATION 2017: Staffing the school in 2017 is proving to be a difficult task at the moment as we are unable to currently predict the number of classes to be formed. I have published a survey seeking a response from all parents of students in K-5 which asks for their intention to return in 2017 or not. Approximately 40% of parents have responded. Additionally, we are not yet confident in the number of kindergarten students commencing. Close to 100 have enrolled but a late flourish can change the makeup dramatically. STAFFING ADDITION: Miss Spillane will be moving to Lindfield PS next year as Assistant Principal. Tomorrow a selection panel of Kris Graham and Vannesa Hodgkinson will be interviewing prospective teachers who have made it through the first stages of merit selection. The new teacher will be a graduate recruit as per the current staffing agreement with the Department and Federation. CULTURAL DIVERSITY: Prior to this meeting I met with a small group of parents who were invited to share their views on how greater participation amongst our non-English speaking background parents can be encouraged and supported. Ideally I would like representatives from cultural groups to volunteer to be conduits between the school and various cultural communities, and advocates for them to join in both formal and informal methods of communication and participation. E.g. vacant executive role on the P&C, policy consultation meetings with principal. Where barriers exist for some members of the community from accessing the school or its personnel we should be seeking to remove them. Translations are available for all newsletters and app content, and interpreters can be accessed quite simply. I am happy for any additional feedback. EVACUATION DRILL: We held an evacuation drill last Friday. It took 9 minutes for 800 people on site to be evacuated and accounted for. This is an excellent improvement on our February evacuation. Gate signage, phone intercoms and well thought-through procedures helped.

PERFORMING ARTS REPORT:

Band Program o The administration of the band program is going well for the school. After some reminders,

we only have a small amount of non-payment for semester 2. These children will be unable to continue in the program as of next week. The band tour takes place in November – Mrs Griffith and Mr Edwards have offered to attend. Band and Dance will combine on December 2nd for an end of year showcase evening.

o The children have returned to school excited to be working on some new pieces to perform. The Concert Band tour is fully subscribed and the band is working on lots of new pieces, from the Beatles to Michael Jackson to Katy Perry. Beginner Band members are now progressing to performing full scales and are receiving the coveted beads.

Dance Program o The Wahroonga Dance teams have experienced increased performance opportunities

throughout 2016. The intermediate and senior groups performed at the Sydney north regional dance festival and the Hills dance eisteddfod. We began our first ever boys’ crew and the feedback has been extremely positive with the group growing each week. All three groups continue to have lunch time practice which allows for a second dance to be showcased later in the year. Band and Dance will combine on December 2nd for an end of year showcase evening.

Choir Program o The Festival of Choral Music (senior choir performance) will occur on Monday 31st October

at the Sydney Opera House. Unfortunately this clashes with the school/P&C Halloween event so I will be unable to attend.

o Schools Spectacular rehearsals commence in the first week of November at Qudos Bank Arena. There will be 4 rehearsals before the first big performance on Friday 25th November. Buy your tickets now!

WORKING BEE: This term’s working bee is set for Saturday 5th November. PARENT/CARER PARTICIPATION & HOME PARTNERSHIPS: Thank you to Jo Wilbrant, Judy Hibbert and Hamish Greig for their contributions at a parent consultation session last week which assisted the formation of the policy draft published online and linked to last week’s Bush Telegraph. Staff member Sarah Voysey was also heavily involved. This policy is a critical document. It serves two main purposes. It outlines a number of expectations that we all have of each other (school, carers, Department), and it overviews a raft of current practices and future opportunities for the school to proactively engage with the community and provide opportunities for participation. I have received very little feedback in response to the draft published in the newsletter and open the floor up now for comment. Tom Moth 19 October 2016