Parent council commitments and expectations are focused on improving parental involvement for the purposes of improved student achievement and school improvement. They have been designed to be flexible and are not intended to be onerous.

Most of the advisory responsibilities of parent councils are optional; however there are some responsibilities that parent councils must undertake. The following is an outline of the commitments and expectations for parent councils:

Commitment/Expectation Action RequiredRepresent the parents of the school

Parent councils should work to develop and/or maintain open dialogue with parents in order to represent their interests.

Parent council chairpersons may call meetings of the parents to deliberate the following matters:a. The draft budget for the schoolb. The school’s policy for promoting student achievementc. Any draft plan for improvement of the schoold. Any parent and community involvement policy for the schoole. Desired qualities and competencies for a new principal of the

school (where a new principal is to be appointed). The parent council may report regularly to the parents on its

activities in such manner as the Council sees fit, including by electronic means.

Make representations to the Principal and/or Commissioner of Education

The parent council may—a. make representations to the Principal on the draft school

budgetb. make representations to the Principal on the school’s policy

for promoting improved student achievementc. make representations to the Principal on the draft school

improvement plan for the school and monitor the implementation of the school improvement plan

d. make representations to the Principal regarding a community involvement policy for the school

e. make representations to the Commissioner of Education as to the desired qualities and competencies of a Principal to be appointed to the school.

The representations must be in writing.Meet at least 3 times per The parent council can meet as often as needed to carry out its

Parent Council Commitments and ExpectationsMinistry of Education

November 2015

school year responsibilities, but it must meet at least 3 times during the school year.

Make decisions by vote Decisions of the parent council shall be by a majority of votes; however, it is preferred that parent councils work towards a consensus before taking votes on a particular matter.

Ensure that minutes of all meetings are taken

Minutes must be taken for parent council meetings Minutes must be taken for parent meetings held by the parent

councilPrepare and make available an annual report

The parent council must prepare an annual report for the school year that at a minimum, must include:a. Number of parent council meetings heldb. Number of parent meetings heldc. Matters deliberated by parents relating to parent council

responsibilitiesd. Whether the parent council made any representations to the

Principal or Commissioner of Education and whether any responses were received

e. Any progress made on school improvement plan implementation

f. Whether any committees were formed, the number of meetings held, the matters deliberated and decided and any other activities of the committees

g. Any other activities conducted by the parent council The annual report must be made available to the Principal,

parents and the Commissioner of Education in the manner deemed fit by the parent council.

Disclosure of interests Parent council members have a responsibility to disclose any direct or indirect interest in a matter to be considered by the parent council (aside from having a child enrolled at the school).

Where it is decided that the interest might prejudice the parent council member’s consideration of the matter, that member shall be recused from the relevant deliberation and decision.

Take into account any parent council guidelines

Where the Minister issues guidelines for parent councils regarding any matter specified within the Education (Parent Council) Rules 2015, parent councils are required to take those guidelines into account.

In order for parent councils to be successful and effective, support is also required from the Ministry of Education, Department of Education and Principals. Some of those commitments and expectations are as follows:

Postholder/Person CommitmentsPrincipal Receive and respond to representations in writing

Give parent councils sufficient information, respecting confidentiality, to carry out its responsibilities

Provide facility access to the parent council and parent body for meetings

To provide overall support and guidance for the effectiveness of parent councils.

Commissioner of Education Promote the establishment and continuation of parent councils Provide guidance to principals on parent councils In the event of a principal vacancy, receive and consider

representations on the qualities and competencies for a new principal

To provide overall support and guidance for the effectiveness and success of parent councils.

Minister of Education The Minister of Education may issue guidelines to parent councils regarding any matter within the Education (Parent Council) Rules 2015.

Ministry, Department and Principal Commitments and Expectations