NOTICE OF ELECTION AND CALL FOR NOMINATIONS

An election is to be conducted for members of the school council of Beaufort Primary School.

Nomination forms may be obtained from the school or can be printed from the attached form below and must be lodged by 4.00 pm on: 28/2/2025

The ballot will close at 4.00 pm on: 07/03/2025

Following the closing of nominations a list of the nominations received will be posted at the school.

The terms of office, membership categories and number of positions in each membership category open for election are as follows:

MEMBERSHIP CATEGORY	TERM OF OFFICE	NUMBER OF POSITIONS
Parent member	From the day after the date of the declaration of the poll in 2025 to and inclusive of the date of the declaration of poll in 2027	4 Positions
Community Member	From the day after the date of the declaration of the poll in 2025 to and inclusive of the date of the declaration of poll in 2027	1 Position
Community Member	From the day after the date of the declaration of the poll in 2025 to and inclusive of the date of the declaration of poll in 2026	1 position

If the number of nominations is less than the number of vacancies, a notice to that effect and calling for further nominations will be posted in a prominent position at the school.

Regards

Tameeka Rush

Principal

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Fact sheet 1: school council elections – information for parents

What is a school council and what does it do?

All government schools in Victoria have a school council. They are legally constituted bodies that are given powers to set the broad direction of a school, in accordance with Ministerial Order 1280 Constitution of Government School Councils, and the Education and Training Reform Act 2006. In doing this, a school council may directly influence the quality of education for students.

Who is on the school council?

For most primary school councils, there are several possible categories of membership:

A mandated elected parent member category – more than one-third of the total members must be from this category. Department employees can be parent members at their child’s school providing that they are not engaged in work at the school.

A mandated elected school employee member category – members of this category make up no more than one-third of membership. The principal of the school is automatically one of these members.

An optional community member category – members are co-opted by a decision of the council because of their special skills, interests or experience. Department employees are not eligible to be community members.

Why is parent membership so important?

Parents on school councils provide important viewpoints and have valuable skills and a range of experiences and knowledge that can help inform and shape the direction of the school.

Those parents who become active on a school council find their involvement satisfying and may also find that their children feel a greater sense of belonging.

Do I need special experience to be on school council?

Each member brings their own valuable skills and knowledge to the role, however, in order to successfully perform their duties, councillors may need to gain some new skills and knowledge.

It is important to have an interest in your child’s school and the desire to work in partnership with others to help shape the school’s future.

Code of conduct for school councillors

School councils in Victoria are public entities as defined by the Public Administration Act 2004.

School councillors must comply with the Code of Conduct for Directors of Victorian Public Entities issued by the Victorian Public Sector Commission. The Code of Conduct is based on the Victorian public sector values and requires councillors to:

act with honesty and integrity – be truthful, open and clear about their motives and declare any real, potential or perceived conflict of interest and duty

act in good faith in the best interests of the school – work cooperatively with other councillors and the school community, be reasonable, and make all decisions with the best interests of students foremost in their minds

act fairly and impartially – consider all relevant facts of an issue before making a decision, seek to have a balanced view, never give special treatment to a person or group and never act from self-interest

use information appropriately – respect confidentiality and use information for the purpose for which it was made available

exercise due care, diligence and skill – accept responsibility for decisions and do what is best for the school

use the position appropriately – not use the position as a councillor to gain an advantage

act in a financially responsible manner – observe all the above principles when making financial decisions

comply with relevant legislation and policies – know what legislation and policies are relevant for which decisions and obey the law

demonstrate leadership and stewardship – set a good example, encourage a culture of accountability, manage risks effectively, exercise care and responsibility to keep the school strong and sustainable.

Indemnity for school council members

School councillors are indemnified against any liability in respect of any loss or damage suffered by the council or any other person in respect of anything necessarily or reasonably done, or omitted to be done by the councillor in good faith in:

the exercise of a power or the performance of a function of a councillor, or
the reasonable belief that the act or omission was in the exercise of a power or the performance of a function of a council.

In other words, school councillors are not legally liable for any loss or damage suffered by council or others as a result of reasonable actions taken in good faith.

How can you become involved?

By participating in, and voting in the school council elections, which are held in Term 1 each year. However, ballots are only held if more people nominate as candidates than there are positions vacant.

In view of this, you might consider:

standing for election as a member of the school council

encouraging another person to stand for election.

What do you need to do to stand for election?

The principal will issue a Notice of Election and Call for nominations in Term 1 of each year. Council elections must be completed by 31 March, unless varied by the Minister for Education.

If you stand for election, you can arrange for someone to nominate you as a candidate or, you can nominate yourself in the parent member category. You can only be nominated by another member of the same electorate that you are eligible for (e.g. a member of the parent electorate may only nominate another parent of that electorate)

Department employees with a child enrolled at a school where they are not engaged in work, are eligible to nominate for parent membership at that school.

Return your completed nomination form to the principal within the time stated on the Notice of Election. You will receive a Nomination Form Receipt via post, email or by hand delivery.

Generally, if there are more nominations than vacancies a ballot will be conducted in the two weeks after the call for nominations has closed.

Remember

Consider standing for election to school council.

Ask the principal for instructions if you are not sure what to do.

Be sure to vote if the election goes to ballot.

Contact the principal if you are unsure about what is required at any stage of the election process.

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