School Council Process

SCHOOL COUNCIL

SCHOOL COUNCIL ELECTIONS 2025

It is that time of the year.

The School Council election process begins this week with a call for nominations.

There are 4 parent vacancies on council, and if you wish to contribute to the activities of the school and the setting of policy, I encourage you to nominate.

Forms will be available at the office, and the timeline is included below for your information.

Elected representatives’ term is for 2 years. 

There will be a minimum of 8 meetings held in the year, which are held on a Tuesday evening, starting at 6pm till roughly 8pm (the latest).

I strongly encourage all interested community members to nominate and if you need any further information about the process or council operations, contact Bruce Goddard (contact the school for his details) our current school council president or myself.

Nomination Forms are at the office - PICK ONE UP TODAY!

SCHOOL COUNCIL INFORMATION

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 key directions of a school within state-wide guidelines. In doing this, a school council is able to directly influence the quality of education that the school provides for its students.

Who is on the school council?

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

1. A mandated elected Parent category – more than one-third of the total members must be from this category. Department of Education (DE) employees can be Parent members at their child’s school as long as they are not engaged in work at the school.
2. A mandated elected DE employee category – members of this category may make up no more than one-third of the total membership of school council. The principal of the school is automatically one of these members.
3. An optional Community member category – members are co-opted by a decision of the council because of their special skills, interests or experiences. DE employees are not eligible to be Community members. Generally, the term of office for all members is two years. The term of office of half the members expires each year, creating vacancies for the annual school council elections.

 Why is Parent membership so important?

Parents on school councils provide important viewpoints and have valuable skills that can help shape the direction of the school.

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

How can you become involved?

The most obvious way is to vote in the 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 seriously consider either standing for election as a member of the school council or encouraging another person to stand for election.

Do I need special experience to be on school council?

No. What you do need is an interest in your child’s school and the desire to work in partnership with others to help shape the school’s future.

What is the time commitment for parent councillors?

Council meets at least 8 times per year during term times on a Tuesday evening between 6 and 8pm. Councillors are volunteers

Councillors are volunteers and do not receive any remuneration for their effort. They also are required to a sign up annually to Council Code of conduct agreement and abide by a set of standing orders that inform the operation of the council.

All students are the focus

Councillors are asked as part of their role to think about the needs of all students that attend the school. Being a councillor does not provide any special privileges for your child but will enable you to understand the complexity of the schooling system and the range of challenges that face the school and teachers in the classroom. 

Council Process

Council follows a defined set of procedures (Standing Orders) and all Councillors are required to commit to a code of conduct as part of membership.