Account 2022/23

 This as been updated on 30 Aug, 09:30 to include restricted funds.

Current constitution 2022/23

This is the current constitution from pre-2019.  

The current Co Chair, Rob Pollock has made amendment to this version and proposed constitution to be agreed at AGM on 30 August.  The proposed constitution can be found here.

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Parent Council & Friends At Broughton Primary School Constitution

 

Definitions:

School: Broughton Primary School, including Broughton Primary School nursery classes

Parent: parents, guardians & carers of pupils at the school

Children: children at the school & nursery

Parent Forum: all parents, guardians & carers of pupils at the school

Parent Council or PC: a committee chosen to represent the Parent Forum

Friends At Broughton Primary School or FAB: a sub-committee of the Parent Council that organises fundraising, social events.

Broughton Primary School Trust: the Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation of that name, charity number SCO44041.

 

Aims

The aims of Parent Council are:

1.      to promote co-operation & communication between parents & teachers

2.      to identify & represent the views of the Parent Forum & children on the education & welfare of the children to the staff of Broughton Primary School & the City of Edinburgh Education department

3.      to engage in activities that support the education & welfare of the children

4.      to support & complement the Friends At Broughton Primary School

5.      to help with the appointment of school staff in accordance with recruitment legislation of the City of Edinburgh Council

6.      to manage the Broughton Primary School Trust for the benefit of the children at Broughton Primary School

The aims of the Friends At Broughton Primary School are:

1.      to organise events for parents & children

2.      to raise funds, to be used in furtherance of the aims of the Parent Council

 

Office bearers

The chair, vice-chair, secretary, treasurer & co-ordinators of the PC/FAB will be elected at the PC’s annual general meeting.

The same role in both bodies can be held by a single person or by two people.

If a person leaves office during the course of the year, a replacement can be selected at a PC meeting, except for the Chair of the PC where an Extraordinary General Meeting would need to be called.

Duties

Chair: will provide general leadership, will chair all meetings & attend council meetings with other chairs.

Secretary: will take minutes of meetings & will circulate them to the PC/FAB after each meeting and make them available on request to any parent.

Treasurer: is responsible for financial transactions as approved by the PC/FAB & for keeping accurate records of all finances.  Annual accounts will be reviewed & approved by an individual appointed by the PC  & will be presented at the annual general meeting.  Summaries of the financial position of the PC/FAB will be given at meetings as necessary or as requested.

The chair & the treasurer of the PC will normally be responsible for administrating the Broughton Primary School Trust, although other members of the PC/FAB can be elected to carry out this role.

 

Staff Representation

The headteacher has a right & a duty to attend PC meetings.  She or he will have an advisory role & will not take part in PC decision-making, unless invited to do so.

Other teachers are welcome to attend meetings, as deemed appropriate by the headteacher, and at least one teacher will be a member of the PC, as selected by whatever method the school chooses.

Parents should form the majority of the PC.

 

Membership and attendance

Any member of the Parent Forum may attend a PC/FAB meeting without invitation or notice.

Apart from office bearers & staff, membership of the PC/FAB will be fluid, and will consist of those parents who choose to attend PC/FAB meetings.

If meetings become too large to be manageable or productive, the PC will decide upon a method to limit the size of the membership and will formalise a selection process if necessary.

Non-parent members of the community can attend PC/FAB meetings by invitation or agreement, and they may also address meetings by invitation or agreement.

 

Changes to the constitution

Changes to the constitution can be made at the AGM or an extraordinary general meeting.

 Dissolution

If the PC ceases to exist any funds should be distributed by the senior leadership team for the benefit of the children.

 September 2019

Proposed Constitution 2023/24

 

This is the proposed constitution to be agreed at AGM on 30 August 2023.  Current constitution from pre-2019 can be found by clicking on this link.

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CONSTITUTION -DRAFT TO BE AGREED AT AGM 30 Aug 2023

Parent Council & Friends at Broughton Primary School and Nursery

 August 2023

 Definitions

 

School	Broughton Primary School, including Broughton Primary School Nursery.
Children	Children attending the Broughton Primary School and Nursery.
Parent Forum	All parents, guardians & carers of pupils at the school and nursery.
Parent Council	A committee of parents, guardians & carers of the children nominated to represent the Parent Forum.
Office Bearers	Key Parent Council roles: Chair/Co-Chairs, Vice-Chair, Secretary, Treasurer and FAB Coordinator and Gardening Coordinator.
Constitution	A set of rules for operating the Parent Council agreed by the Parent Forum.
Friends At Broughton or FAB	A sub-committee of the Parent Council that organises fundraising and social events for the benefit of the children. This sub-committee is led by the FAB Coordinator
Broughton Primary School Trust	the Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation of that name, charity number SCO44041.
AGM	Annual General Meeting where the Parent Council makes itself accountable and reports to the Parent Forum on progress towards its aims over the past year, sets out the aims for the coming year and nominates, elects or appoints new Office Bearer.  The account will also need to be approved at an AGM.
EGM	An Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) is called if a major issue with the constitution arises during the year.  The Chairperson may call an EGM at any time to discuss it.  The EGM should then be run as an AGM.  An EGM can be called provided two weeks' notice has been given.

 

 

Aims

 

Ideally, the Parent Council should consult and gather the Parent Forum’s aims for the forthcoming year in June. The Parent Forum of parents and carers of children attending Broughton School Nursery and Broughton Primary School should also prioritise those aims. The aims are then usually published in August at the AGM at the start of the academic year

Aims of the Parent Council 2022/23

·        Welcome new families and promote values of inclusion, diversity and equality in our activities and communications. 

·        Promote cooperation and communication between parents & teachers by working with the Head of School and Staff to represent the views of the Parent Forum.

·        Communicate with parents in the most effective way, either newsletters, social media, noticeboard, via school email or in person.

·        Deliver social events and activities for children raising money through inclusive prices. 

·        Donate money raised to enhance the education experiences for the children by subsidising school trips, funding extra curriculum activities and buying equipment and where possible involve children in prioritising what that money should be spent on. 

·        Support additional learning opportunities for children in the school such as baking gardening trips etc.

·        Identify opportunities to create links between the school and the community.  

·        Working with staff on new approaches to learning and teaching and identify how parents can be involved.

·        Assist in the appointment of school staff in accordance with City of Edinburgh Council recruitment policy.

·        Manage the Broughton Primary School Trust of funds raised by the Parent Council to benefit the children.  

·        Respond on behalf of the Parent Forum to City of Edinburgh Council consultations. 

·        Attend meetings of the wider parent council in Scotland such as Connect and Edinburgh Parent Council network to maintain best practice, keep up to date with legislation.

Aims of the Friends at Broughton Sub-Committee

·        Plan and organise fun social events for parents and children

·        Plan and organise fundraising events to further the aims of the Parent Council

·        Maintain the playground garden and raised beds.

Office bearers

Any Parent Forum member can nominate themselves for one of the office bearer roles at the August AGM.  Invitations to seek nominations to become an office bearer of the Parent Council can be submitted before the summer holiday to allow the Parent Forum time to consider nominating themselves and speak to current office bearers about the role. Parent Forum members seeking to become an Office Bearers: Chair, Vice-Chair or Co-Chair, Secretary, Treasurer & Friends at Broughton (FAB) Coordinator(s) should nominate themselves for election at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in August.  If more than one person is nominated for the same role the AGM should vote by a show of hands. Or alternatively a role can be held jointly by  two people. Office Bearers should commit to the position for one year from August AGM to August AGM.  If a person leaves office during the year, a replacement can be selected at a Parent Council meeting, except for Chair where an Extraordinary General Meeting would need to be called to select a new Chair. Office bearers can be in position for as long as they have a child at Broughton School or Nursery.  Committee members of the Parent Council and Trustees of Broughton Primary School Trust will be noted at the AGM.

Chair

The Chair/ (or joint chairs) will act as a liaison to represent the Parent Forum to the school, the Edinburgh Council and wider Scottish Parent Council network. The Chair will provide general leadership (in-person or online) representing the parent forum to the school staff and will chair parent council meetings to guide the Parent Council to achieve its aims.  The Chair will set out the priorities of the coming year and ensuring they are fulfilled by the end of the year. The chair should also represent the Parent Forum at wider Edinburgh Parent Council meetings and respond on behalf of the parent forum to City of Edinburgh Council consultations.  The Chair is also a source of support to other national parent council network.  This role also includes event planning for the year, making sure the FAB events, school events and Parent Council events work well together.

 

Vice-Chair

A Vice-Chair can deputise for the Chair. And even build up confidence and experience with a view to becoming a future Chair.   In 2023 this position is vacant but remains open to anyone wishing to help or experience being a Chair or other Office Bearer.

 

Secretary

The Secretary keeps a record of what was agreed at parent council meetings then circulates minutes for agreement by the Parent Council, finally publishing them for the Parent Forum on the school’s website:  https://broughtonprimary.org/parent-bodies/, in MS Teams and on the Broughton Primary School Parent Forum Group in Facebook.  Minutes of Parent Council or Friends at Broughton meetings should normally be available within seven days of a meeting (and no later than 4 weeks before the next Parent Council meeting). In addition, minutes are available on request to any parent. The Secretary monitors the Parent Council in-box broughtonpsparents@outlook.com and stores minutes and other Parent Council records in MS Teams online that are accessible to Office Bearers.

Treasurer

The Treasurer is responsible for managing financial transactions approved by the Parent Council and Friends at Broughton and for keeping accurate records of all their finances.  Annual accounts will be reviewed and approved independently by an individual appointed by the Parent Council and will be presented at the AGM.   Summaries of the financial position of the Parent Council and Friends at Broughton & Gardening sub-committees can be requested at meetings as necessary during the school year.

Friends at Broughton Sub-Committee Coordinator

·        Plans and organises fun social events for children, raising funds, to further the aims of the Parent Council.

·        Provides leadership in drafting a programme of events for agreement at Parent Council. 

·        Gives guidance and encouragement to the Parent Form to take ownership of or help at individual events.

 

Gardening Sub-Committee Coordinator

·        Provide leadership to encourage and involve the Parent Forum, children and school in any playground gardening activities. 

·        Maintain the playground garden areas and raised beds involving children and the Parent Forum in their upkeep.

Trustees of Broughton Primary School Trust

Trustees are signatories of the Parent Council account.  The Chair and Treasurer are usually responsible for administrating the Broughton Primary School Trust, although other members of the Parent Council and Friends at Broughton can be elected to carry out this role.

 

Staff Representation at Parent Council

The Headteacher and the school senior leadership team has a right and a duty to attend Parent Council meetings. The Headteacher will have an advisory role and not take part in decision-making, unless invited to do so.  Other teachers are welcome to attend meetings, as deemed appropriate by the headteacher, and at least one teacher will be a member of the Parent Council chosen by whatever method the school chooses.  The majority of attendees at a Parent Council meeting should be members of the Parent Forum.

 

Membership and attendance

Parent Council aims to meet regularly, four-six times per year.   Dates should be provisionally set at the last meeting of the academic year and agreed at the AGM.

The Parent Forum should receive their invitations to attend Parent Council (including agenda and previous minutes) at least two weeks in advance.   Invitations are sent from the school office to the Parent Forum and are advertised on the Facebook Broughton Primary Parent Forum Group and the noticeboards.

Each member of the Parent Forum is welcome to attend one, some or all Parent Council meeting without invitation or notice.  

Apart from office bearers and staff, membership of the Parent Council will be fluid and will consist of those parents who choose to attend the meetings. 

 

If meetings become too large to be manageable or productive, the Parent Council may decide upon a method to limit the size of the membership and will formalise a selection process if necessary.

 

Non-Parent Forum members of the community (such as a secondary school Head Teacher or an Active School Coordinator) can be invited to speak at the Parent Council meetings by invitation or agreement, and they may also address the meetings by invitation or agreement.  However, they do not have any voting rights or be involved in decision making.

 

Non-Parent Forum members of the community can volunteer to help at FAB social and fund raising events, by invitation or agreement.  They do not have voting rights or be involved in any decision making.

 

Friends at Broughton membership consists of the Parent Forum that being parents and carers of the nursery and school of Broughton Primary.

Communication

 

The formal communication channel from the Parent Council to the Parent Forum is email via the school office. Other form of communication methods to the Parent Forum is via Facebook private group, to wider public are Facebook public page, Instagram, blogpost and school twitter page.

Changes to the constitution

Changes to the constitution can be made at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) or at an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM).

 

Dissolution

 

If no Chair or Vice-Chairs are voted in at an AGM then the Parent Council ceases to exist, and any funds should be distributed by the school senior leadership team for the benefit of the children.

 

Dates of AGM

The AGM should be held annually, online or in person, no later than two weeks after the start of the academic year.  This ties in with the start of the new financial year of the Broughton Primary School Trust.

 

END

Reviewer/Editor:  R. Pollock Co-chair Parent Council 2022/23

Agreed by: [tbc Parent Forum 2023/24]

Agreed on: [Date of the AGM when this is agreed]

Next Review date: [September 2024?]