P & C Association
NEXT MEETING
· Wednesday 31 March 7.45pm in staff room - all welcome.
· P&C Agenda - 31 Mar 2010.doc (draft).
MINUTES FROM LATEST MEETING
· P&C Minutes - 3 Mar 2010.doc (to be affirmed) - see here.
MEETING ARCHIVES
· An archive of P&C meetings is currently being compiled - see below.
HABITAT HAVEN
· Latest update at BPS_Habitat_Haven_Update_2010.doc.
Balmain Public School P&C Association
P+C Meeting Minutes Wednesday 3rd March 2010
Present: Leonie Pearson, Mark Jeffree, John Bayliss, Robert Smith, Daphne Durrant-Whyte, John Dawlings, Leah Egiziano, Greg Davies, Mary Evatt, James Anderson, Chris Evans, David Field, Monique Dower, Leanne Sullivan, Sharyn Tamlyn, Monique Dowes
Welcome and Introductions
Robert and Leonie warmly welcomed all present – as per the first meeting of the year, it was really great to see so many new parents to the school attend the meeting. Mention was made of the highly successful swimming carnival, held on the previous Monday.
Apologies
Emma Snowden, Kim Janson, Patty Shi, Theresa Collignon, Andrea Smith.
Previous minutes
The previous meeting’s minutes were tabled and accepted.
Principal’s Report – Leonie Pearson
Ms Pearson reported on the many building projects around the school, including the new multi-purpose building which is presently intended to be used for the OOSH after school care centre. This building is progressing well and should be fitted out and finished late March. Expectation is that because this is one of the first major projects completed in the national program, there may be a requirement to host an ‘opening’ with representative/s from the government and/or media.
There have been some delays on the internal works to the main building, due to miscommunication between different trades and fear of ‘live’ electricity wires. This was unfounded, however did result in teachers being locked out of the staff room and the shut-off of water to the building. The P+C wish to thank teachers and support staff for their patience during this time.
Concerns were raised again about the lack of availability for Balmain Public School pupils in the OOSH after school care. Two parents present at the P+C meeting were present with two other BPS parents at the recent OOSH monthly meeting. All agreed that BPS needs representation at the meetings and greater communication between both parties. The two parents present confirmed they would communicate with all BPS parents attending the OOSH meeting and elect a representative to report back to the P+C and also communicate back to the OOSH during 2010. Once chosen, the BPS representative will be formally introduced to OOHS staff.
The swimming carnival was a great success, with students, teachers and parents enjoying a fun, but cool, day. The BPS staff wish to thank all those parents who came along and helped make the day a success. The P+C highly recommend that parents attend next year’s event – a fun day with the kids and a great chance to catch up with other mums and dads!
Kids @ The Arthouse will be conducting after school art classes next term on Mondays. This will be based on a user-pays fee structure. They already have a presence in other schools on the peninsular; more information will be sent out with the school newsletter in coming weeks.
Harmony Day will be celebrated at the school on Tuesday 23 March. Theme proposed is that the kids wear a traditional national costume and bring along a national dish to share. Care will be required to ensure non-allergy food stuffs are only brought onto the school premises.
Outreach to the parents of 4/5/6 has not been required as the class has settled down quickly.
1. Election of Office Bearers for 2010
Nominations were presented for the formal office bearer roles for the P+C for 2010. All positions filled in the list below were accepted unanimously by all present at the meeting. Several roles are to be confirmed at the next meeting.
- President Theresa Collignon
- Vice President Robert Smith
- Vice President events Unfilled position [Robert Smith to act in a support capacity]
- Fun Run Chair John Dawlings [deputies to help John to be confirmed]
- Minutes Secretary Leah Egiziano
- Treasurer Daphne Durrant-Whyte
- Deputy Treasurer John Bayliss [Daphne will hand over to John Q3 2010]
- Band/Choir Liaison Mary Evatt [Sue Gilchrist to support Mary, if available]
- Webmasters Greg Davies + Leah Egiziano
- Class Contact Liaison James Anderson [temporary]
- Canteen Kim Janson [roster liaison – Raelene Buvac]
2. Financial Report
P+C levy unanimously approved at 2009 level – send out ASAP to give time for follow-up communication for late payers.
Account balance update: currently an uncommitted balance of approximately $8,800.
3. Ethics Program
Discussion held over next steps required to present to the St James Ethics Centre about the trial of a secular ethics program for Year 5 and 6 students. Andrea and Leonie have registered BPS interest in proceeding with the program by means of a letter to the St James Ethics Centre and also to Verity Firth, NSW Education Minister.
Agreement reached that BPS should actively promote the program within the school [possibly via the updated BPS website] and follow-up letters be sent explaining that the ethics program is now listed as a high priority on the P+C 2010 goals.
4. Class Parent Representatives
Agreement made that it would be beneficial having a single representative of all the class parent representatives to attend the P+C meeting as a direct line of communication to and from the individual classes. James Anderson volunteered to speak with all class representatives to find a willing representative. This will help with organizing fundraising and social events with the school, as well as allowing parents to access P+C meetings if they are unable to attend.
2010 Class Parent Representatives:
KC Mel Hope
1P Andrea
2E TBC
3/4MG Susan Teasey
4/5/6P James Anderson
5L Leanne Sullivan
6D TBC
5. Events 2010
The Welcome Breakfast on Friday 12 February was a great success and even made a small profit.
Other events to engage the parent community with the teaching staff and children were briefly discussed, including events such as Halloween, Mother’s Day Flowers and Father’s Day Breakfast, Balmain Fun Run, movie nights and state of origin screenings.
Robert Smith presented a draft schedule of events which is to be confirmed at the next P+C meeting.
The office bearer election failed to elect an ‘Events’ manager. A re-election will take place at the next P+C meeting. Robert will continue to oversee possible fundraising events until a manager is elected.
Discussions held as to how best to hand down organisational information from previous events – proposal was to start producing ‘fact sheets’ which could itemise food and drink quantities, major contacts, storage places within the school, etc.
Proposal was made to give each class a separate event to organise in 2010 – this way each class would take ownership of a specific event and the burden of work would be spread across the school community.
John Dawlings confirmed the Fun Run for 2010 should be held on Sunday 31st October. A strong committee of parent volunteers is needed from each year to ensure solid understanding of the planning tasks, back up staffing and succession planning for future years.
6. Discussion of P+C Goals for 2010
All present at the meeting discussed the P+C goals for 2010 and prioritised them. Some known budgets were tabled, however due to a lack of time it was decided to put budgetary costs against these goals at the next P+C meeting. Please review ‘P+C Goals’ attached to the rear of this document.
7. Other Business – there was no other business due to time constraints
8. Next Meeting – Wednesday 31 March 2010 – 7.30pm for a 7.45pm start.
P+C Goals for 2010:
Community and Relationship Building
To continue to build strong and effective relationships between staff, parents, students and the local community. To increase the profile of Balmain Public School within the local Community.
1. To undertake fundraising through ongoing revenue [e.g. Canteen, voluntary contributions] and special events [e.g. Halloween, Balmain Fun Run, movie nights, etc.]. [no budget requirements]
2. To introduce a formal program to include new parents (K and OC in particular) and continuing parents in the P+C - through parent liaison and formalising connections to P+C through class representatives. [no budget requirements]
3. To provide fun and inclusive social activities for parents and students, such as: the welcome breakfast, art show, performance based parent participation, etc. [minimal budget requirements]
Curriculum Enrichment and Activities
1. To support the purchase of additional teaching resources for the school, including books, DVDs, smart boards, computers. [Allocated budget: library - $2,000 / art + craft - $1,750 / other??]
2. To support the introduction of the new ethics program within the school. [no budget requirements]
3. To support choir and music and drama programs through means such as financial support to the Band, induction and inclusion of the new leader of the band and joint choir band events, help to build the strings program. To provide additional support to arts and cultural programs in the school. [Allocated budget: band - $1,000 / performance - $1,000 / other??]
4. To support specific language tuition - Spanish or Mandarin being preferred. [Allocated budget: TBC]
5. To investigate more "professional" level sporting programs - perhaps relying on relationships with other schools in the area, possibly leveraging the Balmain Fun Run. [Allocated budget: TBC]
6. To provide support to extra-curricular activities such as chess, dance. [Allocated budget: TBC]
Property and Amenities
1. To complete further upgrades of the playground – with a focus on the section in front of the main school building. [Allocated budget: grounds - $2,000 / main building garden upgrade - TBC]
2. To support staff and assist to ensure completion of the implementation of Government funding opportunities. [no budget requirements]
ARCHIVES
An archive of P&C meetings is currently being compiled.
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