1. Introduction to School Council: an induction program
Explanatory Notes:
This presentation is intended to provide school councillors with:
An overview of the roles and responsibilities of school council – what they are and what they are not
An understanding of the legislative framework in which school councils operate
Effective school council processes and behaviours.
Note: this presentation can be supplemented with other more specific presentations (for example, School Strategic Planning, Understanding School Finances, Effective Meetings) available at the DEECD website (

2. What is a school council?
A legally formed body that is given powers to set the key directions of a school
It is the major governing body of the school
It decides future directions for the school and oversees the school's operation
What is a school council?
All government schools in Victoria have a school council.
Each school council is a legal entity in its own right.
School council is the group of people who are given the power to set the key directions for the school. This means that school council can directly influence the quality of education that a school provides to its students.
School council also makes sure that the school is running effectively in terms of how it spends its money and the guidelines it makes for how the school is to work.

3. The legal framework Education and Training Reform Act 2006
Education and Training Reform Act Regulations 2007
Individual school's constituting Order
All school council decision-making takes place within a framework of legislated powers and DEECD policy and guidelines
What laws effect school councils?
School councils operate under the framework provided by the following:
The Education and Training Reform Act 2006
The Education and Training Reform Regulations 2007
Each school also has its own legal framework under which it operates. This is called the school's constituting Order and it outlines such things as how many people can join school council, if community members can be members or not, how many people can be appointed to each membership category (that is, parent membership, DEECD membership and community membership if desired).

4. Legal liability
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 member in good faith:
In the exercise of a power or the performance of a function of a member, or
In the reasonable belief that the act or omission was in the exercise of a power or the performance of a function of the member.”
(s Education and Training Reform Act 2006)
Am I legally protected in my role on school council?
The government protects all school councillors who act in a way that is consistent with their functions and powers as outlined in the Act – that is, if they act in a way that is consistent with the roles and responsibilities of school councils.
Therefore, individual school councillors are not personally liable when they act in good faith in their capacity as school councillors.
Providing a school councillor has not engaged in behaviour that would implicate that person in a criminal offence, the councillor is not liable for the debts and liabilities of school council and the department will assume responsibility, on the councillor's behalf, for the payment of all costs, including damages, that might arise from a legal action.

5. Who is on school council?
There are 3 categories of membership:
Parent members
DEECD employee members
Community members (optional)
Co opted members
School council membership
There are three types of membership on school council:
Parent members
DEECD employee members – the principal is included as a DEECD member and has full voting rights
Community members – this is optional and these positions are co opted, rather than elected.
Co opting allows school councils to bring additional skills and perspectives to the council that may not be available from the parent or teaching community.
The co option of community members is a decision made by school council and is reflected in the school’s constituting Order.
For example, the council may decide that it wants to use the co opted positions to co opt a member from the local community, such as an accountant, a builder or someone with particular skills they feel they might need, or it might include students (in secondary school) or parent club representatives.
DEECD employees cannot be community members.
Community members have the same voting rights as elected members.
More than one third of school council members must be parents (i.e. they must have a child or children enrolled at the school).
Councils must be between 6 and 15 members in total size.

6. What is the role of school council?
Establish the broad direction and vision of the school within the school's community
Develop and monitor the school strategic plan
Develop, review and update school policies
Develop, review and monitor the Student Code of Conduct and the School Dress Code
Raise funds for school related purposes
Approve the annual budget and monitor expenditure
Maintain the school’s grounds and facilities
Enter into contracts (e.g. cleaning, construction work)
Report annually to the school community and to DEECD
Stimulate interest in the school generally
The role of school council
The role of school council is outlined in the Education and Training Reform Act 2006.
In essence, the role is one of setting the long term future for the school and maintaining oversight of the school's operation. It is not about running the school – that is the job of the principal.
Three of the critical roles are outlined in more detail in this presentation:
Developing the strategic plan
Approving the annual budget, and
Setting and reviewing policies. .
Other roles include:
Developing, reviewing and monitoring both the Student Code of Conduct (how the school expects students to behave, how bullying will be managed and the school's approach to managing student behaviour) and the School Dress Code (this includes how students are expected to dress during school hours including traveling to and from school, if the school has a uniform and what that looks like, and any arrangement with clothing suppliers that the school might enter into)
Raising money for things that the school needs
Making sure the school’s grounds and buildings are maintained
Entering into contracts for things like cleaning the school or a school council building project
Creating interest in the school within the community.
For further information on the role of school council, see the DEECD school council webpage -

7. School council does not…
Manage the school
Employ teaching staff
Represent sectional interests
Renew the principal's contract or hire and fire the school principal
Determine class allocations
Discuss individual issues between teachers and students and/or parents
Purchase land, buildings or motor vehicles
Enter into hire purchase agreements or obtain credit or loan facilities, unless authorized by the Minister
What school council does not do
School council does not manage the day to day running of the school. For example, it does not employ teaching staff, decide which classes students will be assigned to, or sort out issues relating to individual teachers and students and/or parents.
Nor does it discuss individual issues relating to teachers or staff or parents – these are very clearly management roles, and therefore the principal's job.
School councillors are not appointed to represent specific interest groups or permit special interests to dominate the agenda of the council.
School council does not renew the principal’s contract nor recruit or dismiss the principal. The principal selection process is regularly reviewed by the Department.
School council is also not allowed to purchase land, buildings or motor cars and it cannot enter into hire purchase agreements or obtain credit or loans, unless it is given permission by the Minister.
For further information on the role of school council and what it is not responsible for, see the DEECD school council webpage -

8. Some examples Council (governance) Principal (operations)
Develop and monitor the school strategic plan
Approve the annual budget
Monitor school expenditure
Approve and monitor investments
Implement and monitor the school strategic plan
Develop the annual budget
Day to day running of the school
Some examples of the role of school council and how it is different from the role of the principal:
School council
Develop and monitor the school strategic plan – this is a document that says what the school wants for its students and how it plans to achieve this. It is explained in more detail later in this presentation, and there is a training program all about this at: .
Approve the annual budget - this is the plan for what resources (especially money) will be needed for the school to achieve its strategic plan.
Monitor school expenditure - how much money the school spends and what it spends it on.
Approve and monitor investments - these three tasks (budget, expenditure & investments) are explained in more detail later in this presentation, and there is a training program at:
The principal
Implement and monitor the school strategic plan – it is the principal's job to make sure that what is decided as the future directions for the school is actually done, and if it can’t be done, to let school council know.
Develop the annual budget - the principal oversees the development of the plan for what money is needed for the school to achieve its goals.
Day to day running of the school, including making decisions on such things as the ordering of materials, booking casual relief teachers or other general management matters.

9. Further examples Council (governance) Principal (operations)
Broad curriculum involvement in line with DEECD policy
Develop, review and update policies
Curriculum leadership and implementation
Implement policies endorsed by school council
All matters of student welfare, discipline, academic progress
More examples of the role of school council and how it is different from the role of the principal:
School council
Broad curriculum involvement in line with DEECD policy - school council can decide on the broad policy regarding what the school teaches but it must be within department guidelines, For example, the school council may decide the school needs to have a particular technology focus or that it wants the school to introduce “thinking skills”.
Develop, review and update policies – policies are described in more detail further in the presentation but basically it is school council's role to develop the necessary guidelines (policies) for the school on such things as uniform, homework, welfare and so on. This policy development usually occurs through a sub-committee made up of parents and teachers.
The principal
Curriculum leadership and implementation - the principal decides who teaches what grades and what subjects, what time is given to each subject, class sizes and how grades are structured. (These sorts of decisions are made after consulting with the staff.)
Implement of policies endorsed by school council – the principal makes sure that the policies developed by school council are put in place and that they come back to school council on a regular basis for review.
All matters of student welfare, discipline, academic progress are the responsibility of the principal.
Note: for further information, see the presentation on Policy Development – Helpful Hints (

10. Further examples Council (governance) Principal (operations)
Approve employment and termination of some non-teaching staff
Input into principal selection
Promoting the school to the wider community
Employment and performance management of teaching staff
Staff performance and development
Represent DEECD to the wider community
More examples of the role of school council and how it is different from the role of the principal:
School council
Approve employment and termination of some non-teaching staff – this might include the office staff, business manager, canteen staff
Input into principal selection – school council can currently choose a member to be part of the selection panel for the principal. The Department must take into consideration the view of school council in principal selection (s2.4.6 Education and Training Reform Act 2006). The principal selection process is regularly reviewed by the Department. The principal selection process is located at:
Promoting the school to the wider community – all school councillors have a responsibility to generate interest in the school to the wider school community and to help make sure that the school has a respected place within the community.
The principal
Employment and performance management of teaching staff - these matters are the responsibility of the principal.
Staff performance and development of all staff is also the responsibility of the principal.
Represent DEECD to the wider community - the principal is the Department’s most senior representative within the school and as such, represents the department to the wider community.

11. What is strategic planning & why do it?
Strategy, properly formulated, should provide the central point around which a school community can focus and unite to ensure that the school survives and thrives over the long term
A strategic plan is your school’s voice
What does Strategic Planning mean?
Strategic planning means that the school thinks about what it wants to achieve in the future, and plans how to get there.
What does this plan do?
The school's plan tells people what is important for the school and how the school will improve:
Why the school exists (its purpose)
How staff and students are expected to behave (the values)
What is different or special about the school
What you are going to achieve over the next four years to make the school better.
What about the School Charter?
The Plan replaces the School Charter. Charters included (amongst other things) details on all of the legal requirements that the schools had to think about – these are now collected in a separate document called the School Compliance Checklist. School strategic plans do not need to include legal matters.
Note:
See the presentation on Strategic Planning - for more information on the strategic planning process.

12. What outcomes are we trying to achieve?
Student learning
e.g. reading, writing, maths
Student engagement and well being
e.g. attendance, positive relationships, safety
Student pathways and transition
Into, through and between schools
What does our Plan have to say?
All Plans must be directed towards improving the students’ school experience.
These goals will be different for each school, but every school must have at least one goal under each of the headings below:
Student learning - How the children will do better at reading, writing and maths or other areas chosen by the school to focus on
Student engagement and well-being - How the school will make sure that children are involved at school, are achieving academically and socially. This may mean not just attending school, but really learning; and how the school will make sure that students are happy, safe and developing friendships.
Student pathways and transitions - How the school will make it easier for students to move from Kindergarten into school, through the school, and onto secondary school, to employment or other training after they leave school.

13. Key questions for school council
What outcomes is the school trying to achieve for our students?
Where are we now?
What does the school need to do?
How will the school manage its resources to achieve these outcomes?
How will we know if these outcomes have been achieved?
What should school council know?
The following questions are really important in the strategic planning process:
What is the school wanting our children to achieve?
Where is the school now?
What does the school need to do so that our students can do better?
How will the school make this happen? What money or people will it need and how will it get this?
How will we know if/when the school has been successful?

14. What is a policy?
A policy is a guiding principle designed to influence decisions, actions.
Typically, a policy outlines in writing, a required process or procedure within the school
A policy should only be established to achieve some purpose which reflects a set of beliefs or values on the issue concerned
Not all issues require a policy; many routine matters can be dealt with by developing simple procedures
What is a policy?
A policy is a guiding principle designed to influence decisions and actions that the school makes.
It is usually a written document that outlines a required process or procedure within the school, such as how to deal with bullying, or the school’s approach to homework or how complaints are to be managed within the school.
A policy should only be established to achieve some purpose which reflects a set of beliefs or values on the issue concerned. For example, a homework policy might reflect the belief that regular homework develops sound study habits.
Not all issues require a policy; many routine matters can be dealt with by developing simple procedures. For example, you might have a procedure for “wet” lunch times – this is unlikely to require a detailed policy.
Note: for further information, see the presentation on Policy Development – Helpful Hints (

15. Examples of policies Uniform Camps, excursions & outdoor activities
Homework
Welfare
Sun smart
Parent engagement
Use of school facilities
Sponsorship
Curriculum
Complaints - Conflict resolution
Some examples of school policies are:
Uniform
Camps, excursions & outdoor activities
Homework
Welfare
Sun smart
Parent engagement
Use of school facilities
Sponsorship
Curriculum
Complaints - Conflict resolution

16. What is an annual budget?
The financial plan that makes sure that the school’s resources (people, programs, services, equipment) support its educational priorities and objectives
It shows how the school will use these resources to produce the results aimed for in the strategic plan, and
How the school will maximise student outcomes through the most efficient and effective use of its limited resources
What is the annual budget?
The annual budget supports what the school is trying to do for students as set out in the strategic plan. (i.e. the educational priorities and objectives)
The strategic plan describes the qualities, values and abilities that the school is seeking to achieve for its students.
The annual budget sets out the resources that will be used, and where.
Schools have limited resources, so it is important to use them as efficiently as possible. Council works to get the best results for the money spent, through a carefully planned annual budget.
Note: for further information, see the presentation on Understanding School Finances (

17. How is the annual budget created?
The strategic plan is used as a starting point to determine the strategies to be funded
Program leaders work out what they need to do, and how much money will be needed
This is balanced against estimates of the total money available
The finance sub-committee produces its recommended plan and submits it to council for approval
How do you develop an annual budget?
The first step in developing an annual budget is the setting up of a timeline.
Most schools begin the budget process in term three, after mid-year student reports have been completed.
Program leaders review their programs and make plans for the next year. They put in a draft estimate of what it will cost to run their program. (Sometimes they already know how much money they will have, and instead put in a spending plan for that program.)
While this is happening, the school begins estimating its total income for the following year.
Once this is completed, the finance sub-committee matches the money available against all the cost estimates and spending plans to work out what it will be able to (and what it should) fund.
The strategic plan has already determined what the priorities for funding are.
Once all the estimated income has been allocated, finance sub-committee should create a list of future priorities to fund when further money is available.
Once it has been fully documented, the budget plan for the next year should be submitted to school council for discussion and approval.

18. What should council do regularly?
Keep informed about its financial position by carefully considering the financial reports provided at monthly meetings
Monitor budget income targets against what has been collected
“ensure that all money coming into the hands of the council is expended for proper purposes relating to the school” Education and Training Reform Act 2006
What does school council need to do?
Councillors should carefully examine CASES 21 financial reports to stay informed about the overall budget situation and the progress of the budget.
They can ask questions about items in the reports that they don’t understand.
They should also ensure that the recommendations made by the principal and finance sub-committee are given appropriate consideration and support.
By staying informed and by supporting all aspects of the annual budget process, councillors can make sure that it is spending the school’s funds ‘properly’.

19. Other finance responsibilities …
Council should:
Monitor school accounts to decide if there are opportunities to invest surplus funds to earn interest income
Minimise risk by creating and approving an annual investment policy
… e.g. using the High Yield Investment Account
What else do we need to know?
Surplus funds should be lodged in the High Yield Investment Account to try to earn as much interest income as possible.
This can be made easier if the school creates a cash flow budget.
Electronic banking can enable funds to be transferred into and out of this account very readily.
However, it is important that council accounts are never overdrawn.
In the past, some schools lost money through bad investments, so DEECD now has a requirement for schools to approve an investment policy each year. (More detail about investment policies is provided for finance sub-committees in the second presentation, School Finances for Finance Committees.)
By creating a High Yield Investment Account for all schools, DEECD has made this a much safer and simpler process.

20. Key relationships Principal and school council president
President and sub-committee convenors
Between council members
Staff and parents and school council
School council and DEECD
Key Relationships for school councils
For school councils to operate effectively, it is important that school council is able to work as a team
A critical relationship is that between the principal and the school council president. They need to work together cooperatively, and where necessary, be prepared to acknowledge any personal differences so as to be able to work in partnership for the good of the school. There is no place for one-upmanship on school council.
Similarly, school council president and the convenors of the sub-committees need to maintain respectful and co-operative relationships. Sub-committees are advisory bodies to school council and do not make decisions by themselves. It is important for sub-committee convenors to remember this.
School council members need to be able to work as a team. That means respecting the different skills, knowledge and experience that each member brings to council, sharing the workload, everyone contributing and sharing responsibility.
It follows that school council also needs to be able to work cooperatively with the parents and staff at the school. This does not mean that councillors have to like everyone, rather they need to be able to listen and ask the school community, and sometimes the wider community, about their views on topics that council might be considering – for example, uniform policy or dress code.
All government schools are bound by government legislation, policy, directions and guidelines. While DEECD prefers to provide schools with guidelines that then enable them to make informed decisions at a local level, there are some directions with which schools and school councils must comply. It is important for councillors to be aware of their responsibilities.

21. School council processes
In developing the strategic plan and school policies, council should aim to fully consult with the school’s community
Council should schedule all policies for review on a regular basis
A set of standing orders should be developed and implemented by council
This may include a Code of Conduct or protocols for school councillors
What are some of the key school council processes?
In developing the strategic plan and school policies, council should try and contact as many people as possible in the school. This might be by holding meetings and asking people to attend, by putting out surveys asking people's opinions and by the conversations councillors have with parents in the yard before and after school.
Council should schedule all policies for review on a regular basis. This should be staggered so that each year council has a set number of policies to review. If there is a change in any of the laws or the Department’s policies, those policies affected need to be reviewed immediately.
A set of standing orders should be developed and implemented by council. Standing orders are the rules, especially those relating to meetings, that school council will operate under. The standing orders may also incorporate a code of conduct or set of behavioural protocols for school councillors. If these are not included in the standing orders, they need to also be considered as part of effective school council processes.
Example Standing Orders for School Councils have been developed and can be found on the department’s website (

22. School Council processes continued
Council should determine processes for receiving data on a regular basis to enable monitoring against the school’s Annual Improvement Plan and to assist in progressively developing the school's annual report
Sub-committees need to be developed to make recommendations to school council & to ensure the wider school community can be involved in the discussion of issues.
More school council processes
Council should make sure that processes are in place so councillors get the information they need, on a regular basis, so they can monitor how the school is going against what it said it wanted to do in its Annual Improvement Plan. For example, if the school says it wants to improve how well the students are doing in maths, this can be checked on a regular basis by checking other data such as AIMS test results and school testing results, rather than waiting until the end of the year. This also helps the school to develop its annual report as the year goes on, rather than waiting until the annual report is due.
Sub-committees need to be developed to make recommendations to school council and to ensure the wider school community can be involved in the discussion of issues. These sub-committees are mentioned in more detail later in the presentation.

23. Role of the president Chairperson of all school council meetings
Signatory for school accounts, cheques and contracts as required
Uphold all council decisions and work in partnership with the principal
Ensure council stays focused on improving student learning outcomes
Role of school council president
The school council president is the chairperson for all school council meetings.
Along with the principal, the school council president is also the spokesperson for the school and the school's representative at public events.
In line with school council’s role in monitoring the school's finances and its power to enter into contracts, the school council president also signs school accounts, cheques and contracts as required by the law.
The school council president makes sure that school council decisions are upheld and the president also needs to show by example, a cooperative working relationships with the principal.
Given school council's role in improving student learning (part of the strategic planning process), the president needs to also make sure that school council stays focused on how the school is going to improve the education it provides to the students.
If an issue comes before council that results in a tied vote, the school council president casts the deciding vote. It is therefore important that those times when the president is speaking as a private individual are clearly defined, as opposed to the times when a ruling is made as president of school council.

24. Role of the principal
The principal is the overall educational leader and manager of the school
Executive officer of school council
Accountable for the preparation, implementation and evaluation of the school's strategic plan
The senior DEECD representative for the school
The principal’s role
The principal has the overall responsibility for the education that is provided to the students and for the management of the school.
As executive officer of school council, the principal is responsible for:
giving school council advice about educational and other matters
making sure that whatever council decides is acted upon
talking with the school council president about council business
making sure that school council meetings have the assistance and resources needed to enable school councillors to do their job
Accountable for the preparation, implementation and evaluation of the school's strategic plan
The senior DEECD representative for the school and, along with the school council president, acts as spokesperson for the school and as the school's representative at public events.

25. Role of school council members
All councillors need to respect other member's opinions AND support and uphold all council decisions
Parent members bring expertise and views to council on behalf of the whole school community
DEECD members bring educational expertise and views to council on behalf of the whole school community
Community representatives tend to bring individual expertise to assist council in specific decisions
Role of school council members
For school councils to operate effectively, members need to respect everyone’s opinions – even those they disagree with.
It is also important that once council reaches a decision, all school councillors support that decision in the school community.
Parent members on school council bring their experience as parents at the school and the views of the wider school community to school council meetings.
The DEECD employees bring their educational expertise to school council meetings.
Community members, if they are on your school council, most often bring a particular skill to school council. They might bring accounting skills or building skills or some other skill that the school is looking for at that time.
Note: an example of a school council code of conduct can be found on the department’s website at

26. Role of sub-committees
Assist the work of council and report regularly, provide advice and make recommendations to council, which has the final responsibility for decisions
Provide opportunities to involve & utilise the expertise of members of the school community who are not members of school council
It is recommended that all school council have a finance sub-committee
Short term issues are usually considered by a working party
What do sub-committees do?
Sub-committees:
Assist council in all the work that needs to be done and they report regularly at school council meetings, provide advice and make recommendations to council, which has the final responsibility for decisions. Sub-committees cannot make decisions for school council, rather they make recommendations to council.
Are open to non school council members.
Provide opportunities to involve many people in the school who are not members of school council.
It is recommended that all school councils have a finance sub-committee. However, council cannot delegate any of its functions or powers in relation to the approval of the school’s budget and yearly financial statements to the finance sub-committee – this stays the responsibility of school council.
Working parties are effectively sub-committees that are set up for a specific task for a set period of time. An example of a working party might be related to the development of a policy – for example a “healthy eating” working party or a “sun smart” working party. Working parties are covered by the same rules as sub-committees. They cannot make decisions but instead make recommendations to either a sub-committee or school council. School council makes the final decision.

27. Examples of sub-committees
Environment / grounds / facilities / buildings
Education and policy
Community liaison / community building / community relations
Outside school hours care
Canteen
Some examples of sub-committees
Schools may have sub-committees for things such as:
Finance – development of annual budget and presentation to school council approval, monitoring of expenditure and reporting this to school council
Buildings and grounds – planning and developing the school's facilities, such as its buildings and grounds; organising working bees and other actions to maintain or improve the appearance of the school
Education and policy – developing the educational policy for school council, possibly monitoring the implementation of the strategic plan, reviewing school data
Community building or community relations – developing ways for the school to work more actively with its community, both parents and carers and the wider community, developing fund raising activities for the school, including sponsorship for school events
Outside school hours care, if the school provides such a service – to ensure it is running effectively and legally
Canteen, if the school provides a canteen, overseeing the operation of school canteen development policy – e.g. healthy eating policy.

28. Professional development available for school councillors
On-line training packages and information sheets
Regional workshops and seminars
Professional development provided by peak school council organisations (e.g. VICCSO, ASCIV)
What training is available for school councillors?
A series of these training packages has been produced and is available on the DEECD website -
Fact sheets referring to specific roles and responsibilities or issues that school councillors face are also located on the website (
Each of the department’s nine regional offices also conduct training programs for school councillors. Your principal can give you the phone number of the person in the regional office that you can talk with about training programs.
The Community & Stakeholder Relations Branch within DEECD also has people who can assist you with any queries regarding your role and function. Contact details can be found at
There are two organisations which your school council can join that provide ongoing training and development and support for school councillors. They are:
the Victorian Council of School Organisations (VICSSO)
the Association of School Councils in Victoria (ASCIV)

29. For more information
(What is a school council and what does it do?)
Association of School Councils in Victoria (ASCIV)
Victorian Council of School Organisations (VICCSO)