P&F Handbook

Insert your School name here

Parents and Friends Association

Manual

2006

Meeting Procedures. 5

The Purpose of Meetings. 5

Meeting Agendas and Minutes. 7

General Meeting Agenda. 7

Annual General Meeting. 9

Agenda. 9

Special General Meeting. 12

Agenda. 12

Meeting Minutes. 13

General Meeting minutes. 13

Annual General Meeting Minutes. 14

Special General Meeting Minutes. 15

Inward / Outward Correspondence. 15

Financial Information. 16

Subcommittee and Other Reports. 17

Membership. 17

Quorums for Meetings. 17

Guidelines for Running a Meeting. 18

Chairing a Meeting. 19

Helpful hints. 22

Code of conduct at meetings. 24

Standing orders. 24

Handling simple motions. 25

Sticky situations. 29

Meeting problems. 31

Disturbances at meetings. 31

Irregular conduct by a chair 31

Chair Vacated. 31

Heated Meetings. 32

Avoiding Common Meeting Problems. 32

Code of conduct for meetings. 35

Sample Agenda for  Insert your School name here General Meeting. 36

Sample Minutes. 37

Annual general meeting. 39

Checklist 39

Presidents checklist 41

Secretary checklist 43

Treasurers checklist 44

Meetings are a fact of life. They can be boring, badly organised and inconclusive. They can also be very effective in building consensus and moving things on.

Planning before the meeting, being organised during the meeting and good management both during and after the meeting can create an effective forum where members are valued and outcomes are realised.

The Purpose of Meetings

Common Goals of Meetings

Common Goals of Meetings are to:

• Exchange information
• Solve problems
• Make decisions
• Share concerns
• Explain issues

Meetings bring together people with different ideas and experiences.

There are two critical roles at any meeting the Chair and the Recorder (Minute Secretary). The Chair manages the meeting. The recorder takes the Minutes, makes a note of motions and the actions required from those motions.

This section will assist The Parents and Friends Association in the following areas:

• Planning a productive meeting.
• Identifying duties and responsibilities of all involved in conducting the meeting.
• Involving other members through discussion.

The success of the Parents and Friends Association depends to a large extent on what each member of the Executive brings to their role.

The Role of the President is to provide leadership for the Parents and Friends Association and its Committee.

The principle role of the Vice President is to provide support to the President. This person will Chair those meetings from which the President is absent and carry out duties that have been delegated to or by the President.

The Secretary provides the secretarial support for the association. Recording the Minutes of the meetings, preparing correspondence for the Parents and Friends Association and is responsible for keeping all the documents of the Association safe and in good order.

The Treasurer has overall responsibility for the financial management of the Parents and Friends Association Association, including all subcommittee accounts.

Another important role adding to the success of the Parents and Friends Association is the school Principal. The Principal, while not eligible to hold office in the Parents and Friends Association is an ex-officio (automatic) member of the Association.

The Principal is eligible to vote, move and second motions and provide guidance to the Parents and Friends Association but cannot be a signatory to any Parents and Friends Association Account.

But most importantly, the Principal is responsible for the good order and management of the school, and keeps the Parents and Friends Association up to date on all school matters, including school activities and school financial statements. In turn, Parents and Friends Association members can put forward ideas and recommendations on school matters to the Principal for consideration.

For more information on the roles and responsibilities of the Parents and Friends Association and its executive members see Pages 39 42 of this manual.

Any activity involving a group of people is liable to produce conflict. Meetings are subject to problems simply because they are the primary device used to solve problems in a school community. The following list gives some of the common problems with meetings:

• No agenda or agenda not followed.
• Key people missing, silent, or unprepared.
• Domination of meeting by one person.
• Too many meetings held for problems best solved in other ways.
• Action items not assigned or ignored.
• Meeting Minutes not reported correctly.
• Meetings do not start on time or last too long.

Having an agenda and laying out ground rules for conducting meetings can avoid many of these problems. Some problems can also be solved simply by emphasising that participants must respect each other.

Parents and Friends Association members should also realise the important role they play in bringing positive results to a meeting:

• Being prepared and organised on issues they want to bring to the meeting.
• Understanding the rules that the Parents and Friends Association and meeting are obligated to work under.
• Following a Code of Conduct that ensures an orderly, efficient meeting.

Subcommittees are a sub-set of the Parents and Friends Association. The Parents and Friends Association can establish subcommittees to manage work in a particular area. This helps to spread the workload of the Parents and Friends Association and should shorten the time required during general meetings.

The relationship between the Parents and Friends Association and the subcommittee needs to be kept in good order to avoid difficulties that may arise when subcommittees and Parents and Friends Associations find themselves disagreeing on an issue.

Whatever your role in the Parents and Friends Association Association, be it on the committee, a subcommittee or as a Parents and Friends Association member, you should not lose sight of the fact that you are working for the good of the students and school community generally.

General Meeting Agenda

During the meeting a Secretary's task is made easier by following a well-established plan. This plan, known as an agenda, should be prepared by the Secretary, in consultation with the President, prior to the meeting. This allows Officers to both research and become familiar with the topics to be discussed and reduce the possibility of items being overlooked. Distribute it along with the Minutes of the previous meeting or put it up on a blackboard for all to see. This will enable members to know when matters will be discussed at the meeting. The success of a meeting can be affected by the information given on the agenda. The quality of the discussions and the resultant considerations often are a reflection of pre-meeting planning.

Meeting Agenda General meeting

A sample agenda from this model format can be found under sample forms in this section.

Agenda

The Annual General Meeting has a different role to a general meeting and some of the procedures also differ.

The Secretary's role is still to prepare for the meeting and report on the proceedings and again the agenda is an integral tool needed for a successful meeting.

The agenda should be prepared by the Secretary prior to the meeting in line with the agenda outlined in the Parents and Friends Association Constitution. Distribute the agenda, along with the Minutes of the previous AGM and other meeting reports.

Following the AGM agenda will ensure that important annual decisions of the Parents and Friends Association will not be overlooked.

Meeting Agenda Annual General meeting

Agenda

As the name suggests a Special General Meeting is called on for a specific purpose.

The constitution outlines some of the reasons for calling a special general meeting.

Regardless of the reason, the use of an agenda is still important although most times there will only be one or two items on the agenda to be discussed.

The same principles apply and the agenda ensures all items are discussed and the order of the meeting is maintained.

Meeting Agenda Special General meeting

The record (Minutes) of the meeting should be complete, yet it should also be concise, expressing only facts (and not the writer's opinion). It is recommended that all decisions requiring action be dealt with as soon as possible after the meeting and, that copies of correspondence or notes of action taken (eg telephone calls) be retained in a file for reporting to the next meeting. All resolutions must be recorded in the Minutes. If the Minutes are not circulated they should be read before the Chairperson asks if there are any corrections.

Audio Taping Meetings

The Parents and Friends Association Secretary may request that meetings be taped to assist with ensuring correct minutes are taken.

The Chairperson must ask the permission of the meeting to allow this to happen. If the Parents and Friends Association members allow taping of the meeting, the tape must only be used for the purpose for which the meeting has given consent.

General Meeting MINUTEs

A sample minutes from this model format can be found under sample forms in this section.

Annual General Meeting Minutes

The minutes of the annual general meeting follow the same principles as those for a general meeting.

Use the agenda as a guide and remember that because it is probably a year before these minutes will be read and endorsed it is imperative to include the names of all movers, seconders and whether a motion was carried or lost.

Where there is more then one nominee for elections, the name of each nominee their proposer and seconder should be noted in the minutes and then the outcome of the election.

Include enough information and discussion points to be sure that future committees will understand what transpired at the meeting and why.

Special General Meeting Minutes

Again, use the general meeting minutes as a guide. Remember that only the items for which the meeting was called should be discussed. Movers and seconders of motion are vitally important as well as the outcome of the motion (lost/carried).

Inward / Outward Correspondence

A Secretary is often required to decide which correspondence needs to be brought to the attention of members and which only needs to be tabled. Commercial documents or pamphlets may be mentioned briefly and then tabled or placed in a ring folder and passed around the table. This allows members to browse the documents and bring any specific document into General Business if they see a need.

Correspondence received that is of a defamatory or vindictive nature, may have issues within the correspondence that needs to be addressed but it is better for the Secretary to contact the author of the correspondence to ask for the issue to be brought forward in a more professional and objective manner .

Letters of a defamatory nature should never be read out at a meeting or distributed for members to read.

Letters from the , Queensland Independent Schools Parents Council, Education Queensland and any other relevant body or individual should be read out in full to the meeting. However, there are times when a document may not be read out.

• If the document is considered to be too long - a summary of its contents will suffice.
• If a document is considered to be of a sensitive or libelous nature. In this case the President should make the Parents and Friends Association aware of the subject of the document and seek the meetings permission and direction for handling the correspondence without the document being read in its entirety.

A summary list of correspondence should be prepared for each meeting of the Parents and Friends Association. This list should be included in the Minutes for that meeting.

Have the correspondence in a ring folder for easy reference or perusal by members.

The Secretary should clearly note in the Minutes who is responsible for preparing any letters to be forwarded on the Parents and Friends Associations behalf. In most cases, the Secretary will be responsible for preparing the drafts and may have to have the President check and sign on the Parents and Friends Associations behalf.

All correspondence from a Parents and Friends Association should be dispatched on Parents and Friends Association letterhead or in the case of emails, the Name and Title of the sender as well as the Name and Address details of the Parents and Friends Association should be clearly identified.

As the Parents and Friends Association is responsible for public money, it is imperative that the Parents and Friends Association is seen to be open and accountable.

Monthly reporting of Parents and Friends Association and Subcommittee financial activities is a legal requirement of the Associations Incorporation Act and Parents and Friends Association members are responsible for ensuring that these reports are presented by the Parents and Friends Association Treasurer at each monthly meeting.

The Treasurer is required to present a statement of receipts and payments to each monthly meeting. The monthly statement can be completed in whole dollars.

The Bank Reconciliation is required to be attached to the statement. Make sure that copies of the statements are given to the Secretary and pasted in the Minutes book.

Statements of receipts and payments and bank reconciliation are required to also be presented for each subcommittee. A budget monitoring report should be provided to show the relationship between the statement and the budget.

It is beneficial to have all reports including subcommittee reports in writing to assist the Secretary.

As a sub group of the Parents and Friends Association, all the subcommittees are obligated to report to each meeting of the Parents and Friends Association Association. Although the Parents and Friends Association are obliged to meet as per the Constitution, subcommittees can meet as required and it may be that there has not been a meeting of the subcommittee or that the subcommittee has not been active during that month. Regardless, the subcommittee should report that there was nothing to report to any Parents and Friends Association meeting where this is the case. The subcommittee is required to still provide the Treasurer with the financial information required for the Treasurers Report every month.

Recommendations from reports presented can be endorsed as part of the whole report or can be dealt with individually. This is beneficial when there is a recommendation that is contentious. The Parents and Friends Association can endorse the report with the exception of the one recommendation and deal with that item separately either before or after the endorsement of the report.

There is a legal requirement for the Parents and Friends Association members to ensure that each subcommittee reports to every Parents and Friends Association meeting. Subcommittee executive members should be aware that it is a requirement for them to report to each Parents and Friends Association meeting.

Membership of the Parents and Friends Association is provided for all families at the College. The secretary is required to keep a Register of Members, detailing the Name, Address, Date of Birth (if not a parent at the school) and the Date Joined.

Subcommittee members (those appointed by the Parents and Friends Association) must be members of the Parents and Friends Association at the time of appointment.

Quorums for Meetings

The Quorum for meetings is provided in the constitution. It should indicate a number of members required to be at a meeting to enable the meeting to go ahead.

Four of the most important attributes of a good Chair are impartiality, firmness, tact and common sense. Other useful qualities are courtesy, patience, fairness, self-control, tolerance, confidence, reasonableness, consistency, an orderly mind and a sense of humour.

Equally important are traits which a Chair should not have - for example, a tendency to be sarcastic or to seek to humiliate, to embarrass, to ridicule or even to lecture members in attendance.

• An effective Chairperson will be dignified and will have the respect of the members.
• A good Chair will appreciate that absolute right and truth are seldom found on only one side of an argument and that a free debate will generally result in the best solution.
• A good Chair will know when to enforce the rules strictly and when some relaxation can be acceptable.
• A good Chair will always keep his or her temper and use good humour to relieve a tense situation.

Obviously, a Chair should know how to run a meeting, how best to handle people, know to be articulate and authoritative and have a good working knowledge of the Parents and Friends Association Constitution, By-laws and Procedures. It is better for a Chair to make a wrong decision firmly than either to waiver for some period of time or to keep changing the rulings made.

1. A Chairs reputation for impartiality can be speedily undermined if the Chair is used for any of the things that should be done from the floor, such as moving or seconding motions or nominating members to some office. (There, however, is one important exception to this: it is in order and in fact quite proper for the President of an organisation to present to the meeting a formal report prepared in their capacity as President and then to move its receipt or acceptance.)
2. If the Chair feels sufficiently strongly about a matter, then the Chair should be vacated temporarily. It is not, however, ethical to leave the Chair to participate in a debate, which has been progressing for some time; the moment to leave the Chair is before the debate starts or immediately after the mover has spoken. This privilege should not often be used as it can damage the reputation of the person to be able to be impartial.
3. The Chair should also be vacated if the Chair is personally affected for example, during an election that he or she is contesting, or during discussion of censorious or congratulatory motions dealing with dissent from particular rulings. Again, this ensures that justice is done and is seen to be done; it is fairer to the Chairs critics as well as enabling the Chairs side of the story to be put from the floor.
4. On the other hand, if a guest speaker is expected to arrive during the meeting, the Chair should not leave the Chair to await and escort the speaker; one of the Vice-Presidents or some other office-bearer should be deputed to do this task. Similarly, a Chair should not leave the Chair to see off a guest speaker who needs to leave before the conclusion of the meeting.

Every meeting must have a Chair to ensure that proceedings are conducted in a proper and orderly manner and that the sense of the meeting may be ascertained.

The President will occupy the Chair at each meeting of the Parents and Friends Association. However, if the President is absent then the Vice President occupies the Chair. Should the Vice President also be absent the Parents and Friends Association members present may elect a Chair, providing there is a quorum of members present (the Parents and Friends Association Constitution dictates the number of members needed for a quorum).

The Chair should be familiar with the organisations Constitution and Standing Orders (if the Parents and Friends Association has approved meeting procedures or rules).

The information below may seem daunting to newly elected Presidents but be assured that most are common sense actions and are listed as memory joggers to assist not scare.

The Chairs more important functions are:

1. Before the meeting:

• to supervise the preparation of the agenda and any background papers to be distributed in connection with the meeting;
• to check that any notice of the meeting is sent out allowing the 7-day notice required by the constitution;
• to verify the accuracy of any minutes to be presented to the meeting for confirmation;
• to become familiar with any correspondence, reports, or other material to be brought forward;
• to talk to any member who is expected

1. To formally declare the meeting open, after ascertaining that a quorum is present, to introduce himself or herself to welcome any guest speakers, other visitors, and new members, and, if appropriate, to explain the procedure to be followed.
2. To preside over and control the meeting, to conduct it impartially and according to the rules, in order to ensure the smooth passage of the business before the meeting, and to call on the successive items of business. The meeting should be run in the order provided for by the agenda, standing orders or a previous resolution adopted by your Parents and Friends Association.
3. The Chairperson does not move motions or second motions. The Chairperson can assist members with wording motions but should be precise in the intent of the proposed motion. The Chairperson has a deliberate vote and a casting vote in the event of a tie.
4. To ascertain that a quorum is present at all times.
5. To sign minutes of meetings as correct, when they have been confirmed.
6. To present any reports for which he or she is responsible.
7. To introduce guest speakers and to arrange for votes of thanks to them.
8. In the case of elections, to ensure the appointment of a returning officer and to invite that person to declare the result at the appropriate stage.

10.  To sign, for identification purposes, any official documentation e.g. a new Constitution.

11.  To protect free speech and to ensure that debates are conducted in the correct manner, and, in particular:

• To see that motions and amendments are respectfully worded, consistent with the Constitution and the Standing Orders, unambiguous and otherwise in order;
• To ensure there is a seconder to all motions and amendments. If no seconder to a motion or amendment, then the motion/ amendment lapses. (Note however, an amendment can be accepted by the mover and seconder of the original motion and is then called a friendly amendment, which does not need a seconder);
• To ensure that all amendments are relevant, to the motion and are not direct negatives of it;
• To call speakers one at a time and in appropriate sequence, following the order of speakers set out in your Parents and Friends Associations adopted Standing Orders;
• To ensure that no person other than a mover in reply speaks more than once to any question;
• To allow no member other than the mover to speak on a motion or amendment which has not been seconded;
• To prevent irrelevant remarks, tedious repetition and objectionable language;
• To read the motion, amendment and/or foreshadowed amendments before the Chair when reasonably requested to do so and before taking a vote, and at such other times as would be helpful to the meeting;
• To insist that motions and amendments are in writing in appropriate circumstances;
• To ensure that no person is unreasonably denied an opportunity to be heard;
• To call on the mover of a motion to reply when another speaker rises, when the Chair feels that there has been adequate discussion, when the time available is about to expire, when the closure has been carried, or when the previous question has been defeated;
• To conduct a vote when the mover of a motion has replied or when otherwise necessary, ensuring that only the votes from other persons entitled to exercise them are accepted and casting his or her own deliberative vote before the result is known;
• Where a tie of votes are counted, and having already used the Chairpersons deliberate vote (one vote per member of the Parents and Friends Association) to give a casting vote (a chairperson can use a second vote to decide the fate of the motion) as necessary, it is recommended that this casting vote is used so as to preserve the status quo;
• To declare the results of all votes and to clearly announce the decisions reached.

12.  To give rulings on points of order and other questions of procedure, and to do so with patience and courtesy, giving explanations where appropriate. See Sticky Situations in this section for more information.

13.  To prevent excessive heckling, but to be tolerant of reasonable interjections.

14.  To preserve order, and, if necessary, to name offending members.

15.  To prevent discussions getting nowhere and to insist that at all times a motion is put before the Chair and that all remarks are addressed to the Chair.

16.  To use in the best interests of the meeting any discretionary powers in accepting or refusing to accept the various procedural motions.

17.  To ensure that only persons entitled to be present are admitted to the meeting.

18.  To adjourn the meeting and formally declare the meeting closed when a motion to that effect is carried, when all business has been concluded, when the time for adjournment laid down by the rules or by resolution is reached, or if the meeting is excessively disorderly or the quorum lapses.

19.  To improve the quality of the debate and of the decision-making process, a good Chair will:

• Encourage new, shy or inexperienced members to express their views to the meeting;
• Discourage any particular garrulous members from monopolising or unduly dominating any discussion;
• In appropriate circumstances, invite a motion or an amendment to a motion;
• Assist members who offer ideas to express these in proper motion form;
• Watch out for ambiguities in motions and have such ambiguities rectified at as early stage as practical;
• Invite (or personally put) questions designed to elicit relevant facts;
• Act as a resource person;
• Confine the discussions to ideas and issues rather than personalities;
• Stop any sotto voce discussions by sub-groups in corners of the meeting while a speaker officially has the floor;
• Ensure that all decisions are properly recorded in a form facilitating their subsequent implementation.

1. Some members may be reluctant to participate in a debate because of unfamiliarity with the organisation, with the subject matter under discussion and/or with meeting procedures in general, or because they are inexperienced in public speaking. It is preferable for such members to be asked for their views at an early stage of the discussion, as otherwise they may feel even more inhibited than normal if more experienced members have already expressed themselves authoritatively on an issue.
2. Devices for discouraging over-enthusiastic speakers include:

• The closure motion.
• The motion That the speaker be no longer heard.
• Time limits on speakers.

1. A Chair should never interrupt a speaker for reasons unconnected with the procedural aspects of the meeting: an example would be, interrupting simply because the Chair believes he/she has more knowledge on the subject matter than the speaker.
2. Any tendency for two or more members to converse with each other across the meeting-room while some other person has the floor should, of course, be suppressed. However, if their contributions seem relevant to the debate, they could, at an appropriate later time, be given the call one at a time and invited to address the Chair in the proper manner. Alternatively, the Chair could suggest that the debate be adjourned so that the persons concerned can confer with each other outside the room, with a view to their considered conclusions being reported to the meeting in due course.
3. While a Chair may have to ascertain the precise members voting for and against a particular proposition if the numbers are close and/or if some defined majority needs to be established it is usually unnecessary to count the number of persons abstaining (although there is no great harm in doing this as a matter of general interest or in order to check the arithmetic).
4. Speeding up meetings.
   A person required to Chair a meeting can increase the efficiency of a meeting and speed-up the decision-making process by adopting a number of informal devices such as those set out in the following checklist. Proficient occupants of the Chair will:
   1. Some time before the meeting prepare themselves in regard to all agenda items,
   2. Arrive early and shortly before the start of the meeting check with the Secretary and Treasurer that all relevant papers (minutes, correspondence, membership lists, files, reports, accounts for payment, etc) are available;
   3. Ration the debating time, and, if appropriate, suggest an alteration to the order of business, having regard to the relative urgency and/or importance of the different agenda items and the total time available;
   4. Help the meeting to find a suitable form of words by which decisions can be expressed;
   5. Suppress irrelevant remarks, tedious repetition and long-winded contributions;
   6. Not allow unimportant matters to be discussed at length;
   7. Call for specific ideas or invite some experienced member to comment whenever the discussion appears to be drifting along aimlessly;
   8. Encourage a motion to adjourn the debate when certain situations arise;
   9. At an appropriate stage suggest to the meeting that the matter under discussion be brought to a close, especially when all the main arguments appear to have been put, when broad consensus seems to have been reached, or when it is obvious that the meeting is ready to make a decision;
   10. In the case of a large general meeting, suggest that any detailed decisions of the type best made by a small number of people should be referred to an appropriate committee;
   11. Encourage Subcommittee Chair people to have a written report outlining all recommendations with explanation for the Parents and Friends Association meeting to consider;
   12. Where there are a number of Subcommittee reports, the reports can be accepted en bloc (all together in one motion), the recommendations discussed and, excluding any more contentious recommendations, the reports can be endorsed en bloc. Remember, endorsing a report also endorses the recommendation contained within it, unless they are specifically excluded from the decision.

A Code of Conduct is a simple set of rules set out to remind members of the Parents and Friends Association of their need to be polite, thoughtful and business like in the progress of a Parents and Friends Association meeting. Inappropriate behaviour interrupts proceedings, distracts from the real issues and creates an atmosphere of frustration for all in attendance.

Parents and Friends Association members should always put the needs of the school and the education of the students first in their minds when dealing with any issue at a Parents and Friends Association meeting.

Organisations can also adopt sets of standing orders to govern the conduct of their meetings. Whether any particular rule is incorporated in the Constitution or in the Standing Orders is a matter of convenience, but, generally speaking, details of procedure at meetings are contained in standing orders and more general principles affecting the organisation appear in the Constitution.

Whether an organisation has few or many standing orders is a matter for the Parents and Friends Association Association to determine, but it is advisable for all of the more normal situations to be specifically covered. In order to cover any problems, which may arise, a reference should be made in the last standing order to the customary procedure which is to apply in such cases. This customary procedure provides for the traditional method of handling the problem or situation in the Parents and Friends Associations meeting past.

The sample set of Standing Orders found in the forms part of this section is written in a fairly technical language and the Parents and Friends Association may wish to simplify/modify the language to suit the members of the Parents and Friends Association. Be aware though that over simplification can lead to more opportunities for multiple interpretations.

See Sample Forms at the end of this section for sample set of Standing Orders.

The following scenarios have been prepared to assist with specific issues that can be encountered during Parents and Friends Association meetings and include:-

• General Discussion
• Proposing a Motion
• Seconding a Motion
• Discussing a motion
• Movers right of reply
• Voting
• Amending Motions

There is also advice on handling sticky situations where special treatment of an issue may be needed.

Proposing a motion

• Mover to explain their motion
• Success depends on preparation

A motion is any proposal made for the purpose of eliciting a decision. Ideally the proposer should stand and say

Mister/Madam Chairperson. I move that followed by the reasons for moving this way.

However the motion can be presented after an introductory statement. It is a great help to the Secretary if the mover gives them a copy of the motion at this stage or preferably before the meeting. At very important meetings, copies of the motions to be discussed should be given to the members before the start of proceedings. Success in getting a motion passed depends on preparation, arranging for a seconder and briefing supporters. Lobbying pays off!

Seconding a motion

• Chairperson calls for a seconder
• Motions ought to be seconded
• No seconder - no discussion
• Mover resumes speaking
• Seconder may speak

When the mover has stated their motion and given their basic reasons for it - The Chairperson should ask:- 'Does anyone wish to second the motion?"

For simplicity, adopt the policy that all motions have to be seconded. (At common law, no seconder is required).

If there is no seconder, then the motion lapses and discussion stops. If seconded, the mover can then give more information. The seconder may then speak in support of the motion now or may reserve their right to speak later. If they do neither, they cannot speak.

Sometimes, people second motions purely to allow discussion, even though, they may decide to vote against the motion. This is quite valid.

Discussing the motion *First, call for speakers opposed to the motion.

• If opposition, alternate those for and those against.
• Speak once only
• Chairperson may speak
• Withdrawals
  The Chairperson can save time by asking if anyone wishes to speak against the motion. If no one does so, the Chairperson puts the motion to the vote immediately. If there is a speaker against, let him/her speak, then ask for a speaker for the motion who can present new material. Alternate the speakers and insist that each speaker raises new points or challenges the opposition. Speakers can speak only once to the motion. In some cases the members would expect the Chairperson, usually the President, to speak to a motion. However, it is better that the Chairperson keeps out of the debate. If they wish to speak, they should hand the Chairmanship to the Vice President temporarily. If the mover, seconder and everybody else agree that the motion be withdrawn, it can be. If one person disagrees, the motion must be put.

Disturbances at Meetings

Sometimes members or other people attending a meeting set out to create a disturbance. The remedies available to the Chair in such circumstances include the following:

• To cajole the persons concerned for example, by promising them the opportunity to speak later; by offering to have the committee look into their grievances; by inviting them to serve on a subcommittee; by undertaking to receive a deputation; etc.
• To order a short adjournment;
• In the case of offending members, to name them;
• To invite a motion that the persons concerned be removed (such a motion, if carried, would strengthen the Chairs hand should it prove necessary to call the police).

Irregular Conduct by a Chair

Sometimes occupants of the Chair, either through ignorance of the correct procedure or simply because they enjoy power and feel that the end justifies the means, will deny those attending a meeting some of their democratic rights. For example, such officers may:

• Decline to accept, let alone rule on, a legitimate point of order;
• Decline to accept motions of dissent from their rulings;
• Decline to accept motions of no confidence in themselves;
• Decline to accept any motion put and seconded by Parents and Friends Association members;
• Fail to implement a decision of a meeting.

In such circumstances those aggrieved by the Chairs unreasonable behaviour will have to consider their own position.

• Work toward skilling for individual members, by QISPC, to ensure that all members understand their rights and responsibilities at Parents and Friends Association meetings.
• Ensure the School Principal is aware of his/her responsibilities to ensure the Parents and Friends Association works within the Rules.
• Seek election at the next Annual General Meeting.

Chair Vacated

Before a Chairperson leaves the Chair for any reason, an appropriate temporary (or deputy) Chair should be invited to take over. The rules normally specify alternative persons to preside in the regular Chairs absence (for example, a Vice-President), but if none of these is available, some other suitable person present can

be invited to relieve the Chair or nominations from the floor can be called for to let the meeting choose its own temporary Chair. When the matter involving the Chair has been disposed of, the temporary Chair must step down again and hand the Chair back to the permanent Chair. While participating as a member of the audience the permanent Chair can exercise the normal speaking and voting rights.

Heated Meetings

Sometimes it is known or suspected in advance that a particular meeting will be rather heated because of the emotional nature of the resolutions to be debated or because of some particularly contentious item of business.

These situations can be very challenging to a Chairpersons ability. The following hints may assist:-

• Know as much as you can about the issue.
• Set definite ground rules from the beginning of the meeting.
• No discussion without a motion moved and seconded.
• Discussion for and against alternatively.
• No speaker to speak twice on the same motion without introducing new information pertinent to the issue.
• All speakers to speak through the Chair. (This means looking at the Chair whilst they are speaking and helps break down personality clashes and possible overriding of the Chairs authority.)
• Mover closes debate when they again speak to the motion.
• Secret ballot vote this allows member to have a true conscience vote without peer pressure.
• Keep the meeting focused on the issue and not to digress to side issues. Stress that the outcome required is that which is best for the school and the students.

Remember that you cant please everyone. If managed properly, everyone can go away feeling satisfied in the process used to reach that decision and that they have had an opportunity to express their point of view.

Avoiding Common Meeting Problems

People who are long-winded or dominating

Immediate action: Introduce time limits and adhere to them. Ask for contributions from others who have not said anything; ask the group if that is the direction in which they want the discussion to go; say Did we go over this before?; Do we need to repeat this?; Is it time to give someone else a chance?

People who are silent

Immediate action: Ask everyone to give an opinion, one by one, before discussing or evaluating the ideas further.

People who monopolise the discussion

Immediate action: Refocus the discussion away from such people and involve others by asking: What does that mean to the rest of us?; How does that help us to solve the problem?; summarising; is this what you two seem to be saying?; bringing others in ; What do the rest of us think about this?; adding; You seem to have overlooked

Members who distract (by talking, shuffling papers, tapping pens etc.)

Immediate action: Ask the people involved if they are interested in the discussion or why they do not seen to be interested; tell them they are making it hard for everyone to get through the remaining agenda items; or take a break.

Latecomers and early leavers

Immediate action: Briefly summarise the important business the person has missed; point to the record of the meeting; ask someone to fill them in quickly; and check whether anyone will need to leave the meeting early.

People who get bored

Preventative action: Vary your meeting procedure from time to time.

• Have occasional presentations, for example, a brief report of a visit to a school or some local community speaker.
• Introduce small-group tasks where people have more contact with each other.
• Take turns to lead the group through a different process or structured experience each meeting that will introduce a new skill to members.
• Having members learn practical skills on how to do a community profile, for example, can raise enthusiasm for meetings, especially if it is clear that people can then apply their skills to specific tasks.

Tension and/or negative feelings

Immediate action: Bring the issue out into the open and have a quick ‘gripe session; have a break; adjourn the meeting so that specific hostilities can be dealt with by the people concerned and not foisted on the whole group.

Discussing too many issues at once

Immediate action: List the concrete achievements or positive aspects of the group; check whether individuals are still in agreement with group goals; structure a short-term, success-guaranteed campaign.

Group cannot agree or decide

Immediate action: Summarise the discussion up to the present point; remind people of the goals or the criteria for deciding; restate the issues or question; ask the group if it is ready to make a decision; postpone the decision until the next meeting or take a short break.

People who get confused or lost

Immediate action: Review the agenda so that people will have a brief explanation of each topic to be covered at the meeting; state what has happened so far in the meeting; wrap up each agenda item with a call for final questions and relay any decisions made; evaluate the meeting to find out the successful aspects and what could be improved (this could be written or oral).

Making meetings better

Everyone has had the experience of leaving a meeting and feeling unhappy about some part of the proceedings. Most people choose to grumble about it with people who were not at the meeting. However, this does not solve anything, and there are positive ways to make meetings more effective. The following technique is a simple way to end each meeting with a brief review to find out how people felt about the meeting so that the next one can be better.

Proactive action: Brief meeting evaluation

What it is used for: For use in evaluating a single meeting so that the group can learn from its successes and mistakes and give feedback to the people who had specific roles to play, such as the Chairperson/facilitator/minute taker etc.

Stacking of meetings

When a contentious issue is to be discussed at a Parents and Friends Association Meeting, it is not uncommon for more than the usual members to attend to influence the outcomes of that discussion.

(Date and time meeting to be held)

held in the (location of the meeting)

Minutes of the General Meeting of
Insert your School name here

Date:

Venue:

Meeting opened at:

Present:

Guests:

Apologies:

Minutes of last meeting:

..moved and seconded that the Minutes of the last meeting held on: .. be carried as printed. Carried.

Business arising from the Minutes:

1.

2.

3.

Correspondence:

Inward

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Outward

1.

2.

3.

moved and . Seconded that the inwards correspondence be received and the outwards adopted. Carried.

Business arising from the correspondence:

1.

2.

Treasurers Report:

As per copy tabled showing a credit balance of $..

Insert Bank Reconciliation

Accounts for payment:

1.

2.

3.

.. moved and .. seconded that the treasurers report be adopted and the accounts be confirmed and passed for payment. Carried.

Reports:

1. provide a brief summary of each report, including any actions/ outcomes that have been passed in the report.

. Moved and . seconded that the Report be received. Carried.

2.

. Moved and . seconded that the Report be received. Carried.

General Business:

1. provide summary of discussion and the exact wording of any motion put forward.

Moved and seconded that .

Carried/Lost.

Next Meeting:

Meeting closed at:

Minutes endorsed as true and correct /./2006

Presidents Signature ..

Checklist

Monthly meetings:

Annual meetings:

At all times:

As Chairperson at meetings, the President should ensure that:

Between meetings:

Agenda:

Minutes:

Correspondence

Other

treasurers checklist