Composition school participation council.

Every school has a school participation council. But who is actually in it? How is such a council set up? Who represents the parents? Is there always staff in the school participation council? And how does that work at secondary school?

What is the staff section?

The staff section is made up of people who work at the school. Think of teachers, internal support coordinators and support staff. They represent the school team.

These employees think about topics related to their work. For example, task division, workload or training.

Sometimes the staff section has agreement rights. This means the school governing body can only decide if the staff in the school participation council agrees. This applies for decisions about the staffing plan or working conditions. This way they make sure school policies fit what the class needs.

What is the student section?

At secondary schools, students can also be members of the school participation council. They form the student section. They think on behalf of all students at school.

Students talk about things that matter to them. For example, the timetable, testing rules or safety at school.

At primary schools, there is usually no student section. Students are too young to join the school participation council. Some primary schools do choose other ways. For example with a student council or project group so students can still share their ideas.

Choosing school participation council members

Each section chooses its own representatives:

• Parents choose the parent section.
• Staff choose the staff section.
• Students choose the student section.

The school organizes elections for the school participation council at primary schools. Parents and staff get a call to stand as candidates. Everyone within their own group can do this.

If there are more candidates than spots, there is a vote. If there are exactly enough candidates, a vote is not needed. All candidates then automatically become members of the school participation council.

Who is the chair of the school participation council at school?

Each school participation council chooses its own chair from the members. The chair leads the meetings and creates the agenda with the secretary. The chair also makes sure agreements are followed up.

Often the chair is also the contact person for the school management. The chair has extra tasks. But it is also a good chance to really make a difference in the school participation council.

How long can you be in the school participation council?

How long you can stay in the school participation council is in the school rules. Usually it is three years. Then you can stand again. There is no law telling how often you can be re-elected. Some schools make their own rules about this.

You can only join the school participation council if you belong to the school:

• Parents can be members as long as their child goes to the school. If a child leaves, the parent membership stops.
• For staff it is the same. If they stop working at the school, they also stop being a member of the school participation council.

What is the joint participation council?

Some schools are under one governing body. Then there is a joint participation council besides the school participation council. The joint participation council discusses topics that matter to many schools. Think of policy about:

• Finances.
• ICT.
• Staff policy.

The joint participation council is made up of members from the school participation councils of different schools. So there are parents, staff and sometimes students there too.

Questions or personal advice?

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