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The school participation council.
Every primary and secondary school has a school participation council. In this council, parents, teachers, and sometimes students talk about what happens at school. This way, they have influence on the education. But what does the school participation council do exactly? What decisions does the council make? And how can you as a parent share your opinion, even if you are not a member?
What is a school participation council?
The school participation council is a fixed group within the school that thinks along about plans and policy. The council checks if everything is arranged well, guards the quality of education, and makes sure parents, staff, and students can talk about important decisions. Every school must have a school participation council. This is in the law.
The school participation council consists of:
- Parents
- Teachers
- Students (only in secondary school)
Each group chooses who represents them. As a parent, you can vote for parent members or join as a candidate. The school organizes the elections, and only parents whose children go to the school can join.
What does the school participation council do in schools?
The school participation council discusses topics that affect the education and the school.
For example:
- The school guide and the school plan
- The school hours and the holiday schedule
- Safety and the budget
According to the law, the school participation council has three rights: the right to information, agreement, and advice. The school must inform the council on time and fully about important plans, like a merger or new teaching methods (right to information).
For some topics, like the holiday schedule or changes in school hours, the council must agree before the school can make changes (right to agreement).
In other cases, the school can decide itself but must first ask the opinion of the council, for example when hiring a new school leader (right to advice).
Joint participation council
Some schools belong to the same school governing body, for example a school governing body with multiple primary or secondary schools. In that case, there is a joint participation council next to the school participation council.
The joint participation council discusses matters that are important for all those schools, like the governing body’s policy or a shared budget. Think about rules for student transport or digital learning tools that apply to all schools under the same governing body. The joint participation council works on a higher level than the school participation council.
Do you want to quickly and easily discover how the school participation council works? Download the infographic below.
Raising topics at the school participation council
Do you have questions or worries about what is happening at school? Then you can contact the members of the school participation council. They can bring your point up during a meeting. Think about topics like the holiday schedule, class division, or social safety.
Also, the school participation council can actively involve parents through a parent consultation. This can be in the form of a parent evening, a survey, or a focus group. For some topics, such a consultation is even required, for example with major changes in the school policy. This way, you as a parent can think along and share your opinion, even if you are not a member of the school participation council.
The school participation council must as a rule publish agendas and reports of meetings but does not have to actively share them with parents. You can always read what was discussed. The members of the school participation council are parents and teachers from the school and are often easy to approach on the school yard or by email.
Questions or personal advice?
Do you have questions about this topic, would you like advice regarding your situation, or just a listening ear? Then please contact us via 088-6050101, email vraag@oudersenonderwijs.nl or WhatsApp ons.
Participation.
The participation council is a group of parents, teachers, and at high school also students, who discuss the school’s policies. The participation council advises and sometimes has decision-making power.
The participation council discusses topics such as the school plan, holiday schedule, safety, and the allocation of funds. They provide advice or must agree to certain decisions.
A joint participation council is for schools under the same board. The joint participation council discusses topics that affect multiple schools at once, such as overarching policies or collective budgets.
The participation council monitors the quality of education, provides input on policies, and ensures that parents, staff, and students have a say in important decisions.
What is the difference between the parent council and the participation council at a primary school?
The participation council provides input on policies and decisions. The parent council mainly assists with practical matters, such as organizing activities.
Every primary and high school is required to have a participation council. This is stipulated in the law.
Parents choose the parent members, teachers choose the staff members, and students choose their representatives (at high school).
Yes, through parent consultations, you can voice your opinion on school matters. Think about parent evenings, surveys, or focus groups. If you have questions yourself, you can place them on the participation council’s agenda by raising them with the members.
The participation council usually meets a few times per school year. The school often informs parents about the outcomes via newsletters or the website.
These are the parents who sit on the participation council representing all parents.
Related Subjects
Information rights, advisory rights and agreement rights school participation council
There are three school participation council rights: the right to information, the right to advice and the right to agreement.
Read moreComposition school participation council
Every school has a school participation council. But who is actually in it?
Read moreYear plan and meetings school participation council
With a yearly plan the school participation council keeps an overview. This way everyone knows what you discuss and when.
Read moreSchool participation council rules and house rules
Rules of the school participation council are in the participation regulation.
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