Minutes of the Meeting of Strathblane Primary School Parent Council
Tuesday 1st April 2008
Present:
Staff: Jennifer Cunningham, Anne Spencer, Morven Bulloch, Rachel Allen, Rhona McCrae, Sheena Mylles, Maureen Thorburn
Parent Council: Debbie Bolton, Charlie Haggerty, Fergus Mitchell, Cathie Moir, Gun Orgun, Bernd Schwahn, Andy Thompson
Parents: John Boyle, Karen Boyle, Hazel Campbell, Julie Cruickshanks, Wendy Hamilton, Jane McCallum, Lynn Wishart, Bronagh Ewart (clerk to the parent council)
1. Welcome & Apologies
Andy Thompson opened the meeting and welcomed everyone. Apologies were received from Lynne Arrol, Wendy Barratt, Elaine Holmes, Kim Jones, Val MacCorquodale and Lyndsay Macdonald. Each person present briefly introduced him or herself.
2. Minutes of meeting held on 21 January 2008
The minutes were accepted as a true record.
2.1 Matters arising from the minutes
Declan Gilmour from the Out of School Club has been appointed as supervisor in the Breakfast Club beginning on 21st April 2008. Thanks was recorded to Christine Woodford who filled the post temporarily to keep the club open.
Bernd Schwahn reported that the School Meals survey, an initiative of the School Nutrition Action Group, was distributed to parents and pupils on 14th March and expressed thanks to teachers and parents. There were many comments recorded on returned forms but as feedback is still coming in, more data will be presented at the next meeting. There followed a time of heated discussion about the School Meals survey particularly with regard to the lack of consultation with kitchen staff. Some parents present felt that the wording in the survey gave limited options for pupils to indicate why they did not take school meals which could be for a variety of reasons. PC members responded by saying that there has been a decline in the uptake of school meals and the School Nutrition Action Group were taking steps to try to find out why. Karen Boyle, school cook, felt it important that kitchen staff were represented on this group. Bernd said he was happy to summarise pupil and parent comments for anyone interested.
Update on Road Safety visit – see item 5.1
It has been confirmed that the PC needs to have Public Liability Insurance. This can either be with the Scottish Parent Teacher Council at a cost of £127 per annum (£87 for membership and £40 for insurance) or with another insurance provider. The PC will check the small print of various policies and choose the most suitable.
3. Report from the Chair
Andy Thompson reported how pleased parents were at the set-up of the after school French club and thanked all those involved. He gave details of a National Conference for Parents and Parent Councils to be held in the Crown Plaza Hotel, Glasgow on Sat 7th June between 9.30am and 1.00pm. A creche will be provided for under 5s. There are limited places and anyone wishing to go should speak to the PC or apply directly. He then spoke about the top three issues from the 12-point parent questionnaire i.e. MUGA, anti-bullying and homework policy and invited those interested in being involved in groups looking at these issues to contact the PC. There followed a time of heated discussion when the role of the PC was questioned. Some parents felt that the PC were taking on issues which should be left to the staff. Andy Thompson reminded the meeting that legislation demands that the PC increases parental involvement. The PC has approached parents first to set a framework. The next step will be to consult with staff about existing policies and then report back to parents to determine problems. It was suggested that a newsletter might be a way of communicating what the PC does.
4. Report from the Communications Officer
Fergus Mitchell reported that the PC now has allocated space on the new school noticeboard in the front playground and that a post-box had been suggested as an additional means of communication along with the email address (strathparentcouncil@googlemail.com). Jane McCallum suggested that the library would be a good place for this box. A quote of £150 (plus £50 per annum) had been received to set up a website. The PC will investigate whether it would be possible to be included in the village website instead.
5. Reports from the School
5.1 Report from the Headteacher
Jennifer Cunningham reported that during the Spring Break new fencing will be erected to make the playground more secure. The main front gates and steps will be removed and the vehicular entrance will become the main school entrance. There will be new gates between the school and the library and at the entrance to the back playground.
Parking is still an issue, particularly in the library carpark. The Road Safety visit did not take place on March 28th due to a mix up about dates. However, Jennifer spoke to the P5 pupils and asked them for suggestions about parking. She will pass these to Jane McCallum who will take this issue forward.
5.2 Report from the Teachers’ Representative
Morven Bulloch expressed gratitude on behalf of the staff for the opportunity to put forward their views at the last meeting. They appreciated the apologies from the PC and want to move forward as a team.
5.3 Report from the Pupils’ Representative
Anne Spencer gave an update on the Pupil Council who have requested pump action soap in the cloakrooms and a clock in the GP room. Toilets continue to be an issue but are part of the redevelopment plan for 2010. “Football-free Friday” will begin after the Spring Break with P7 pupils helping in the playground. The Pupil Council will produce an anti-bullying leaflet for pupils following the completion of a questionnaire for P3-P7 on April 3rd. The pupils appreciated being consulted in the School Meals questionnaire and are excited about the possibility of an adventure trail in the playground funded by the SPF. The next meeting of the Pupil Council is on May 1st.
6. Reports from Standing Committees
6.1 Report from the SPF
Cathie Moir reported that the recent family quiz night made £320. The Easter hat competition was successful and the Rag Bag collection will take place on April 29th. The Summer Fair will be on Saturday 17th May with an Olympic theme. On June 16th there will be an art exhibition when parents can view and purchase pupils’ work. The SPF have funded a school noticeboard in the front playground and donated £500 towards school trips. They are also funding the purchase of playground equipment at an approximate cost of £5000. Both current co-chairs will be retiring in June and it is necessary to consider how to establish a better link between the PC and the SPF. John Boyle offered to email some ideas for future fundraising.
7. Multi-Use Games Area (MUGA)
Charlie Haggerty has contacted the appropriate bodies regarding funding. Unfortunately the funding from Active Stirling has expired and he is awaiting three further responses. This needs to be progressed and a working group will be set up to deal with this issue. Charlie will draft a letter to parents asking for help and for those interested to come to the next meeting which will concentrate solely on MUGA.
8. AOB
None
9. Date of Next Meeting
Tuesday 6th May 7.45pm in the school.
Andy Thompson closed the meeting, thanking everyone for coming. Gun Orgun added her thanks to the staff for giving up their time to attend the meeting.