The Parents Association

The purpose of the Parents’ Association Committee (PAC) is as a mechanism for informal liaison between parents and the School. PAC membership is voluntary.

The objectives of the Parents’ Association Committee (PAC):

• to promote the spirit of community within the school by organising a variety of events
• to encourage and facilitate the participation of parents in promoting the well-being and interests of the pupils of the school
• to support the Class Representatives (CRs) with the flow of information between the school in relation to PAC organised events and PAC communication
• with the parent body
• to support effective communication between the school and the parent body by encouraging parents to reference the School Calendar, Parent Portal, Classlist app, Parents’ Handbook, weekly ‘Need to Know’ emailed bulletin to parents, pupils’ Homework Diary and Newsletters published by the school
• to raise funds for social events and donations to chosen charities
• to provide transparency of the finances through an annual publication of the PAC accounts

Please note that the role of the PAC and Class Representative (CR) is separate and different from the School’s Parents’ Representatives (PR) role. The role of the Class Representative is detailed in section 4 of this document.

CRs and PAC members may not serve as Parent Representatives; this is to ensure that there is a broad distribution of involvement in the school across the parent body, and to separate the clear defined roles of the Parents’ Association comprising of the PAC, CR and PR.

The Parents’ Association Committee (PAC) will comprise of a Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, Communications Co-ordinator, Events Co-ordinator, Charity Co-ordinator and New Family Liaison Co- ordinator who will be parents of children currently at The Hampshire School Chelsea.

Role and Responsibilities of Committee Members

Chair

• The Chair is the main point of contact between the PAC and the school’s Senior Leadership Team
• Sets the agenda of meetings with the school and CRs
• Agrees dates for events with the school in consultation with the Head
• Agrees a timeline of events with the school and the PAC
• Ensures that meetings of the PAC are quorate – three Committee members will constitute a quorum at Committee meetings

Vice-Chair

• Supports and deputises for the Chair, as required

Secretary

• Takes minutes of all meetings
• Has the minutes ratified by the PAC
• Provides the Head with an electronic copy of the approved minutes 

Treasurer

• Plans the yearly budget forecast during the first two weeks of the school academic year
• Has the budget forecast approved by the school/PAC
• Monitors the spending versus forecast
• Records every transaction on the Parents Association account
• Records all invoices/receipts
• Makes payments to venues/vendors on time
• Checks the bank statements regularly
• Manages receipts
• Organises floats for events
• Coordinates with CRs money collection for school related gifts

Charities Coordinator

• Interacts with the chosen charities and the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) of the school regarding attendance at school assemblies and events to ensure compliance with the visiting speaker protocol
• Liaises with the Treasurer regarding collection and awarding of donations to charities

Events Coordinator

• Sources venues that fit the requirements for the event(s) and budget(s)
• Negotiates with venues regarding cost(s)
• Liaises with venue regarding management of the event
• Responsible for the organisation of events with the support of PAC members

Communication Coordinator

• Submits PAC and Parents’ Association information to the Head’s EA for inclusion in the weekly ‘Need to know’ bulletin to parents, as required
• Submits Parents’ Association news items to the marketing department of the school for inclusion in the fortnightly newsletter
• Uses the Classlist app for communications with parents 

New Family Liaison

• Liaises with the Admissions Registrar at the school to connect new parents with the Parents’ Association and Class Representative, and distributes the Parents’ Association Welcome Pack
• Inform parents of the availability of second-hand uniform 

General responsibilities of PAC members

In order to achieve its purpose and objectives, the PAC will undertake the following:

• meet with the CRs at the beginning of each term to set the term’s programme of events, and to hear and discuss their ideas regarding social events for the parent community;
• will initiate social events, benefiting both parents and children. These events will be organised with the help and support of CRs and volunteers;
• will organise, with the help and support of CRs and volunteers, the second-hand uniform sales. All profits will be used by the PAC to fund the social events, special projects and donations to charities;
• manage, follow-up and host all Parents’ Association events;
• in consultation with the school and school Facilities Manager, set-up and tidy after all events;
• attend meetings with the SLT according to the meetings schedule agreed between the Head and the Chair.

Nominations Procedure for Membership of the PAC

I. Nominations for the PAC shall be proposed and seconded by a member of the Parents’ Association (any parent of a child currently at The Hampshire School Chelsea) and may be made at any time prior to the commencement of the AGM. Nominations for the PAC must be submitted to the Head before the AGM. The nominated person must write to the Head with an expression of interest in becoming a member of the PAC one week before the AGM with clear deadlines regarding the dedicated voting period. Expressions of interest should include reference to areas of particular expertise, for example, financial acumen may be an advantage for the role of Treasurer.

II. The names names of candidates will be shared with the parent body.

III. The Parents’ Association (i.e. all parents whose children attend the school) will be invited to vote for the candidates during the dedicated period.

IV. The PAC shall be elected at the AGM and shall serve until the commencement of the next Annual General Meeting (AGM).

V. Nominations may be received from a parent who has been a Class Representatives (CR) for at least one year and / or has demonstrated active participation at Parent Association organised events in the previous academic year.

VI. Current members of the PAC have to present their candidacy every year in line with the nominations procedure detailed above.

VII. Candidates will be approved by the Head of The Hampshire School Chelsea.

VIII. Once elected, decisions regarding the roles and responsibilities (i.e. Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, Communications Co-ordinator, Events Co-ordinator, Charity Co- ordinator, New Parent Liaison Co-ordinator) will be allocated according to the skills set of the members of the PAC.

IX. The Chair will serve one period of one year in the role and will be elected by the PAC members. A Chair may continue to be a member of the PAC but cannot be re-elected to the position of Chair. 

Terms:

• The parent must be willing to dedicate the time to contribute recommendations to help achieve the objectives of the PAC.
• The parent must be able to attend meetings and actively participate in the organisation of events; if a member does not attend three consecutive Committee meetings, without good reason, he/she will be deemed to have resigned from the Committee. He/she may return to the Committee following consultation with the Head and Chair.
• The parent must agree to sign a Confidentiality Agreement regarding all discussions pertaining to the PAC and a Data Protection Agreement.
• The names of the PAC will be listed on the parent portal area of the school website.

Annual General Meeting (AGM) & Special General Meetings

• The AGM, which is open to all members, will be held in January each year and will be advertised through the School’s usual means of communication – currently the weekly bulletin of ‘Need to Knows’ which are published to the parent body.
• At the AGM, the meeting will be taken by the Chair or, in his/her absence, the Vice-Chair or, in his/her absence, another member of the Committee nominated by the members present.

Resignations from the PAC and Replacements

Becoming a PAC member is a commitment for at least a whole calendar year. However, there may be circumstances in which a member wishes to resign before the year end. In such a case, the following rules will apply: 

• the PAC member gives at least one month’s written notice
• upon resignation the PAC member will respect and adhere to the PAC Confidentiality Agreement and Data Protection Agreement
• the nominations procedure will be followed with submission of expressions of interest to the Head.

• In order to facilitate the communication flow between parents and the PAC, a suggestion box (red box) is available for parents to submit their questions, suggestions, ideas, and remarks to PAC members. PAC members will respond. The school also promotes the use of the Classlist app for parent communication. The Classlist app facilitates and supports effective communication between parents which can be particularly helpful when parents are organising birthday party invites and other social occasions.
• All communication is confidential. Any question pertaining to educational matters, including any reference to The Hampshire School Chelsea staff and pupils, must be directed to the school. The Parent Handbook lists the roles and responsibilities of staff and their contact details.
• The Classlist app is managed by a member of the PAC.

The role of the Class Representative is voluntary. The aim is to create a social network among the parents and to help build a sense of community. At the beginning of each new academic year, the PAC, with the full support of the Head, asks for volunteers and it is hoped that the invitation to become a Class Representative attracts at least two parents from each Class.

A CR must provide contact details and be prepared for the details to be shared with the parents in their child’s class/year group. Contact details obtained by the CR is to be used only for contact between the CR and the class parents for topics related to class events and must not be used for commercial purposes. Please note that Whatsapp is not a system of communication supported by the school. Please note that the School cannot, by law, give any contact details to third parties, including school parents. The school does not provide access to parents’ contact details.

Class Representatives organise mini events to enable parents to get to know each other, for example; coffee mornings, lunch, drinks and visits to local parks and London attractions.

The Class Representatives support the PAC with whole school community events such as the Cocktail Party, Christmas Fayre, Second-hand Uniform Sales, Book Day, UN Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day Breakfast, Fun day, Sports Day, amongst others.

Class Representatives will receive notification from the PAC New Family Liaison Co-ordinator that a new family has started at The Hampshire School Chelsea to provide opportunity for them to be welcomed by the school community.

CRs will be asked to volunteer at the beginning of the school year.

Queries regarding educational matters must be directed to the school to the relevant member of school staff (please see the Parents’ Handbook for roles and responsibilities of staff and their contact details).