If you are a parent/guardian of a child attending the school then you are already a member. As a member you can come along to the various meetings to express your opinions. Attending PTA meetings, and all other aspects of the PTA, are completely voluntary.
The meetings themselves are also regularly attended by teachers and staff. Indeed, if it were not for the teachers and staff (and head mistress) then it would be difficult to prioritorise what funds should be allocated where.
There is a committee and this largely reflects regular attendees – though it need not. As a committee member you are entitled to vote when votes are asked for. Typically most decisions requiring a consensus revolves around what to do with the money raised by the PTA. In order to become a committee member then you need to attend a meeting and put yourself forward. A “seconder” already on the committee will be asked for and then a vote should take place to “vote” you in.
The PTA tends to meet on either a Tuesday or Wednesday night at school at 7:30pm to 9:00pm. - thereby letting people with regular evening commitments on one of these nights attend the other. This is common practice but sometimes it will change. On the run up to particular events the frequency of the meetings will typically increase as a reflection of the organising that needs to be completed. Each year there is an annual general meeting at which the current committee stand down and a new committee is elected.
The meeting minutes are published and put on display on the notice board outside the main entrance (by the nursery). It is intended that a version of those minutes will also be displayed on this web site. The meeting will determine the time and date of the next meeting and so will be published there. In addition, the times and dates of meetings are publicised in a newsletter that can sometimes be found crammed at the bottom of your child’s rucksack or bag. During the course of a meeting it is typical that the PTA treasurer will summarise what has been happening with finances since we last met, and a representative from the school will also summarise recent events of particular interest to the PTA (e.g. useful things to consider buying etc.).
