School council committees

School councils, also called school councils or school boards, can create committees to give advice on specific topics.

These include:

• making sure the finances and facilities meet the educational needs of the school
  • for example, many schools have a finance committee to specifically talk about the school council budget and give recommendations to the body on how the money should be spent.
• managing the nutrition program of the canteen
• bringing local culture into school activities
  • for example, many remote schools have a local engagement and decision-making (LEaD) committee.

The committees don't direct or manage these services.

Instead, they advise the school council, and then the school council and the principal work together to make decisions.

Starting a committee

Committees can be permanent or temporary.

When the school council forms a committee, one of its members must serve as the committee's chair. This ensures clear communication between the 2 groups.

Other committee members don't have to be from the school council. This can help bring in more opinions and people to help.

If you feel a committee is needed for a specific reason, talk to your principal or school council members.