EGA History:Starcross School

Starcross School Council Minutes, 1962-1969

School Council

Proposed Constitution

1. Every Starcross girl has a right to representation on the School Council. The voting body shall consist of one representative from each registration group including 6th Form. In the event of the elected representative being absent, a deputy should attend with voting rights.

2. A meeting of the School Council at least once each term. Additional meetings may be called by the Headteacher or following a request to the Secretary by any three class representatives to discuss some urgent matter. Normally, one weeks notice should be given and an agenda provided for each class. It is assumed that prior discussion by each class of the proposals has taken place and that each representative has been given guidance by her class concerning each proposal.

3. All motions must be supported by three named classes and be proposed and seconded at School Council meetings by voting members.

4. The Chairman and Secretary should be members of the staff (excluding the Headteacher) chosen by the council after proper nomination to serve for one year. These members of staff to act as servants of the Council with no voting rights. They should not be invited to serve a second year until at least one year has elapsed since they last held office.

5. All meeting s to be held at lunch time or after school. Any girl may attend meetings and join in discussion. Interested members of staff would be welcome as observers to be appealed to if necessary on matters of fact but they may not take part in the discussion. The voting members should sit separately from the observers.

6. The Secretary shall be responsible for preparing the agenda before, and the minutes after each meeting. The Chairman would be responsible for seeing that appropriate action was taken on each resolution.

7. One Upper and one Lower School assembly each term should be devoted to an account of the School Council meetings.

26.10.1962

THE FIRST MEETING of the school council was held at Lower School on the afternoon of Thursday, 20th September 1962 at 1pm. The Headmistress presided and the following motions appeared on the agenda:-

1. That the school should have a Harvest Festival during the term.

2. That there should be an order placed for a school Christmas card and possible
designs submitted by members of the school.

3. That school fund should be increased and a format be adopted for the school magazine.

All three motions were approved.
It was unanimously decided that a Harvest Festival should take place on Wednesday, 3rd October, 1962. However, this proposed date has subsequently been amended to 10th October owing to the possibility of a rail strike.

By 24 votes to 7 the Council decided to order a school Christmas card the cost of which was estimated at not more than 6d per card providing 1,000 were required.

Finally there was a vote of 28 to 3 in favour an increase in school fund contributions to 2d. per week, or 2/- per term, provided that a copy of an enlarged school magazine be issued free to each member of the school.

The meeting finally broke up at 1.45pm after the Chairman had expresses her satisfaction at the conduct of the proceedings.

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15. 05.1963

THE SECOND MEETING of the School Council was held at Upper School on Friday, 26th October, 1962 at 1.15pm with the Headmistress in the Chair. It was noted that though several visitors were present, forms 4X, 3T, 3R, and 1X had no girl representing them on the Council.

The first motion, viz. ‘that the Council allot £2-10s for the purchase of skirts for the Under 13 Netball Team’ was proposed by the School Games Captain, Betty Curtis, and seconded by Teresa Murphy. An immediate amendment was suggested concerning the proposed cost: £3 was considered to be required, not £2-10s. Finally, the motion as amended was carried by 30 votes to 4.

Betty Curtis also proposed, as the second item on the agenda, that £11-13s. be spent on new blouses for the three School Netball Teams. In reply to a question on the Council’s finances, the treasurer announced that the fund stood at £78-7-9, taking into account the balance of £51-0-1d from the previous year. The second motion was then passed by 32 votes to 1, with one abstention.

The third notion that the three School Games Captain’s badges be bought for a total cost of 3s. 9d. was proposed by Christine Nosworthy and seconded by Clare Murray. Mr. Wilkins from the Visitors’ Area suggested that only one badge be bought at first, at a cost of 1s.3d. The motion, as amended, was carried nem. con.

The final motion to spend not more than £1-4s. on 2 dozen cloth badges for school gymnasts, proposed by Betty Curtis and seconded by Eileen Beable, was also passed unanimously.

The meeting was adjourned at 1.45pm.

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10/05/1963

THE THIRD MEETING of the School Council was held at Lower School on Friday, 10th May, 1963, at 1.00pm with the Headmistress in the chair. Both the minutes of the last meeting and Constitution of the Council were read and approved nem. con.

However, an amendment was approved to enable the Headmistress in special circumstances to call a meeting without the customary week’s notice.

Immediately afterwards the treasurer presented his report which revealed that the fund stood at £160.6s6d., taking into account expenditure authorised in the second meeting of the council ¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬of £1.11s.4d. on skirts and £11.10.8d on blouses and the balances of the first, second and third terms of £66.9s.6d,., £61.9s.1d. and £45.9s.11d. respectively. The Chairman also mentioned that she had herself contributed to the cost of the 1,200 Christmas cards ordered in October, 1962 for the school, and had arranged for three advertisements in the School Magazine which would reduce its cost by £24.

Proposals were then invited for the use of £2 donated by Miss McKenzie, Vice-Chairman of the Board of Governors, in appreciation of the nativity performance.

Several suggestions were made, namely

Choir badges
Stage properties
Athletics badges
New hymn books
Speech examination entries
Library Monitors’ badges
Additions to the animal room
A School Games Captain’s badge.

The latter was finally chosen, having been proposed by Pat Marnes (3Y) and seconded by Dian Potten (6th). However, the Chairman suggested that several of the other suggestions be considered as separate items on the Agenda of the next meeting.

The meeting was adjourned at 1.45pm.

THE FOURTH MEETING of the School Council was held at 1.15pm at Upper School on Wednesday, 10th July, 1963 with the Acting Headmistress in the chair.

After the minutes of the third meeting of the Council had been read and approved, it was unanimously decided to donate £2-12s. for the purchase of 4 dozen athletics badges, and £10 for improvements to the school stage. A proposal to donate ten shillings towards school library monitors’ badges was passed by 32 votes to 2 but it was pointed out that such badges might well be obtained from a different source