(Adopted October 1987, amended October 1989, October 1992, October 2006 and October 2007)
1. NAME
The Association is called Mount Temple School Parents’ Association.
2. OBJECT & AIMS
The object for which this Association is formed is for the advancement of education and in pursuance of this object the main aims of the Association are
a. To promote fund raising for the benefit of the pupils.
b. To promote the welfare of the school.
c. To foster understanding and co-operation between teachers and parents.
d. To encourage parents to take an active interest in the school.
In furtherance of the object and aims the Committee may affiliate Mount Temple School Parents’ Association to appropriate national parents’ bodies such as PACCS (Parents’ Associations of Community and Comprehensive Schools) and NPSSPA (National Protestant Secondary Schools Parents’ Associations).
3. MEMBERSHIP
The parents or guardians who have pupils attending the school are automatically members of the Association unless they indicate in writing to the Secretary of the Association that they do not wish to become or remain members. Membership ceases when the parent or guardian no longer has children attending the school.
4. COMMITTEE
The ordinary business of the Association shall be conducted by a committee of 18 members who shall each be elected to serve for three years. Any member retiring from the committee and still eligible may seek election for a further three years. No member is eligible to continue on the committee when they have no child attending the school. Vacancies on the committee shall be filled by election at the Annual General Meeting. If vacancies occur during the year, they may be filled by co-option of members. Any co-opted member shall retire at the next Annual General Meeting and subject to eligibility may seek election to the committee.
5. OFFICERS
At the first meeting of the Committee next after the Annual General Meeting, the Committee shall appoint a Chairperson, Honorary Secretary, Honorary Treasurer, and such other officers as it may deem necessary. Any outgoing officer, who is eligible, may be re-elected. All officers must be members of the Committee elected at the preceding Annual General Meeting. The Committee may remove any such officer, having given two clear weeks written notice of a motion to be proposed at a meeting of the Committee to that effect. If the Chairperson is not expected to be eligible for re-election after the next Annual General Meeting, a vacancy will automatically be declared in the month of April preceding his/her expected ineligibility. The Committee may elect a member of the Committee to fill any vacancy in any position of officer howsoever caused.
6. MEETINGS OF THE COMMITTEE
The Committee shall meet monthly during the months from September to June. The quorum for the Committee shall be 5. The Principal and 2 delegates from the teaching staff shall be invited to attend each meeting, but they shall not be entitled to vote. All decisions shall be decided by a majority vote and in the equality of votes, the Chairperson shall have a casting vote in addition to the vote to which s/he is entitled as a member.
7. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
The Annual General Meeting of the Association shall be held in the month of October each year for which two weeks written notice shall be given. The quorum shall be twenty members.
The business of the annual general meeting shall be
a. Noting attendance and apologies.
b. Minutes of previous annual General Meeting./
c. Chairperson’s Report.
d. Treasurer’s Report and proposal on level of subscriptions for current year.
e. Election of Committee Members.
f. Election of Honorary Auditor.
g. Principal’s remarks.
h. Any other business.
8. SPECIAL GENERAL MEETING
Special General Meetings of the Association may be summoned by the committee or upon the written requisition of not less than fifty members addressed to the Honorary Secretary and stating the object of the proposed meeting. The Honorary Secretary shall within one month of receiving such a requisition, summon the meeting, stating the purpose of same and giving two weeks notice of the meeting in writing. At such Special General meetings twenty members shall form a quorum.
9 CHAIRPERSON
At all meetings of the Association the Chairperson of the Committee shall occupy the Chair, failing whom the committee may appoint any other member as Chairperson.
10 VOTING AT GENERAL MEETINGS
Except in the case of proposals for the alteration of Rules, every question at Meetings of the Association shall be decided by a majority vote, and in the event of an equality of votes, the Chairperson shall have a casting vote in addition to the vote to which s/he is entitled as a member.
11. CHANGES IN RULES
Proposed alterations of the rules may be made at an Annual General Meeting or at a Special General Meeting convened for that purpose. In the event that an alteration of the rules is proposed for the annual general meeting, notice of such proposal must be sent in writing to the honorary secretary not later than 7th September. In the event that an alteration of the rules is proposed for a special general meeting, notice of the proposed rule change shall be in accordance with the provisions of Clause 8. Each member shall be sent notice of any proposed change in the rules at least two weeks before a general meeting. No alteration of the rules may be made except by a majority of two-thirds of those members present and voting.
12. NOTICES
All notices and/or communications may be posted, hand delivered or given to a member’s child and any such notice so given shall be deemed to be duly delivered.
13. FINANCES
The financial year of the Association shall end on 31 August. The Honorary Treasurer shall keep correct accounts and books showing the financial affairs, receipts and disbursements of the Association.
Transfers between bank accounts of the Association may be made on the sole authorisation of the Treasurer. Except for the above, no moneys shall be withdrawn from a bank account of the Association unless it is signed by any two of the following
The Chairperson, the Treasurer, the Secretary and two other signatories appointed by the Committee.
The annual accounts which shall be audited by the Honorary Auditor shall be available to members at the annual General Meeting.
14 PARENTS’ REPRESENTATION AT THE BOARD OF MANAGEMENT OF MOUNT TEMPLE COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL
The Committee shall elect the Parents’ Representative at the Board of Management from among the elected members of the Committee. In the event that a Parents’ Representative no longer has a child attending the school, s/he shall have been deemed to have retired and a vacancy will exist. The Committee may elect a replacement Parents’ Representative from the elected members of the Committee to fill any vacancy (howsoever caused). The position of Parents’ Representative shall be for a period of two years. A retiring Representative who is eligible may seek re-election but s/he may not serve more than two consecutive terms of two years without a break. To be eligible, a candidate shall have a child in a year lower than sixth year. In the event that the Board is restructured to the effect that the status or number of Parents’ Representative(s) at or on the Board is changed, the Committee may make such arrangements as it deems expedient, in the interim between the restructuring of the Board and the next meeting of the Committee after the next following Annual General Meeting of the Association.
15. TRUSTEES
•1. The property of the Association shall be vested in not less than three and not more than seven Trustees who shall be nominated by the committee and elected at a general meeting of the members.
•2. The Trustees shall deal with the property and assets of the Association as directed by the committee (of which an entry in the minute book shall be conclusive evidence) and shall be indemnified by the members of the association against all risk and expenses incurred by them by reason of their position as Trustees and such indemnity shall be deemed to be a condition of membership of the Association
3. The Trustees shall hold office until death or resignation or until removed from office by resolution of the committee who may, for any reason which may seem sufficient to a majority of them present and voting at any meeting remove any Trustee or Trustees from the office of Trustee.
16. BORROWING POWERS
The committee shall have power to borrow, for the purpose of the Association, by way of overdraft, term loan, loan account or otherwise, from the Associations’ bankers, with interest in the category of accommodation granted, such amount of money either at one time or from time to time as it may deem proper, such borrowings to be effected in the names of the Trustees and to give security for such borrowings and the interest thereon by the issue of bills of exchange, promissory notes or other obligations or securities of the association or by the mortgage or charge upon all or any part of the property of the association and thereupon the Trustees shall at the direction of the committee make all dispositions of the Associations’ property or any part thereof and enter such agreements in relation thereto as the committee deem proper for the giving of security for such borrowings.
Where the Committee seeks to make borrowings for the purpose of the Association in excess of €500,000 a general meeting of the Association will be called to approve such borrowings. No such Borrowing may be made without the approval of a majority of two-thirds of those members present and voting.
