What are the changes?
Historically, NSW P&C Associations incorporated by the NSW Minister for Education have not had an enabler within their constitution to hold meetings other than face to face. However, due to restrictions on public meetings, P&C Federation has advocated on behalf of NSW P&C Associations to amend the Prescribed Constitution (the constitution of P&C Associations that are incorporated) to allow P&C Associations to meet virtually.
The amendments have been approved by the Minister, and they are:
- If face to face meetings are not possible, P&C Associations may hold a meeting at 2 or more venues using any technology that gives the members as a whole an opportunity to participate effectively in that meeting. This allows P&C Associations to host virtual meetings or hybrid meetings with a mixture of face to face and virtual platform/s) agreed upon by the members.
- The quorum required for P&C Associations with 50 or more members was previously 11 (eleven). This has now been changed to 10 (ten).
You can read the new Constitution at this link, under Prescribed Constitution (see section 10 for the rules on virtual meetings).
It is important to note that face to face meetings will remain the preferred method for P&C Associations to meet so no-one is disadvantaged or excluded from participating.
The Prescribed Constitution can only be changed or amended by the NSW Minister for Education.
Constitution For Unincorporated P&C Associations
The amendments to allow virtual meetings apply only to incorporated P&C Associations. If your P&C Association is not incorporated and instead operates under the Standard Constitution, the Minister’s amendments do not apply. If you would like to meet virtually, we suggest moving to the Prescribed Constitution by becoming incorporated. P&C Federation’s website lays out the steps to become incorporated at this link.