In this guide

Parent(s) refers to parent(s) and/or guardian(s). A guardian is a person who has lawful custody of a child. Review other key terms in this guide.

Overview

Your school council must develop certain bylaws to direct its work and to help it run effectively.

There are 3 mandatory bylaws:

  • election procedures and filling vacancies
  • conflict of interest
  • conflict resolution procedures

Your council may wish to download samples and adapt them to fit your needs.

Your school council may also develop optional bylaws in other areas if they do not conflict with any provisions in our regulations, the Education Act or your school board’s policies.

Elections and vacancies

Your school council must have a bylaw that governs your election procedures and how to fill vacancies.

Vacancies can happen when:

  • not all positions on the school council were filled after an election
  • a member resigns
  • a member is unable to fulfil the roles and responsibilities (for example, due to illness)

Election procedures

Your school council must hold elections for parent members within the first 30 days of each school year on a date set by either your:

  • chair or co-chairs after consulting with the principal
  • school board (if your school is new)

At other times, your council must fill vacancies by election or appointment, according to your bylaws.

Planning ahead

September is a busy time for families and schools. Your school council may want to start planning for your Fall election in June.

Creating an election committee

Some school councils choose to include an election committee in their bylaws. These committees may:

  • work with the school principal to make sure that each school council group (parents, teaching staff, non-teaching staff, students) holds its own election for a representative
  • exclude members who are running in the upcoming election to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest

Community representative(s)

Your school council’s bylaws may allow for more than 1 community representative position.

Learn about appointing community representatives and how they help your school council.

Filling vacancies

Your school council may fill a vacancy by election or appointment, depending on what your bylaws allow.

Your school council must have a bylaw that specifies this.

What happens when there’s a vacancy

Your school council can continue to operate if a majority of:

  • council members continue to be parents
  • parent members are present at meetings

If the number of parent members at school council meetings falls below a majority, your council cannot operate and must take steps to fill those vacancies.

Officer vacancies

If the chair, co-chair or another officer position becomes vacant your school council must follow its bylaws to fill the role.

Download resources

You may wish to use these downloadable resources to help your school council plan and run elections and fill vacancies.

Conflict of interest

Your school council must have a conflict-of-interest bylaw. When developing your bylaw, you must also refer to your school board’s conflict of interest guidelines.

Avoiding conflict of interest

A conflict of interest can be, for example, when your personal interests could affect, or appear to affect, your ability to make fair decisions as part of school council.

Having a conflict-of-interest bylaw can help to:

  • protect your council’s integrity
  • ensure that members act in the best interest of the school community

Avoiding and declaring a conflict of interest

As school council member, you should avoid situations in which:

  • your ability to carry out your duties and responsibilities could be influenced or appear biased
  • you, or someone close to you, could benefit (directly or indirectly) from school council actions or decisions
  • you, or the school council, receive favours, gifts or financial benefits from individuals or organizations seeking business with the school
  • any person, organization or business entity associated with you is favoured

If a conflict arises, you should:

  • declare it immediately to the chair or co-chairs
  • remove yourself from the discussion and any decision-making on the topic

Resolving conflict

Sometimes, your school council may not reach agreement on certain issues. This can be a normal part of working together. When you all work together to resolve conflict, it strengthens your school council.

Your school council must have a bylaw with a process for addressing internal conflict.

A strong conflict resolution bylaw must align with:

Your school council may also read our provincial code of conduct which sets standards of acceptable behaviour and expectations for everyone in the school community.

Strategies for handling conflict

Your chair or co-chairs play a key role in managing conflict by keeping meetings focused and respectful.

Your bylaw should promote strategies that include:

  • making sure your school council acts in line with its purpose and mandate
  • reminding members of your shared goals and responsibilities to the school community
  • taking time to identify what’s causing disagreement
  • encouraging open and respectful discussion to understand different perspectives and find common ground
  • giving all members a chance to speak without interruption

Conflict resolution process

Your bylaw may include steps such as:

  • acknowledging the issue and giving each member time to share their viewpoint
  • discussing the source of the conflict and possible solutions as a group
  • recording the outcome of the discussion and making sure all members respect the resolution

In more serious cases, the bylaw might outline that:

  • the chair or co-chair may ask a disruptive member to leave the meeting
  • the member can return to future meetings unless otherwise decided
  • a follow-up meeting may be held to find a solution everyone can accept
  • a neutral third-party may be brought in to help resolve the conflict

Optional bylaws

Your school council may choose to create additional bylaws to help guide its work. These bylaws can support clear expectations and smooth operations.

They may include:

  • general expectations for meetings (such as attendance and punctuality)
  • the number and timing of your meetings (at least 4 meetings must be held each school year)
  • the number of parent members and how many you need for quorum
  • the number, roles and responsibilities of executive officers
  • signing officer requirements
  • the number of committees your council forms and what they do
  • how to seek input from the school community
  • a school council code of ethics

School council code of ethics

Your school council may choose to create a code of ethics to guide how members work together and represent the school community.

A code of ethics can help:

  • set clear expectations for member behaviour
  • define the role and responsibilities of your school council
  • address conflicts of interest
  • support respectful and inclusive interactions
  • promote democratic decision-making at school council meetings
  • prevent and manage conflict

Download a sample code of ethics you can adapt to your school council’s needs.

Reviewing your bylaws

It’s good practice to review your school council’s bylaws and code of ethics (if you have one) from time to time. You don’t need to rewrite them each year, but regular reviews help keep them useful and up to date. Make sure any updates continue to follow your school board’s policies and our regulations.