Global Schools Association
YHGSA Board Meeting Minutes
Wednesday 16th January 2008
1.00 PM York St John University
Notes of the meeting and action points
Present:
Ray Kirtley
Bob Huey
Anne Barker (minutes)
Sylvia Usher
Mike Smith
Gavin Townsend
Margot Brown
Alan Holmes
Apologies:
Charlotte Hunt
Yvette Fox
1 Welcome to the Board
SU welcomed Alan Holmes to board and introduced other members.
Yvette Fox, the other new member, unable to attend because of prior engagement.
2 Minutes of meeting December 19th 2007
Circulated and passed for publication on website.
BH noted that item 6.2 should be included on today’s agenda –
DFID evaluation (see AoB).
3 Matters arising.
i) Margot Brown accepted post of Vice Chair.
ii) BH, as Treasurer, retains his role as Line Manager to RK. He will
continue to have regular meetings and report to the Board as necessary
on any financial issues.
4. Report from YHGSA Consultative Committee:
SU reported that Alan Holmes had been appointed as Chair of the Consultative
Committee at the meeting held that morning.
AH gave the Board a brief CV: - Head Meadowside School, Knaresborough;
been involved with International work since 1995; links with schools in
South Africa and Australia; Comenius Project; International Schools’
Award; organised pupil exchanges; parent partnerships; links with ICT
and MFL.
He began by giving an update on the progress made by the Working Groups
reported to the Consultative Committee:
• Resources and Communications: - website being updated and new
logo designed, newsletter due soon. The WG asked the Board for a view
on membership of the Database of Southern artists – discussion re
extending list of Global artists to include European artist and groups.
Board agreed that this was acceptable as long as the artists contribute
to the 8 Key Concepts for the development of the Global Dimension in the
curriculum and that their impact was educational rather than purely entertainment.
• Curriculum & CPD - The Board acknowledged that an extensive
selection of courses was now available
• North South Linking and Global School Partnerships - several courses
on the list are the responsibility of the group
• Local Authority Support programme - newly established partnerships
between DECs and target LAs working well
• The draft terms of reference for Consultative Committee were circulated
and accepted (working document)
5. Approval of new YHGSA members
Details of three new members were circulated and approved.
6. Operational issues
RK raised the following:
RK circulated financial records for each group and explained that the system of claiming centrally enabled Working Group progress to be monitored. It was decided that although there was some potential under spend in certain areas the overall budget should remain unchanged and be reassessed in July at the end of the school year (if it is thought to be necessary).
CCPD – Registration system for the Global Schools Award is working well with support for schools from DECs also being effective. RK has record of all existing and new schools involved and GSA levels achieved or working towards.
Adjudication Panel - The recommendation both from the Consultative Committee and (following discussion) from the Board is that this should be independent and not include anyone who has given personal support to the schools which are submitting portfolios. However the Board agreed that a representative from a DEC not involved with the schools should be present as part of the adjudication panel. The decision was: Adjudication Panel for February 4th – Ray Kirtley; Anne Barker; RK to contact Judy Rogers to invite her to join panel.
Resources and Communications group are working as planned and there are no major concerns.
North South Linking – support for schools is on going but RK has few reports of school visits or other contacts yet.
LA Support MB reported on progress of support in York (as an example).
This is developing well with the global dimension AST and advisers working
with primary schools to develop:
• Global work in the curriculum
• Individual school support and development of cluster groups
• Network of schools with N/S links
On the previous proposal from the Board that a member should work closely
with each Working Group to attend meetings in an advisory capacity, ensure
the Board is represented and is up to date with progress in each area:-
• North / South Group: Gavin Townsend
• Curriculum and CPD: Yvette Fox*
• Resources and Communications: Alan Holmes
*Yvette Fox is already a member of the group - RK to check that Yvette
was also willing to act in this capacity and to inform Working Group leaders
of this initiative.
7 Sustainability of YHGSA
Margot Brown had previously informed the Board of her concerns whether YHGSA could be sustained after the present DfID funding ends in 2012. It is important that the group begins to investigate sustainability and the embedding of global work within the curriculum. She proposed:
i) The Board to set up sub committee to look into sources of alternative
funding.
ii) Working groups to make proposals about the sustainability of their
work.
Margot also raised the issue of charitable status as a means of accessing other funds. Mike Smith warned that we must be sure that the charitable rules accord with YHGSA’s purposes. Sylvia Usher reported that the Board had already begun to investigate this and that she would continue to research new rules and update Board. She considered that the Board had the first responsibility to find some means of sustaining YHGSA’s work, and she would be involved in a sub group to look into this. Options included:
• Increased work with curriculum bodies, e.g. QCA so that YHGSA
can lead funded training courses
• Work in partnership with groups, e.g. Education for Sustainable
Development which receive other funding, eg from Yorkshire Forward
• Contact with certain political opinion formers to gain more curriculum
support.
Please email comments and ideas to her before the April meeting.
8. AoB
DFID National Evaluation of EES: report for 07/08
• RK to give verbal up date to Harm-Jan Fricke (DFID’s national
EES Adviser) on EES program in area (request by Harm-Jan)
• Board had previous access to HJF’s evaluation – agreed
no comments or issues
• Discussion took place re suggestions to update and simplify proforma
for evaluation of EES work 2007-2008 due September 15th 2008.
Points raised included:-
• Need to include supporting evidence.
• Working groups and DECs would need more specific
guidelines of what to include in their reports.
• RK to discuss these points with H-JF
• RK had been requested by DFID to submit the YHGSA’s annual
plan for February 16th based on the previously accepted five year plan
• BH stressed importance of annual reports being submitted on time
to RK and that deadlines should be adhered to by the Working Groups and
the LA partnerships
9. Date, time and place of Board meetings*
The following dates were previously agreed:
16th April – Friends Meeting House York
9th July TBC
