School Advisory Council
MACS Governance Statement
St Mary’s Primary School is a school which operates with the consent of the Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne and is operated and governed by Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools Ltd (MACS).
MACS governs and operates Catholic schools in the Archdiocese to continue the mission of Catholic education to proclaim the Good News and equip our young people with the knowledge, skills, and hope to live meaningful lives and enrich the world around them.
Because the good work of educating the young is a co-responsible task led by every member of the Catholic school community, School Advisory Councils have been established to provide a crucial point of connection between the wider school community and school leaders. This governance model was designed to ease the administrative burden on our schools and parishes, allow parish priests to focus on the mission of education in the parish, enable greater collaboration between schools and ensure greater consistency in school policies and procedures.
More information about MACS is available at www.macs.vic.edu.au.
The School Advisory Council provides a forum for discussion and discernment, where parent voice and community perspective are available to inform and support the decisions made by the Principal and Parish Priest for the good of school and parish where students’ wellbeing and outcomes are paramount.
The School Advisory Council is not a governing body, but is part of the broader governance framework of MACS. Its role, as determined by the MACS board through this Terms of Reference, supports the overall governance of the MACS system as it is to give consideration to, and advice on, important school matters in order to support the principal and the strategic interest of the school.
The School Advisory Council may support the school and the principal in the following ways:
- articulating and enacting the school’s vision and mission
- promoting the school’s Catholic ethos and culture
- promoting faith formation and development
- supporting school policies as required
- giving advice to the principal on issues such as school improvement plans and enrolment trends
- engaging in discussion with the principal about the annual school budget and other financial matters
- giving advice to the principal about the school master plan
- providing capital resource planning and maintenance support to the principal.
