Committee - chair

[sloppy]

Hi so i have been sort of pulled into being chair of a preschool and didnt realise it was as “big” of a job as it is.. so far i am doing nothing and havent for past month but it feels wrong. Can someone give me a list of things to check/do from the off? I need to try and do this as well as i can but am out of my depth

[sunnyday]

Hello sloppy and welcome to the forum.

I can't really help with your query as I have no experience of committee run settings, however I do know that lots of our lovely forum members do have lots of knowledge, so hopefully someone more helpful will come along soon.

Did the 'outgoing' chair leave any info/paperwork for you? Is there an experienced Committee Secretary still in place? Have you spoken to the pre-school/manager and staff to see what their expectations are? Do you have a link to your LA settings advisor?

I wish you well going forward.

[Cait]

You should be able to find lots of good information from

https://www.eyalliance.org.uk    They have a lot of really good booklets etc and are always good for answering questions.   I was manager of a committee run preschool, with various different committee chairs over the years, not all of whom were ‘active in their role’ shall we say.   Good luck, and do come and ask on here if you’ve any queries.   

[Mouseketeer]

Hi Sloppy and welcome to the forum.

I have been committee managed for 30+ years, I would start with a conversation with the manager and ask how they see your role in relation to theirs,  my committees have been more about fundraising and making fee/wage decisions, but I know some committees are much more pro-active and deal with finances (or have an admin), do staff supervisions and appraisals (I expect the chair to sit in with annual appraisals), personally I’d like to be asked now and again if everything is ok.

I make sure my chair knows the safer recruitment procedures as they are the employer, who is responsible for what roles in the staff team, make sure they have a copy (or link) to the statutory framework, maybe ask the manager to take you on the learning walk as they would for an inspection, it will give you an insight into how and why things are done as they are, spending some time in the setting will give you an idea of the challenges staff are facing.

As Cait says EYA (if members) have lots of info and you’re LA will likely officer training. Good Luck and we’ll done for taking on the role.