Hills Grammar is a not-for-profit registered Australian public company limited by guarantee. School Council, empowered by the School’s Constitution and accountable under Corporations Law, acts as the 'Board of Trustees' ensuring responsible financial management and governance. Council’s focus is on sustainability, ensuring Hills Grammar remains relevant to current students and those to come, long into the future.
Download 2018 School Council Members
From the Chair of School Council
The last year has been significant for both the School and the Council. I would like to thank Mr Craig Tegel for Chairing the Council for the first part of the year. His leadership and wisdom have played a critical part in the setting of the direction for the school in recent years and much is owed to his guidance and expertise. Great credit for the success of the past year is also due to the Chairs of the Council sub-committees. Thanks therefore to Dr Stephen Weller, the Chair of the Governance Committee and Ms Gillian Wilson, Chair of the Finance Committee. I would also like to record my appreciation to Mrs Lisa Ainsworth the Deputy Chair of Council for being constantly available to consult and for her perceptive advice.
Academic results for 2019 were strong at the Year 12 level. The school rated as 91 in the SMH top 100 schools. The school enrolment has gently risen and our financial stability is solid. The School calendar remained diverse with programs for all abilities and interests spread through the year. The 37th Annual Presentation of Awards was a fitting celebration of the achievements of the community.
The School, under the leadership of Michael Smith, has implemented a new Executive structure within its management. Fund and friend raising within the community and alumni have been part of this as has communication, re-thinking student wellbeing and the roles of Head of School. The new Executive structure has enabled the strategic vision for the School. While this has been developing over the year the School Executive has worked on curriculum, staff development and appraisal and community relationships. The senior staff are working to a defined plan to ensure ongoing an extraordinary academic and wellbeing development of the students. Staff learning remains a key focus for the School.
The Council selected new auditors for the School. This has been a process involving the School’s business administrators and Council and has led to a productive outcome with a substantial improvement in the strength of our understanding of current financial abilities within the school and of future development capacity. We intend to continue to work with advisers on maturing our ten-year financial plan. They have also redesigned the work-space for senior students and senior staff. These plans were implemented on-time and within budget. Senior staff are to be congratulated for this. Recently new solar panels have been installed within the school which will substantially reduce operational costs and provide a valuable learning experience for students in an era of consciousness about global climate change and institutional responsibility.
The School has continued monitor community feeling (its performance through its strengths and weakness) through an annual survey of staff, parents and students. This feedback has been instrumental in developing the Council guidance for the Principal and the Executive team for the years ahead.
My thanks to all Council members for the uniform dedication to the School. We would also like to thank the Principal, Michael Smith for his leadership of the School, his work on defining the direction and for his amicable relational style of working with the Council.
Peter Crawley | Chair of School Council
Facebook
YouTube
