The Board of Management meets at least five times per academic year.
The primary role of a board of management is one of governance. Governance is about
providing direction and oversight for a school while ensuring that the rights of all members
of the school community are upheld and that the school is accountable for its work.
The functions of a board may, in the main, be categorised under three different headings:
• Policy setting and strategic planning
• Monitoring the implementation of policy, strategy and plans
• Supporting the principal and his/her staff
The Education Act (1998) requires schools to provide all students with an education appropriate
to their abilities and needs and, in doing so, to have regard to the efficient use of available
resources to ensure that:
• the school promotes the moral, spiritual, social, and personal development of students and
provides health education for them, in consultation with their parents, having regard to the
characteristic spirit of the school;
• those with special educational needs are identified and provided for;
• the school complies with the education policies, regulations and curriculum prescribed by
the Minister;
• students have access to appropriate guidance to assist them in their educational and career
choices;
• the school maintains systems whereby its performance can be assessed – the effectiveness
of teaching and the attainment of academic standards;
• the school establishes and maintains an admissions and participation policy that provides
for maximum accessibility to the school;
• the school promotes equality of opportunity for both male and female students and staff of
the school;
• the school promotes the development of the Irish language and traditions, Irish literature,
the arts and other cultural matters;
• parents of a student, or in the case of a student who has reached the age of 18 years, the
student, have access in the prescribed manner to records kept by that school relating to the
progress of that student in his or her education;
• the needs of personnel involved in management functions and staff development needs
generally in the school are identified and provided for;
• the school promotes, insofar as is reasonably practicable, educational opportunities for
persons living in the area in keeping with national policies on lifelong learning;
• The school establishes and maintains contact with other schools and colleges and at other
appropriate levels throughout the community served by the school/college.
The board of management should work collaboratively with the school principal, who is
secretary to the board, and the staff to facilitate the school/college in the exercise of these
functions. Also, in all its work, the board should have regard for the public interest in the affairs
of the school, and be accountable to students, their parents, the ETB and, where applicable, the
Trustee Partner.
Letter from the Chairperson of the BOM on 1st May 2024 regarding
Junior Cycle Schoolbooks Scheme for the 2024/25 school year.
Relevant to students of 2nd year & 3rd year in 2024/2025.