What financial responsibilities does the SGB chairperson have?

The SGB chairperson has significant financial governance duties: adjudicating school fee exemption applications (Section 39), deciding on debt recovery (Section 41), presenting annual financial statements to parents (Section 42), formally appointing the school auditor (Section 43), and approving Section 38A applications for additional staff pay. If the SGB pays additional benefits without departmental approval, the money is recovered personally from the members who voted for it (Section 38A(9)).

What does the SGB treasurer do?

The treasurer leads the SGB's financial oversight — monitoring the school's financial position, presenting regular reports to the governing body, leading or chairing the finance committee, working with the principal on budget preparation, ensuring financial decisions comply with departmental conditions, and flagging any irregularities to the full governing body.

What does the SGB secretary do?

The secretary is the administrative core of the SGB: giving proper notice of all meetings to members, accurately recording minutes and decisions, maintaining SGB correspondence and documentation, and ensuring the governing body's formal paper trail is complete. No SGB decision is enforceable if proper procedure was not followed — the secretary is the person who proves that it was.

How do SGB committees work?

The SGB may establish committees for specific tasks, such as a finance committee or disciplinary committee. One SGB member must chair each committee. Critically, establishing a committee does not relieve the full governing body of its accountability — the SGB always remains responsible for the committee's outcomes. Some committees are mandatory under SASA and must have the correct composition and mandate.

Key Roles on an SGB

Q: What does the SGB chairperson do?

The SGB chairperson presides at all meetings, ensures proper procedure is followed, casts a deciding vote when members are tied, and represents the SGB in formal communications with the principal, Head of Department, and school community. Only a parent not employed at the school may serve as chairperson (SASA Section 29, as amended by BELA 32/2024). The chairperson also presides at the annual general meeting of parents where school fees and financial statements are tabled.

Every SGB must elect at least three office-bearers from within its own membership: a chairperson, a treasurer, and a secretary. (SASA Section 29)

Most SGBs also elect a vice-chairperson — not required by law, but standard practice. Their role is straightforward: step in and preside whenever the chairperson is unavailable, ensuring the SGB is never without a leader.

All office-bearer terms may not exceed one year, though re-election is permitted.

Chairperson

The SGB chairperson presides at all meetings, casts the deciding vote on tied resolutions, and represents the governing body in formal communications with the principal, Head of Department, and school community. Only a parent not employed at the school may hold this role — a non-negotiable independence requirement under SASA, updated by BELA 32/2024. It carries more legal exposure than most newly appointed chairs expect.

Running SGB meetings

The chairperson presides at every SGB meeting, ensures proper procedure is followed, and casts a deciding vote when members are equally split. They are also the SGB's primary representative in formal communications with the principal, Head of Department, and school community.

Presiding at the annual general meeting of parents

The chairperson must preside at the annual general meeting of parents — where school fees are set, the budget is presented, and annual financial statements are tabled. Managing this process correctly, including quorum requirements and notice obligations, is a formal legal responsibility. (SASA Section 38, as amended by BELA 2024)

Financial sign-off responsibilities

The chairperson leads the SGB's role in a range of financial decisions that require formal governance oversight, including:

School fee exemptions — the SGB must set criteria and adjudicate applications from parents unable to pay (Section 39)
Bad debt and non-payment — the SGB decides whether to pursue legal recovery of unpaid fees and must account for non-payment trends in the annual budget (Section 41)
Annual financial statements — the governing body draws these up within three months of year end and presents them to parents (Section 42)
Auditor appointment — the SGB formally appoints a registered auditor each year (Section 43)
Section 38A applications — any additional pay or benefit for a state employee requires a formal written application to the Department, submitted at least four months before the budget is finalised — and if the SGB pays without approval, the money is recovered personally from the members who voted for it (Section 38A(9))

Each of these carries its own process, timelines, and documentation requirements.

The chairperson role is not ceremonial. The decisions made under your leadership have real legal and financial consequences — for the school, and for you personally.

Your school's governance workspace walks you through each of these responsibilities with the right templates, checklists, and deadlines built in.

Treasurer

The treasurer leads the SGB's financial oversight. While the principal manages day-to-day school finances, the treasurer ensures the governing body understands and accounts for the school's financial position.

Where reasonably practicable, the treasurer (or the chair of the finance committee) should also be a parent not employed at the school.

Key responsibilities:

Monitoring the school's financial position and presenting regular reports to the SGB
Leading or chairing the finance committee
Working with the principal on budget preparation and oversight
Ensuring all financial decisions comply with departmental conditions
Flagging any financial concerns or irregularities to the full governing body

The treasurer doesn't act alone — the principal must keep them informed of any financial conditions imposed by the department and advise on the implications of proposed decisions.

Secretary

The secretary is the administrative engine of the SGB — ensuring meetings are properly convened, decisions accurately recorded, and the governing body's paper trail is complete.

Key responsibilities:

Giving proper notice of meetings to all SGB members
Recording minutes of all meetings and decisions
Maintaining SGB correspondence and documentation
Ensuring formal decisions are properly recorded

No SGB decision is valid if proper procedure wasn't followed — the secretary is the person who proves that it was.

Committees

The SGB may establish committees to handle specific tasks — a finance committee, a disciplinary committee, and so on. One SGB member must chair each committee, and the governing body is never relieved of its overall accountability just because a committee exists. The SGB always remains responsible for the outcome.

Some committees are not optional. SASA requires certain committees to be in place, and getting their composition and mandate right matters — the wrong setup can expose your SGB to legal and financial risk.

Which committees are mandatory, who must sit on them, and how they should operate is covered in your school's governance workspace.