Education Council

General presentations

• 1006187 – Councils and committees 2010-2014, elections, election of president, vice-president and secretary.

  At the town council meeting on 29 June, the following were elected to the Hafnarfjörður Education Board for a one-year term:$line$Ordinary Members:$line$Eyjólfur Sæmundsson, Fagrahvammi 7$line$Helena Mjöll Jóhannsdóttir, Austurgötu 29b$line$Guðrún Ágústa Guðmundsdóttir, Fjarðargata 17, Chairperson$line$Kristinn Andersen, Austurgata 42$line$Sigurlaug Anna Jóhannsdóttir, Lækjarkinn 6$line$$line$Alternatives:$line$Friðþjófur Karlsson, Úthlíð 15$line$Guðlaug Sigurðardóttir, Skipalóni 27$line$Gestur Svavarsson, Breiðvangi 30$line$Kristjana Ósk Jónsdóttir, Glitvangi 13$line$Halldóra Björk Jónsdóttir, 45 Hverfisgata$line$$line$ Election of the vice-chair.

  Eyjólfur Sæmundsson was elected vice-chairman. Representatives of the Independence Party sit on the sidelines.

• 1104364 – Nursery school calendars 2011-2012

  The school calendars for the nurseries for the 2011-2012 school year were presented.

  The Education Committee confirms the school calendars that have been received. A school calendar has not been received from the Smáralundi nursery school, nor has a report been received from the parents' council at the Hvammi nursery school.

• 11032689 – Question from the representative of parents of nursery school children.

  The following questions were put forward by the parents' representative for nursery school children.:$line$$line$How does the City of Hafnarfjörður intend to address the proposed pay rises for nursery school teachers this autumn? But now nursery teachers have announced that they intend to go on strike on 22 August if an agreement is not reached. Does the City of Hafnarfjörður have a contingency plan for parents if the strike is prolonged? Has the city and the Education Committee budgeted for such increases? Isn't it highly likely that the financial budget's assumptions will be broken and that the town will go far beyond its current plans (which are already well beyond the authorisations that were granted)?$line$ $line$ I have not yet received a response to my earlier query from this winter, but that matter was supposed to be looked into over the spring? Is there any progress on that matter? $line$ $line$ I would also like to propose that the Education Committee supports the demands of parents of children at Ásland School to build a new sports hall at the school, and to increase the number of classrooms, as soon as possible. That there would be a consensus on finding a solution for how to proceed with the current owners of the plot and Ásland School. That the Education Committee would declare this to be a necessary matter, with the best interests of the children as its guiding principle, that the environmental policy of the town and the school authorities was followed, limiting unnecessary travel and making the best use of a limited resource (time). As this is a matter of great public interest, I propose that the Education Committee prioritises this project above other issues to be resolved in the town's education sector, and that the committee shows its commitment through action rather than allowing private individuals to have to drive the matter forward. The benefit of the town, and its residents, should be the deciding factor.

  Negotiations with nursery school teachers are proceeding normally. The implementation of the budget is proceeding as normal. Various optimisation measures have been implemented, and the department's operations are monitored on a regular basis. According to the information available, the education department's operations are in line with the plan. The Early Childhood Development Representative has been tasked with contacting the Association of Icelandic Local Authorities to obtain information from them regarding statistical data for nurseries.$line$$line$$line$The Education Committee reiterates its previous position regarding the sports hall at Áslandsskóli and points out that it has already, on two occasions, an attempt has been made, on two occasions, to reach an agreement with the parties who would be responsible for the construction of the building.

• 1104074 – Nurseries, contract for management

  Draft agreements presented.

• 0907038 – Fee schedules in the education sector

  In accordance with the 2011 budget, the Education Council approves the following increases in the fee rates for the education department.

  Lunch in primary schools will increase from 300 kr. to 350 kr. from the next school year.$line$ Lunch and afternoon snacks in nurseries will increase by 10% from 1 August next.$line$$line$The Education Committee agrees to postpone a decision on changing nursery fees until a decision has been made on the equalisation of costs in nurseries and the parents“ share with childminders.Approved by three votes to one. The representatives of the Independence Party abstain and submit the following statement: “The representatives of the Independence Party are abstaining from the handling of the matter, as the proposed increases are part of the implementation of the budget supported by the majority on the town council."Kristinn Andersen (sign) Sigurlaug Anna Jóhannsdóttir (sign)

• 1003470 – Bus, driving within the city

  The requested report from the education department on the report of the working group on intra-urban driving in Hafnarfjörður was presented.

  The Education Committee adopts the education department's report on inner-city driving.

• 1106161 – Proposals of the Hafnarfjörður Youth Council.

  Proposals from the Hafnarfjörður Youth Council, which were presented at a meeting with the town council on 15 June.

  The Education Department is tasked with compiling responses to the Youth Council's proposals, and these responses are to be sent to the Youth Council and the headteachers of the primary schools.

• 11023021 – Youth centres and all-day school

  A submission of the opinions of the directors of youth centres, together with a report from the youth council and a report from the Faculty of Education, University of Iceland, on the potential integration of all-day schools and youth centres.

• 1106012 – Model timetable for primary schools

  The development officer for primary schools presented an assessment of the primary schools' benchmark timetables for the next academic year.

  The Education Council adopts the development officer's summary of the benchmark timetables.

• 1106279 – Cover teaching in primary schools

  A letter dated 21 June 2011 from the Ministry of Education and Culture regarding cover teaching in primary schools throughout the country was presented.

• 1005075 – Music students from outside Hafnarfjörður

  Applications for support for music studies outside the applicant's home local authority.

• 1107001 – Summer holiday of the Education Council

  Meetings will resume in August at a new venue. $line$First meeting after the council's summer break will be on the 15th. August, and from then on the meetings will be held in the Town Council Chamber at Strandgata 6. The Chair thanks everyone for their company and good communication over the past year and looks forward to continued collaboration.$line$$line$The representative of the nursery head teacher, Anna Borg Harðardóttir, thanks for the collaboration.