MINUTES OF MEETING

1 Introduction

Minutes are the official, permanent record in writing, expressed in formal terms, of the business
transacted at a meeting. In other words, Minutes are a written record of what took place at a
meeting. An accurate written record is essential not only for those who attend the meeting but
also for those who are absent. Minutes should be written in the past tense using third person
and reported speech.

There is no common law requirement for minutes of meetings to be kept. However, the statutes
which regulate the affairs of bodies usually require minutes to be kept, while their rules, articles
or constitutions invariably do this.

It is imperative that decisions made are recorded precisely and maintained securely as all new
and developing policy and significant changes in procedure are to be found within those
decisions.

The purpose of minutes is to provide an accurate, objective account of the proceedings of a

meeting and in particular the decisions made.

2 Types of minutes

2.1 Verbatim minutes

Verbatim minutes are used primarily in court reporting, where everything needs to be recorded
word by word.

2.2 Minutes of resolution

Only the main conclusions that are reached are recorded, not more of the discussions that took
place. It is important to note the exact wording of any resolutions that are passed.

E.g. RESOLVED that a casual vacancy caused by the death of Mr Smith be filled by the
appointment of Mrs Jones to the Board.

This is often all that is necessary. The precise words of the resolution are preceded with either
"RESOLVED" or "RESOLVED THAT" which ensures that it is brought to the attention of
anyone who reads the minutes, including anyone absent from the meeting, that these decisions
were taken which had some consequential effect or involved some form of action to be taken.

2.3 Minutes of narration

These minutes are a concise summary of all the discussion that took place, reports received,
decisions made and action to be taken.
Minutes of Resolution & Narration

The blending of the two classes of minute may allow for the recording of a more precise minute.

Regular Items

All meetings commence with the same formal matters, the confirmation of a quorum, recording
of attendance and apologies, agreeing the agenda and the addition of any missing item and the
confirmation or amendment and subsequent confirmation of the minutes of previous meeting.

Opportunity is usually provided for those present to discuss any matters arising from the minutes
not covered elsewhere within the agenda and for the list of actions to be taken from the previous
meeting to be reviewed for completion.

The other items which appear regularly on an agenda are those which the Chairperson (and
Directors in the case of a Board meeting) believe are the most important to ensure they carry out
their duty as a director.
TIPS ON MINUTES WRITING

These days, many of us find ourselves in the position of taking meeting minutes without a clue of
how to go about it. The following is a guide for making this task easier:

 Make sure that all of the essential elements are noted, such as type of meeting, name of
the organization, date and time, name of the chair or facilitator, main topics and the time
of adjournment. For formal and corporate meetings include approval of previous minutes,
and all resolutions.
 Prepare an outline based on the agenda ahead of time, and leave plenty of white space for
notes. By having the topics already written down, you can jump right on to a new topic
without pause.
 Prepare a list of expected attendees and check off the names as people enter the room. Or,
you can pass around an attendance sheet for everyone to sign as the meeting starts.
 To be sure about who said what, make a map of the seating arrangement, and make sure
to ask for introductions of unfamiliar people.
 Don't make the mistake of recording every single comment, but concentrate on getting
the gist of the discussion and taking enough notes to summarize it later. Remember that
minutes are the official record of what happened, not what was said, at a meeting.
 Use whatever device is comfortable for you, a notepad, a laptop computer, a tape
recorder, a steno pad, shorthand. Many people routinely record important meetings as a
backup to their notes.
 Be prepared! Study the issues to be discussed and ask a lot of questions ahead of time. If
you have to fumble for understanding while you are making your notes, they won't make
any sense to you later.
 Don't wait too long to type up the minutes, and be sure to have them approved by the
chair or facilitator before distributing them to the attendees.
 Don't be intimidated, you may be called upon many times to write meeting minutes, and
the ability to produce concise, coherent minutes is widely admired and valued.
3. Sample of a minute

AURORA HOLDINGS Ltd

WELFARE COMMITTEE

MINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE WELFARE COMMITTEE HELD IN THE

CHAIRPERSON’S OFFICE ON TUESDAY 21 FEBRUARY, 2015 AT 14.00

1. PRESENT
- Eileen Taylor (chairperson)
- Jim Cage
- Robert Fish
- Ellen McBain
- Wendy Sheppard
- Georgia Thomas
- Will Thomas
2. APOLOGIES
Apologies were received from Anthony Long who was attending a business conference.

3. AGENDA
The following agenda items were approved and discussed in the meeting.
1. Minutes of last meeting
2. Matters arising
3. Staff restaurant
4. Washroom facilities
5. Study leave for young trainees
6. Date of next meeting
7. Any other business (AOB)

After approving the agenda, the meeting participants discussed all items, one by one as follows:
 1. Minutes of last meeting
The minutes of the previous meeting had already been circulated and amended, and the
chairperson signed them as a correct record.

2. Matters arising
Will Thomas reported that he and Georgia had visited Reneé Simpson in hospital on 16 February
to deliver the committee’s basket of flowers and good wishes for a speedy recovery. Reneé said
she hopes to return to work on Monday 16 March and will be able to attend the next committee
meeting.

3. Staff restaurant
Jim cage distributed copies of the accounts for the half year ending 31 December, 2014. He
pointed out that a profit of £1300 was made over the first 6 months of the year. He suggested that
some of this be used to buy a new coffee machine as the present one is old and unreliable. It was
agreed that he would obtain some estimates and discuss this further at the next meeting.

4. Washroom facilities
Mr. Taylor announced that several complaints had been received about the female toilets on the
second floor. He had investigated the complaints and agreed the need upgrading. Several locks
were reported to be faulty, plus chipped tiles and poor decoration.

Miss McBain volunteered to arrange for some local workmen to provide an estimate on the cost
of repairs and to report back at the next meeting.

5. Study leave for young trainees

Mr. Robert Fish reported that examinations would be held in April for the company’s trainees
who presently attend evening courses at Cliff College. He suggested that they should be allowed
two weeks’ study leave prior to their examination.
The chairperson pointed out that it was not within the committee’s power to make this decision.
She advised Mr. Fish to write formally to Board of Directors asking them to include this item on
the agenda of April Board meeting. An answer should be obtained before the next meeting.

6. Date of next meeting

It was agreed that the next meeting would be held on Wednesday 9 March, 2015 at 14.00.

7. Any other business (AOB)

There being no other business, the chairperson thanked the participants for their attendance and
ended the meeting at 16.00.

Signed on............................................ (Date)

........................................... (Chairperson’s Signature)

........................................... (Chairperson’s name)
ADDENDUM: For understanding better, the following skeleton can help for writing a minute.

[NAME OF ORGANIZATION/COMMITTEE]

Meeting Minutes of [_______________________] held on[_________] at [__________]

Opening:
The regular meeting of the [Name of Organization/Committee] was called to order at [time] on
[date] in [location] by [Meeting Chair].

Present:
[List of Attendees]

A. Approval of Agenda
The agenda was unanimously approved as distributed.

B. Approval of Minutes
The minutes of the previous meeting were unanimously approved as distributed.

C. Open Issues
Summarize the discussion for each existing issue, state the outcome, and assign any action item.

D. New Business
Summarize the discussion for new issues, state the next steps, and assign any action item.

E. Agenda for Next Meeting

List the items to be discussed at the next meeting.

Adjournment:
Meeting was adjourned at [time] by [Person]. The next general meeting will be at [time] on
[date] in [location].

Minutes submitted by: [Type name here]

Approved by: [Type name here]

To conclude, acquiring the skills of minutes writing proves worth for everyone. A well written
minute should include the following the name of the body (e.g. a committee) holding the
meeting, place, date, list of people present, and the time. The minutes then record what was
actually said at the meeting, either in the order that it was actually said or in a more coherent
order, regardless of whether the meeting follows any written agenda. A less-used format may
record the events in the order they occur on the written agenda, regardless of the actual
chronology. Most importantly, since the primary function of minutes is to record the decisions
made, all official decisions must be included. If a formal motion is proposed, seconded, passed,
or not, then this is recorded