Writing Meeting Minutes
Matthew Williams
||5 min readRarely TestedWritten Factual ResponseCSEC English Language
Structure, conventions, and annotated example for writing meeting minutes
Structure
- Minutes Heading — "Minutes of the [Organisation] Meeting" — centred, bold
- Opening Statement — date, time, and venue of the meeting
- Call to Order — who opened the meeting and at what time
- Attendance — names and titles of those present; names of those who sent apologies
- Confirmation of Previous Minutes — whether the last meeting's minutes were accepted
- Matters Arising — updates on action items from the previous meeting
- New Business — each agenda item discussed, decisions made, and action items assigned
- Any Other Business — additional matters raised by members
- Adjournment — time the meeting ended and date of the next meeting
- Secretary's Name — the person who recorded the minutes
Key Conventions
- Written in past tense and third person throughout
- Record decisions made, not the full discussion or debate
- Use full names and titles for all persons mentioned
- Be concise and factual — avoid opinion, interpretation, or informal language
- Maintain the chronological order of the meeting