Writing Meeting Minutes

Purpose

Meeting minutes are the official written record of a meeting. They document what was discussed, decided, and assigned so that members who were absent are informed and all participants have an accurate reference. Minutes may record:

• Decisions made — motions passed, policies agreed upon
• Action items — tasks assigned to named individuals with deadlines
• Matters arising — follow-up on items from the previous meeting

Structure

• Minutes Heading — "Minutes of the [Organisation] Meeting" — title case, left aligned, not 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

SAPANEE Memory Guide

Use SAPANEE to remember the main order of meeting minutes:

The acronym SAPANEE stands for Start, Attendance, Previous, Arising, New, Extra, End. It is a quick way to remember the flow of the meeting, but the final document should still use the formal headings, such as Confirmation of Previous Minutes, Matters Arising, and Any Other Business.

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