Processing children into new groups as they get older
Each group has a Process feature that enables you to quickly and easily move children into their correct groups as they get older. While many churches typically process children into their new groups once a year, you can process groups as often as you wish as appropriate for your context.
Overview of the intended functionality
The group processing functionality looks at the children currently assigned to a group and compares each child's age (based on their date of birth) with the age entry criteria of all the groups in the same Gathering. Where a different Current Group is detected - distinguished visually in yellow - the system suggests the appropriate New Group to move the child into. However, you always have the option to override and choose a different group if you wish. Processing children for an entire group is typically a single button click.
The suggested New Group is based on the child's age today but you can Change date, perhaps to a future date before the start of a new academic/school year, and process children based on their age as at that future date. This functionality is also suitable where you process children into new groups several times a year (perhaps termly) or where you have a school year variation in your region.
While children are never auto-processed into new groups as they get older, the Process workflow explained below provides an opportunity for a User to review the suggested new groups (with an override option) and then a 'one-click' button to process children in their next eligible group in the same gathering or for them to remain in their current group if they are not yet eligible for a new group. Children who reach the gathering Maximum age and are no longer eligible for any other groups in the gathering are processed out of the gathering entirely.
How to process children into new groups
Working with the Groups section of the Children module, select the Gathering to be processed by clicking the Name.
From the Gathering "View", and working methodically through each group in turn, select Process from the group Actions.
On the group Process page, notice the Current Group and the suggested New Group. Children eligible for a different new group - based on their age/date of birth and the entry criteria for each group in the gathering - are distinguished in yellow within the list.
You can optionally override a child's New group if you need to; select another group within the same gathering or select --Leave group-- to process the child out of the gathering entirely.
Group processing is based on the child's age today. However, you can select Change date to select a different processing date - perhaps a future date when all your children's groups change. Selecting a different date will refresh the list to show the New Group based on each child's age on the selected processing date.
Once you are satisfied that the New Group selections are correct, scroll to the end of the list and click Save. Children are immediately processed into their new Groups, even if a future processing date has been selected. Repeat the above steps for each Group within the selected Gathering and also for any other Gatherings.
