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 Group Setup. 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 term or 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 or where there is 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 the opportunity to review the suggested new groups, with an override option and then a one-click-action to process children in their new groups or to remain in their current group if they are not eligible for a new group. Children who have reached the Maximum age for the Group Setup and who are no longer eligible for any other groups can be processed out of the Group Setup entirely.
How to process children into new groups
Working with the Groups section of the Children module, select the Group Setup to be processed by clicking the Name.
From the Group Setup 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 new group, based on their age/date of birth and the entry criteria for each group, are highlighted in yellow in the list.
You can override a child's New Group if necessary, select another group from the same Group Setup, or select --Leave group-- to process the child out of the Group Setup entirely.
Group processing is based on the child's age today. However, you can select Change date to choose a different processing date - perhaps a future date when all your groups change. Selecting a different date will refresh the list to show the New Group based on each child's age on the chosen 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. Changes logs for the Group change are recorded against the group member who is moved when a group is processed.
