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Key concepts
Who this is for: Anyone configuring or running the rota
What you'll achieve: Learn the vocabulary used across SchoolRota
Zones
A zone is a physical or logical place of duty: for example KS1 Play, Dinner Hall, or Cloakrooms. Each duty slot belongs to one zone.
Duty slots and assignments
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Duty slot | A zone + time window + requirements on a day revision |
| Split session | Two consecutive slots on the same duty area (first half / second half), so different people can cover one clock window without both being there at once |
| Lunch sitting | Children's lunch as duty cover: two times on the hall or playground (or two posts), not a staff lunch break |
| Assignment | A person placed on a slot (for example as lead) |
| Weekly template | The recurring Mon–Fri pattern used to materialise each day |
| Existing timetable | Last year's duty cover, uploaded in Setup: one school-wide file, or one file per person merged into a single duty roster |
Skills (who may cover a post)
A skill is a flag on a person, such as first aider, can lead duty, or a name you add (for example Gate duty).
| Setting | Where |
|---|---|
| Tick skills on a person | Staff → Edit |
| Require a skill on a session | Day structure → duty session cover, or the weekly template cover rules |
Cover then only proposes people who have that skill, and every person on that session must hold it. This is how you limit a post to certain people without a separate eligibility grid. Anyone without the skill stays in the general pool for other posts.
Never and grade Duty eligible still apply to every post.
Cover preference
How often a person should be used on duty:
| Preference | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Often | First choice for cover |
| Sometimes | Fine to use in the normal pool |
| Only if needed | Use only when others are unavailable |
| Never | Do not place on duty |
Spreadsheet imports can also encode this with traffic-light cell colours (green, amber, red). See Importing staff.
Grades and cover order
Grades band staff (Teaching Assistants, Professional Services, Office, Teaching Staff, Leadership, and so on). A lower ask order number means they are asked sooner: Teaching Assistants are typically near 10, Office near 70, Leadership near 90.
Recompute, chat replace, and clash resolve ask Often staff first, then Sometimes, then Only if needed. Within the same cover preference, a lower grade ask-order is used first (for example two Often people: a teaching assistant before a teacher). Only-if-needed staff stay out until nobody marked Often or Sometimes is free. Rebuild also releases unpinned only-if-needed (or Sometimes) people from the weekly template when higher-preference cover is free. Changing cover preference on Staff or in chat does not move people already on a built board until you rebuild that day or week.
New schools get an Office grade for reception and admin teams. Import maps office/admin teams there, and office job titles default to Only if needed so support staff stay first in the cover pool.
Day revision lifecycle
mermaid
flowchart LR
Template[Weekly template] --> Build[Build day]
Build --> Draft[Draft revision]
Draft --> Recompute[Propose cover]
Recompute --> Proposed[Proposed draft]
Proposed --> Publish[Publish]
Publish --> Live[Live day]| State | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Draft / proposed | Editable proposal: not yet locked |
| Live / published | Locked for the day; staff are notified per rules |
Publishing always requires an explicit confirm from a duty lead or admin. The engine never auto-publishes.
Compliance badges
On the Today board you will see status such as:
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| OK | Requirements met |
| At risk | Close to failing a rule |
| Unfilled | Below the post's minimum staff count (or missing a required skill) |
| Only if needed | A person or grade marked “only if needed” was used |
Weekly blocks
Weekly blocks are recurring teaching or cover activities (phonics, PPA, meetings, and so on). They appear on the Timetable alongside duties so you can see who is already booked.
A lunch break makes the person unavailable for duty in that window. It can be a fixed time, or a short break inside a longer flexible window. Different people can have different windows. Only staff you assign to a lunch break get one on the timetable. Assign groups during setup (Staff lunches, after the directory) or on Staff → Weekly blocks. The engine will not place them on an overlapping post. A duty lead can still assign them by hand after confirming they will miss that break. See Weekly blocks.
A children's lunch sitting is the opposite: staff on the dining hall or playground while pupils eat. Add two times (or two duty areas) for KS1 then KS2, or split one sitting for a handover. See Initial setup.