Teacher Availability - breaks, changing start and end times, etc

Teacher availability allows you to easily configure teacher breaks and when particular teachers start or finish at different times to those of the evening itself.

You can access it via Evenings > Go to Evening > Configure Evening > Teacher Availability.
Viewing teacher availability

On the Teacher Availability page each teacher has a timeline, with times across the top. On this timeline there can be different coloured sections:

  • Red denotes breaks
  • Blue is existing appointments
  • Grey marks those times when the teacher is unavailable, due to them having different start/end times to the evening itself

If your evening is spread over multiple dates, you'll also see a Choose Evening drop down box so that you can configure those dates differently, if required.

Setting up teacher breaks for a specific time

Note: you cannot change the standard length once appointments have been made on an Evening.

Note: breaks are only available as multiples of the maximum appointment length of any particular teacher. For example: if an evening has a Standard Appointment Length of 10 minutes, but a particular teacher has classes with a custom appointment length of 20 minutes, the only breaks available for that teacher will be in 20 minute blocks.
  1. Using the timeline by clicking and holding your left mouse button on the appointment slot that will be the start of the break, then dragging it to final slot that the break will cover.
  2. If your evening covers multiple dates, you can then select the dates on which you want to apply the breakand select other teachers to whom you wish to to apply the break.
  3. Click Save to finalise your changes.

Your newly configured break(s) will now appear on the availability screen.

Alternative Method
  1. Click Add Break.
  2. Select Break for one or more teachers at a specific time then click Next.

The rest of the process follows the same steps as the timeline one above, from step 2 onwards.

Setting up random breaks

Many schools like to set up random breaks, allowing all teachers to have a break without all those breaks occurring at the same time.

  1. Click Add Break.
  2. Select Random break between certain times for multiple teachers then click Next.
  3. Select the earliest and latest times you wish the breaks to occur between and the duration of the break each teacher should be assigned.
  4. If your evening covers multiple dates, select the date(s) for which you wish to generate random breaks.
  5. Finally, select those teachers for whom you wish to generate random breaks, then click Save.

Your newly configured breaks will now appear on the availability screen.


Setting different start/end times or unavailability

You can set start/end times that are different from the general ones for the evening itself, or make a teacher unavailable, by clicking the Change Times link below a teacher's name, then choosing from the options that appear:

Note: Start and end times are only available as multiples of the maximum appointment length of that particular teacher, and are calculated from the overall start time of the event itself.

For example: if an evening starts at 16:00 and the teacher's appointment lengths are 20 minutes, the only alternative start times available for that teacher will be at 20 minute intervals 16:00, 16:20, 16:40, etc.

If you turn on Mark this teacher as unavailable for appointments, the teacher will no longer be bookable and you can provide a reason visible to the parents, if wished. You are also given the choice to delete any existing appointments and email the affected parents.

You would normally only use this option if the teacher becomes unavailable once booking has commenced.

When setting up the evening, if you want to have a teacher unavailable on a particular date, you should do this at the Class Teachers step of Configure Evening.

Editing a break

The timeline on the Teacher Availability gives you a quick way to not only view breaks but also to edit them.

Moving an existing break

To move an existing break, simply click and drag the break to where you want it.

If other teachers have a break that matches the one being moved (as Mrs Abbot's does in the example above) you will be asked if you wish to change those breaks as well:

Extending a break

You can quickly extend a break by clicking and dragging one of the sides of the red block.

Again, if other teachers have a break that matches the one being edited you will be asked if you wish to change those breaks as well:.

Alternative Method

You can perform the same tasks by tapping, or clicking, the break and choosing the edit option that pops up.

Then use the dialogue box that appears, changing one, or both, of the existing start and end times:

As with the click and drag method described above, if other teachers have a break that matches the one being edited you will be asked if you wish to change those breaks as well.

Deleting a break

To delete a break, simply click the red section for the break then Delete.

A confirmation box will show:


Saving changes and dealing with affected appointments

After making changes click the main Save button. You will be informed if any existing appointments are affected by the changes you have made and asked if you want to keep them, or delete them and email a notification to the parents. If you choose to delete them you will be given the option to add a custom note to the notification - this will be the same note for all appointments being cancelled by the changes you have made.