Building a service grid

A service grid defines the time frame of the service: the working days, the time slots and the periods of the year when it applies. This step happens before naming people — you set the frame, the tasks to cover are then described in the Assignments screen, and the filling is done in the planner.

Combined with the needs declared on each task, the grid answers questions like "how many people in the playground at 10 a.m.?" or "which slots must the student supervision team cover this week?".

Creating a grid

The Grid tab of the Staffing module shows the existing grids and how they are spread across the year. For each grid, you fill in:

• the name — short and recognizable, for example Standard week, Term 1 exams, Holidays;
• the Working days — for example Monday to Friday for the standard week, or a specific selection for an exam week;
• the Time grid — the grid's time slots, which you define freely. In student supervision, the quarter hour is common, and these slots can be finer than the teaching lesson grid.

The Grid allocation button then assigns each grid to the weeks or date ranges of the year it covers.

On first opening, an empty grid is offered. To create an additional grid, duplicate an existing grid with Duplicate, rename it, then adapt it.

Defining the tasks and their needs

The tasks themselves — label, number of people, site, authorized staff — are defined in the Assignments screen: see Defining the tasks to cover. For each task, the needs editor then states, slot by slot on the grid, how many people are expected (0 = no need).

The need can vary sharply with the time of day: 0 people in the playground during lessons, 3 people at noon for the cafeteria, 1 person in the library all afternoon.

Sites and distances

If your institution has several sites, declare them at the bottom of the Grid screen with their distances. A task located on a distant site triggers an alert if the same person is expected elsewhere without enough travel time.

Compatibilities when understaffed

When the available headcount is shorter than ideal (a frequent case: cascading absences, exam periods), you can declare compatibilities between nearby tasks: the same person can then cover two tasks in parallel.

Typical example: corridor 2 + corridor 3 can be merged — the same person can supervise both. You declare it on the task, in the Assignments screen, to guide assignment trade-offs.

Do not declare a compatibility to permanently hide understaffing. A compatibility must match a situation the institution genuinely accepts on the ground.

Grid templates

If you manage the same schedule structure every week, you can duplicate an existing grid to start from a base. Recurring cases:

• Standard week — the reference grid (start of school year to end of year).
• Holiday week — fewer tasks, reduced team.
• Exam week — lecture-hall supervision added on top of the regular tasks.
• Special day — open house, outing, internal event, council or special reception.

Checking consistency before assigning

Before moving on to the assignment step, use the grid as a business checklist:

• do the tasks cover every relevant period?
• are the needs realistic given the available team?
• do multi-site posts account for travel times?
• do the authorized-staff restrictions match the people actually accredited?
• do the compatibilities between tasks remain acceptable even when understaffed?

Once the grid is validated, move on to the assignment step. See Assigning staff.