Manage Departments

Departments let you group teachers by subject area or faculty — for example, Mathematics, Science, or Languages. Once a department exists, you can assign staff positions to it so the right teachers appear in the right places across timetables, reports, and communications.

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Who can manage departments?

Action	Required permission
View departments	Any authenticated staff member
Add a department	departments:create
Edit a department	departments:edit
Delete a department	departments:delete

Permissions are granted through Positions. If you do not see the Add Department button, ask your school owner to check your position’s permission set.

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View your departments

Navigate to your school and select Departments from the sidebar. The page lists every department with its:

• Display order — the position in sorted lists across the platform
• Name and optional description
• Code — a short uppercase identifier (e.g., MATH, SCI)
• Status — Active or Inactive

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Add a department

1. Open the Departments page

   Go to your school and click Departments in the sidebar.

2. Click Add Department

   The button appears in the top-right corner of the page. If it is missing, you do not have the departments:create permission.

3. Fill in the department details

   Department Name (required) The full display name of the department. Examples: Mathematics, Physical Sciences, Languages Maximum 100 characters.

   Code (required) A short, unique uppercase identifier. The field automatically converts what you type to uppercase. Examples: MATH, SCI, LANG Maximum 20 characters. Each code must be unique within your school.

   Display Order (optional) A number that controls where this department appears in sorted lists. Lower numbers appear first. Leave it at 0 if ordering does not matter yet — you can set it later.

   Description (optional) A short note visible in the department list. Useful for distinguishing departments with similar names. Maximum 500 characters.

   Tip

   Pick a code convention and stick to it. Short codes (3–5 uppercase letters) work best — e.g., MATH, ENG, PE. Codes cannot be changed later without editing the department.

4. Submit the form

   Click Create Department. The new department appears immediately in the list.

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Edit a department

1. On the Departments page, find the department you want to change.

2. Click the Edit button (pencil icon) in its row.

3. Update any of the fields. In edit mode you also have a Status field:

   • Active — the department is visible and available for assignments.
   • Inactive — the department is hidden from pickers but its history is preserved.

4. Click Save Changes.

Note

Setting a department to Inactive does not remove it from existing staff assignments — it only prevents it from appearing as an option when making new assignments.

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Delete a department

1. On the Departments page, click the Delete button (trash icon) in the department’s row.
2. Confirm the deletion when prompted.

Caution

Deletion is permanent. If the department has staff assigned to it, consider setting it to Inactive instead so historical records remain intact.

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Display order tips

The Display Order field controls how departments are sorted in dropdowns and lists across the platform. A few conventions that work well:

• Number departments in increments of 10 (10, 20, 30 …) so you can insert new ones between existing entries without renumbering everything.
• Core subjects taught across all grades usually benefit from a lower order number so they appear at the top of pickers.
• Specialist or elective departments can sit at the end with higher order numbers.

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Troubleshooting

The Add Department button is not visible

You need the departments:create permission. Contact your school owner and ask them to check the permissions attached to your position under Staff → Positions.

The code I entered is already taken

Each department code must be unique within your school. Choose a different code — for example, add a suffix (MATH2) or use a more specific abbreviation.

I cannot delete a department

You need the departments:delete permission. If you have the permission but the button is still disabled, another operation may be in progress — wait a moment and try again. If the department has active staff assignments, consider marking it Inactive instead.