Homebased Quick-Start Guide

Modified on Fri, 10 May at 10:43 AM

Discover has many helpful features to optimise your service administration.
Over time, you'll develop routines and processes, and fall into a rhythm that suits your work style and service, but if you're new, or if you're onboarding a new administrator, this guide can help you focus on the key features and processes needed to keep your centre running, whilst you navigate your way through the Learning Path
 at your own pace!


Click the menu item to be taken to the relevant section.

 


Getting a New Child started at your Service


Step 1: Option 1 - Using the online enquiry form

If you would like a parent/guardian to complete an online enquiry form, this will save you time in preventing the need to manually enter the child's details.
The online enrolment form can be found in the left-side menu > Centre Set-up > Setup Widgets > Enquire at this Centre.


                                   





This link can be sent to your families via a simple email, or embedded on your website if desired (instructions can be found in the Setup Widgets page, but this is not essential to use the form).

Once the family has completed the enrolment form, you will receive an alert on the Dashboard, under Child Alerts.

For more information on online enquiry forms, please see our article: 
Enrolment Process in Discover


Step 1: Option 2 - Manually entering Child information

If you would prefer to enrol your children manually, you can find a copy of your enrolment form in Reports > Children Reports > Blank Enrolment Form.

Once the parent/guardian has completed the form, navigate to the left-side menu > Children > click the Create New button at the bottom right of the screen.



Copy the child's information in to the fields, ensuring you click the 'Search NSN' button towards the bottom of the screen.



Click 'Create' when you have entered all child information.
You will now be able to enter the remaining information from the form, navigating through the tabs up the top of the profile.




Step 2: Locating an Educator

Homebased Services have the ability to view the location of enquiries in relation to Educators.

Navigate to Staff > Staff Locations > Educator Map > select the 'Show Enquiries' checkbox.

Enquiries are indicated by a blue pin, and nearby Educators are visible as multi-coloured pins (depending on job title).

Clicking on an Educator will show their availability and current bookings. Should you need further information, clicking on 'Booking Report' will generate a report for the selected Educator.




Step 3: Creating a Booking/Enrolment

To create a booking for a child, in their profile, navigate to the 'Enrolments' tab and click the 'Create Enrolment' button.

1) Enter the booking start date in the Effective From field and check/adjust the date in the Effective To date field. 
2) Check the Status dropdown has 'Accepted' selected.
3) Type in the booking start and end times in the From and To fields in the weekly table.
4) Select the Educator and Fees from the dropdowns (if these are greyed out, it means there is only one option for the child given their age and your settings).

5) Select the bill payer and click 'Save'

6) Discover will ask you if you would like to print the Attestation form - confirm your choice.

7) Done!


For further information on Bookings/Enrolments, please see our article here: 
Homebased: Child Enrolment/Bookings



Marking Attendances


Child attendances can be marked on paper and entered manually in to Discover, or the Discover tablet can be used. If you would like to save time, the tablet can be used, but please note Educators will have visibility over children in other Educators' care. 

Option 1 - Tablet
If you have not set up your tablet, instructions can be found here.
Families can sign their children in and out, but attendances can be recorded by Educators as below:



1) With the main tablet screen open, enter your pin.

2) Use the toggle under the 'Child Present' column to indicate whether the child is attending (right = attending, left = absent).



3) If absent, you may leave a comment and tap 'Ok'. If present, adjust the time if needed and tap 'Record'.

 

4) Done!


Option 2 - Manual Entry

1) To print a roll, navigate to your left-side menu > Reports > Children Reports > Daily Sign In Sheet.

2) Set you preferences in the fields, click 'Get Report'.


3) Click 'Print' or 'Export to PDF' to print or email to your Educators.




4) Once parents/guardians have used the sign in sheet, to record the attendances navigate to your left-side menu > Attendances.



5) Select your date at the top of the table by clicking on the calendar or using the back/forward buttons.

6) Type in the From and To times for each child who attended.

7) Use the dropdown under 'Status' to indicate if the child was absent or on holiday.

8) Use the dropdowns under the Funding and Discount columns if necessary.

9) Click 'Add Child' and enter their booking information if needed.

10) Click 'Save'.

This process can also be completed via left-side menu > Attendances > Weekly Attendance (per child for the entire week) or Weekly Attendance - All (all children for the entire week), depending on your preference.



Invoicing

Your Invoicing cycle settings (advance vs arrears, # of weeks invoiced etc) are set up for you during Onboarding, and from here, sending invoices to your families can be completed manually, or sent automatically by Discover.

Option 1: Automatic
To switch on Automatic invoicing, navigate to your left-side menu > Centre Settings > Centre Details tab > Invoice settings.
Tick 'Automatic Invoicing', scroll to the bottom of the page and click 'Save'.
Your invoices will be sent automatically by Discover on the day listed next to 'Create Invoices on'.

For more information on automatic Invoicing, please see our article Invoicing Master Guide


Option 2: Manual


Invoices can be sent manually by navigating to your left-side menu > Bulk Actions > Select Action Dropdown > Enrolment Invoices.


1) Enter the dates you would like reflected in the invoice next to 'Children Enrolled Between'. 

2) Filtering options allow you to refine by the status of the child and/or their room.
3) Clicking 
>> will select all children to invoice, or alternatively, clicking on the name of the child, then '>' will allow you to select individual children.
4) Specify whether you would like to send the emails now, or delay.
5) 
Click 'Create Enrolment Invoices
'. 



Note: If you are using automatic invoicing, creating a manual invoice will increase the balance of the next automatic invoice. For this reason we do not recommend using the two methods in conjunction.


For information on Resending Invoices, Previewing Invoices and more, please see our article: Invoicing Master Guide.



Adding Parent/Guardian Payments


Payments made by families can be entered in to Discover by navigating to the left-side menu > Payments > Recent Payments > click the 'Add New' button.


Enter the details of the payment and click 'Create'.



Payments from Families can also be uploaded in bulk via spreadsheet or Xero.
Please see the guides below if needed:










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