Schools and childcare centres
As parents and teachers will know, lunchtimes can be quite rowdy in primary schools. Teachers go off on their lunch break while fathers, mothers and grandparents are left keeping a watchful eye over the playground. Adequate supervision does, of course, require ample planning and a well-organized volunteer roster. This can also lead to increased parental involvement, which is one of the main benefits of having a volunteer roster at school.
Crossing guards, teaching assistants and support staff can also schedule shifts with ShiftPlanner so not to clash with other obligations.


On this page
- Creating a roster
- Sending a registration request
- Transferring a shift
- Setting automatic reminders
- Modifying your profile
- Scheduling shifts directly
- Grouping volunteers by workstream
- Importing volunteers from another system
- Creating a photo album
- Tracking absenteeism (no-shows)
- Exempting volunteers
- Monitoring hours and shifts
Creating a roster
Use forms to quickly draw up a roster. Simply specify the time period and the number of people required each day and there you have it. The roster is ready!
Sending a registration request
After creating the roster, you need to send out a registration request. Volunteers will then receive an email with an access token, which they can use to log in and sign up for shifts.
Transferring a shift
If a volunteer is no longer able to make a shift, he or she can easily transfer it to another volunteer. This can be done by sending out a request to he or she fellow volunteers.
Setting automatic reminders
Volunteers receive an automatic reminder a few days prior to each shift, which reduces the chance of no-shows.
Modify your profile
Volunteers can modify their profile (e.g., address, phone number, e-mail, photo, etc). If, as the coordinator, you prefer to manage this yourself, you can disable this functionality.
Scheduling shifts directly
As the coordinator, you can set a deadline for when volunteers need to have assigned for a shift. If they fail to assign before the deadline, you can allocate shifts for them.
Grouping volunteers by workstream
You can create groups for volunteers with specific qualifications (e.g., first aid, accounting, etc.) so that only those with the required skillset can assign for certain shifts.
Importing volunteers from another system
If the orgainzation uses a specific database or administration system, you can have the option to download relevant data and import it into ShiftPlanner via an Excel or CSV file.
Creating a photo album
You can also use ShiftPlanner to create a photo album, which you can sort by name, age or length of service.
Tracking absenteeism (no-shows)
Keep abreast of the volunteers who do not show up for their shifts. With ShiftPlanner, you can collect and view statistics on absenteeism.
Exempting volunteers
If some volunteers already do a lot for the school, you can exempt them from receiving mandatory shift requests.
Monitoring hours and shifts
With ShiftPlanner, you can see exactly how many hours and/or shifts a volunteer has done. This information is also downloadable.