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Help for Group Leaders

This page gives some guidance for house group leaders on the facilities available to them on e-church.org.uk. It does not provide more general help with house group issues. If you wish to contribute material on that topic, please feel free.

If you have not already read the page of Help for non-leaders it might be worth doing that in order to familiarise yourself with the basic operation of e-church.org.uk, before going on to look at leader-specific issues.

Index of Questions

Questions & Answers

What can I do on e-church.org.uk as a house group leader?

Once you have signed in by entering your name and password into the bar at the top of this page, you will see the site slightly differently to other people.

If you are a house group leader and have not received an email telling you how you can obtain a password for e-church.org.uk, please use the feedback link in the bar to the left to let us know. Please include your email address in your message.

As a signed in leader, some pages will allow you to control the details of your house group where other people would only see the details without being able to change them. You will also be able to control the information held on all the members of your house group.

Can I delegate my role on e-church.org.uk to someone else?

Yes, you can authorise a member of your house group to control the information held on your house group and all it's members. This role should only be given to a responsible person whom you trust, since it allows that person to access and change personal information held on members.

To set this up, either send a request by clicking here (preferably when logged on so we don't have to confirm your request) or, even better, go to the details page for the person you wish to delegate authority to and tick the box labelled "Allow this person to update information on the group and its members".

How do I change the details held on my house group?

When you go to the page showing the details on your house group, instead of just showing the details normally, they will appear in boxes, which you can update. Once you have changed them you can click the button labelled "Update" to save your changes.

How do I change the list of leaders of my house group?

First you will need to make sure that the leaders are listed as members of your house group. Go to the member directory of your house group when logged in and check that they are listed. If they are not, use the small form at the bottom of the page to add them.

Next, staying in the member directory of your house group, click the link labelled "update details" next to the name of the person you wish to add or remove from the leadership team. Scroll down to the bottom of the page containing their details and place or remove a tick in the box labelled "List as one of the main house group leaders" in the section relating to your house group.

How do I get a password for the other leaders of my house group?

If the leaders of your house group are not already listed on the site then see the question How do I change the list of leaders of my house group? If they are listed but don't have passwords to log in to e-church.org.uk, then you can update their details in order to add their email address and send them a new password. Follow the instructions under How do I update the email address of one of my house group members?, clicking the "New Password" button to send them a password. As they are already down as leaders they will then be able to use this password to update the details on your house group.

How do I change the list of members of my house group?

To add people to your house group's members' list, go to the member directory of your house group when logged in and check that they are listed (as a leader you will be able to see them whether or not they are listed in the public directory). If they are not listed, use the small form at the bottom of the page to add them. Add couples individually.

To remove people from your house group's members' list, go to the member directory of your house group when logged in and click the link labelled "update details" next to the name of the person you wish to remove from the group. Scroll down to the bottom of the page containing their details and find the section relating to your house group. To stop them being listed in the directory, remove the tick in the box labelled "List in this group's directory", to completely remove them from your house group click the button labelled "Leave this Group".

Should I add couples individually or as one entry?

You should add couples individually rather than as "Mr and Mrs X". This is for several reasons:

  • It allows them to add information such as their birthdays
  • It allows them to indicate which one of them has posted a message sent to the site
  • It helps people find them when searching for them by using their full name
  • It helps avoid confusion about which name to use when logging in
  • It allows statistics on membership to be compiled by the parish centre

Even when they share an email address, add them twice and give them the same address for both times, the system will automatically avoid sending duplicate emails when they are both on the list of recipients for a group email.

Why don't the members I have added appear in the directory?

When you first add someone to the site, the leaders of their house group will be able to see them listed, but other visitors to e-church.org.uk will not.

If you provided an email address when adding a new member they will be sent a password. This will allow them to log in and add themselves to the house group's directory if they so wish. If someone who doesn't have an email address wants to be listed then they can tell you and you can update their details for them to add them to the directory.

If a member is not added to the directory they will still be able to receive group emails about what your house group is doing when they are sent by house group leaders using this site, but noone else will be able to see their name or send them messages.

Do I need to ask permission before adding my members to this e-church.org.uk?

Since the members will have already agreed to receive information about your house group by email when giving you their address you don't need to ask their permission before adding them to this site. You can not take the additional step of adding them to the directory without explicit permission.

How do I update the email address of one of my house group members?

If your member is unable to log in and update their details themselves, you can update their details for them. Once you are logged in, go to the member directory and click the link labelled "update details" next to the name of the member that has asked you to change their details. You will then be able to update their details using a form similar to the one you with which you change your own details.

Which pages are particularly worth visiting?

You should keep the house group details page up to date as a top priority since it is the place that potential members will come first to see where and when you meet. Adding your members' details to your house group's membership page will enable them to contact each other securely and will enable you to send messages to them all as a group.

How can I send a message to all the members of my group using e-church.org.uk?

Go to the members' directory for your house group and click on the link at the bottom of the page labelled "Send a message to the whole group". If your message is just a sociable, personal comment then it will be sent to those members that have elected to allow any member to send them email. If it is a notice about house group business then put a tick in the box labelled "Send an official group message" and it will be sent to everyone who has asked to be sent information on the house group, including those who do not wish to receive messages sent by members of e-church.org.uk. Click here to see what this tick box looks like.

Obviously your message will not go to people who do not have access to email or whose email addresses you do not have, and you must make sure such people are not excluded.

Why should I use e-church.org.uk to contact my group rather than sending email directly?

You should not give members of your group each other's email addresses unless they have explicitly agreed to have this information shared. You can achieve this aim without using e-church.org.uk by either using BCC or sending the email individually to each member. Mail sent using the BCC field does not successfully deliver to some addresses (including many hotmail and some private company addresses), so e-church.org.uk provides a way of easily sending the mail individually to each member while typing it in only once.

It also adds links that allow the members to update their email address and decline from receiving your messages without having to come through you. Sending messages via e-church.org.uk helps you comply with data protection legislation. Having a single, central mailing list also means new house group members can't be left out from the recipient list of emails sent to the group by members.

Can I upload photos of my house group to e-church.org.uk?

There are facilities on e-church.org.uk to link to single pictures of your leadership team, your members and a general house group photo. If you create your own house group site you can put as many photos as you want there and link to them from e-church.org.uk. To create the links to your photos or your house group site, simply update the details on your house group as usual.

Where do I upload my pictures in order to have them appear on e-church.org.uk?

You need to put your photos somewhere on the web where they can be linked to by e-church.org.uk. e-church.org.uk can provide space to do this or you can get web space from other providers. You don't need to have a home page, just put your photos up in the space provided and enter the addresses for your photos on your details page. Space on e-church.org.uk has the advantage of full support, allowing you to simply email in the photos mentioned above if you are unable to upload them yourself.

How do I create a home page for my house group?

Help on creating a house group home page is available here.

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Last updated: 24/3/2006