> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# FAQs

> Short answers to the questions club managers and staff ask most, with links to the detail.

Short answers to what clubs ask most. Each links to the page with the full detail. If something is being refused, [Troubleshooting](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/help/troubleshooting.md) is quicker.

## Setting up

> **What does ClubDock cost?**
>
> You pay for each month by what your sessions came to, after the month ends. Nothing under £500, £18 from £500 to £5,000, and £36 over £5,000. Every venue, child and member of staff is included, and so are card payments and Tax-Free Childcare at checkout. There is no contract and no fee per booking.
>
> Linking Xero or QuickBooks adds £6.00 in any month with sessions on bookings sent to your accounts. Card processing fees are Stripe's, taken from your Stripe balance, as with any card machine. See [Your ClubDock subscription](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/settings/subscription.md).

> **Do I need to add a card to start?**
>
> No. Nothing is needed until a month costs something, so a club setting up pays nothing. See [Sign up your club](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/getting-started/sign-up.md).

> **Can I bring my timetable across from another provider?**
>
> From Class4Kids, yes. Your venues, classes and camps come across as drafts, and nothing goes live until you publish it. Parents, children and bookings do not come across, because they are not public. Families register with you themselves, or you can bring them in from a spreadsheet. See [Moving from another provider](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/getting-started/moving-from-another-provider.md) and [Importing families from a spreadsheet](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/families/importing-families.md).

> **We run at more than one place. Is that a problem?**
>
> No. Add each place under **Settings → Venues**. A programme that runs at two venues has a register for each, and parents see each venue as its own programme. See [Sites](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/settings/venues.md).

> **Can parents book from our own website?**
>
> Yes. Paste the booking widget's one line into your website and your programmes appear there, each with a **Book** button. Your club page at `clubdock.co.uk/your-club` works too, with nothing to install. See [The booking widget](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/website/booking-widget.md).

## Programmes

> **What is the difference between a programme and a session?**
>
> A programme is what you sell, such as a breakfast club or a summer camp. A session is one dated part of it, such as "Tue 9 Sep, 07:30–08:45". Parents book sessions. See [Programmes](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/programmes/overview.md).

> **Can parents book a whole term, or try one session first?**
>
> Both. A programme can be booked one session at a time, or as a whole block bought together. A block can offer a **Trial session**, once per child, before the parent commits. See [How parents book](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/programmes/how-parents-book.md).

> **Can I offer an early bird price?**
>
> Yes, with **Prices for set dates** on the programme. A parent pays the price that was running when they put the place in their basket, and the usual price starts by itself when the period ends. See [Prices](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/programmes/prices.md).

> **What discounts can I offer?**
>
> Percentages off for booking more sessions, up to three steps, and a percentage off for brothers and sisters. You can also create promo codes with their own dates and limits. Set them under **Settings → Discounts and codes**. Discounts are always a percentage, never a fixed amount. See [Discounts and promo codes](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/programmes/discounts-and-promo-codes.md).

> **Can I see what parents will see before I publish?**
>
> Yes. **Preview** opens the programme's page as a signed-out parent would see it, even for a draft. You can publish straight away or schedule a day for it to go on sale. See [Preview and publish](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/programmes/preview-and-publish.md).

## Families

> **What are parents asked when they register?**
>
> Their name and email, and each child's name and date of birth, then whatever you ask under **Settings → Registration**: contacts, medical details, allergies, photo permission and your own questions. See [Registration questions](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/families/registration-questions.md).

> **Can I check a child before they are allowed to book?**
>
> Yes. On the **Rules** tab of **Settings → Registration**, set a rule such as "When *Does your child have a disability?* becomes *Yes*, require approval". The child cannot be booked until a manager approves them. See [Rules, warnings and approvals](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/families/rules-warnings-and-approvals.md).

> **Will I hear when a parent changes a child's allergies?**
>
> Yes. Every club starts with a rule that emails your club's contact address when any care field changes: medical notes, allergies, dietary requirements or additional needs. The email asks you to look at the child's record and never quotes what the parent wrote. Set your contact address under **Settings → Your club**, or nothing is sent.

## Bookings

> **Can I book for a family who rings up?**
>
> Yes. Open the parent's record and press **New booking**. You can book a full date if you need to, and the family pays as if they had booked themselves, by one of your pay-later methods. Staff never take card details. See [Booking for a family](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/bookings/booking-for-a-family.md).

> **Can staff cancel a place after the cancellation rule has passed?**
>
> Yes. Staff can always cancel, inside or outside the rule, and it is recorded who did. If money is owed back, you choose whether to refund it, leave it as credit, or keep it. Nobody can cancel a session that has started. See [Cancelling and changing a booking](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/bookings/cancelling-and-changing.md).

> **What happens when a session is full?**
>
> Parents can join its waiting list. When a place comes up, everyone waiting is emailed once and whoever books first gets it. Nobody is held a place. The calendar and the register show how many are waiting. See [Waiting lists](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/bookings/waiting-lists.md).

> **We have to close for a day. What happens to the bookings?**
>
> Cancel the date, and the places come off. Money paid by card can go straight back to the cards it came from. Anything else becomes credit, unless you choose to settle it yourself. Families are told how much went where. See [When you cancel a date](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/bookings/cancelling-a-date.md).

> **Can I email or text the families?**
>
> You can email the families holding places on a programme or date from **Messages**. ClubDock does not send text messages. See [Messages](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/bookings/messages.md).

## Registers

> **Does the register work on a phone?**
>
> Yes. It is built for one hand at the door: big buttons, allergy flags in the list, and the counts kept at the top. It needs a signal, because there is no offline register. See [Taking a register](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/registers/taking-a-register.md).

> **Is late collection charged automatically?**
>
> No. A child collected after their session ends is flagged as a late collection, and nothing is charged. To charge for it, add a charge to the booking. See [Charges](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/programmes/charges.md).

> **We still use paper registers. Is that all right?**
>
> Yes. If nobody taps anything, nothing is recorded. The register is there when you want it.

## Money

> **Where does card money go?**
>
> To your club's own Stripe account, set up inside ClubDock under **Settings → ClubDock Pay**. ClubDock never holds your money. Stripe's fee comes out of your Stripe balance, and payouts are in your Stripe dashboard. See [Card payments with ClubDock Pay](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/money/clubdock-pay.md).

> **Can parents pay with Tax-Free Childcare?**
>
> Yes. With your Ofsted registration number and postcode entered, parents pay from their childcare account when they book. A parent can split a booking between their childcare account and a card. See [Tax-Free Childcare](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/money/tax-free-childcare.md).

> **What happens when a parent cancels a place they paid for?**
>
> What the place cost becomes credit on their account, and it is spent automatically on their next booking. A manager can refund credit if the parent wants the money back. See [Credit and refunds](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/money/credit-and-refunds.md).

> **Can parents pay later, by bank transfer?**
>
> Yes, if you switch it on under **Settings → Payment methods**. The booking is confirmed straight away and shows what is owed. Reminders go out once it is overdue, and you can pause new bookings for families who are overdue. See [Money owed to you](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/money/money-owed.md).

> **Do you work with childcare vouchers?**
>
> You can offer them as a payment method, with the schemes you are registered with and your reference. No scheme can be linked to ClubDock, so you record voucher payments by hand, like a bank transfer. See [Payment methods](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/money/payment-methods.md).

## Accounting

> **Which accounting software do you work with?**
>
> Xero and QuickBooks, one at a time, connected under **Settings → Accounting**. It costs £6.00 in any month with sessions on bookings sent to your accounts. See [Connecting Xero or QuickBooks](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/accounting/connecting.md).

> **Who are the invoices addressed to?**
>
> The parent, with one line per child per programme, and extras on their own lines. Two children booked together are on one invoice. See [What reaches your accounts](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/accounting/what-reaches-your-accounts.md).

> **Can I still record payments in ClubDock?**
>
> Not while you are linked. Record them in Xero or QuickBooks and they appear on the booking. Card and Tax-Free Childcare payments through ClubDock Pay are sent there for you. If you disconnect, you record payments in ClubDock again, and nothing already sent changes.

## Team

> **How many staff can I add?**
>
> As many as you need. Every member of staff is included in the price.

> **How do I add someone to the team?**
>
> A manager goes to **Settings → Team**, presses **Add someone**, and gives their first name, surname and email, and whether they are a Manager or Staff. They are on the team at once and are emailed to say so. They sign in with that email, with no invitation to accept. See [Your team](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/settings/your-team.md).

> **What can staff do that managers cannot, and the other way round?**
>
> A manager can do everything staff can. Staff take registers, book for families, and read bookings and reports. Only managers change programmes, prices, discounts, the team, billing, payments and accounting, and only managers approve children. See [Managers and Staff](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/getting-started/managers-and-staff.md).

> **What happens when someone leaves?**
>
> Remove them under **Settings → Team**. They lose access when their sign-in next renews. A club always keeps at least one manager, so the last one cannot be removed or made staff.


## Related topics

- [Parent FAQs](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/parents/faqs.md)
- [Help for parents](https://clubdock.co.uk/docs/parents/overview.md)


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