Parish footpath observer allocations
If your area looks after footpaths, the area map can show a footpath observer's coverage parish by parish. Each parish is shaded green where an observer is allocated and red where the slot is vacant, so the gaps you need to recruit for stand out at a glance. Hovering over a parish shows who covers it.
An area map, with Kent shown here as an example. Green parishes have a footpath observer, red ones are vacant; hovering shows the parish and its observer.
Two ways to manage allocations
You can manage allocations one parish at a time on the map, or in bulk from a spreadsheet. Both update the same data, so use whichever suits the job.
1. On the map, one parish at a time
With the site in edit mode, click a parish to open its popup. As an administrator you can then assign a member or mark the parish vacant.
Click a parish to open its popup: it shows the status and parish code, with an Assign member box and a Mark Vacant button.
Start typing in the Assign member box and pick the volunteer from the member list.
The map updates straight away - the parish turns green once a volunteer is assigned, and red again if you mark it vacant.
Allocated - the parish is green and the tooltip names the observer.
Vacant - the parish is red until someone is assigned.
2. In bulk, from a CSV file
To set up or refresh a whole area at once, go to Admin → System Settings → Maps → Parish Allocations. Click Choose CSV File (or drag a file onto the drop zone), then Import. A summary reports how many rows were created, updated or had errors.
The file needs a header row. These are the columns it understands:
| Column | Required? | What it does |
|---|---|---|
parishName |
Required | The parish name, for example Smarden. |
parishCode |
Required for the map to colour the parish | The official ONS parish code, for example E04004856. The map shades each parish by matching this code, so a row without it still imports but the parish stays uncoloured. The codes are shown in the Parish Code column of the allocations table. |
status |
Optional | vacant marks the parish red; anything else, including blank, counts as allocated (green). |
assignee |
Optional | The observer's name. If it matches a member's name it is also linked to their record. |
notes |
Optional | Free text, for your own reference. |
One further optional column, assigneeMemberId, links a row straight to a member by id and takes precedence over assignee, but naming the person in assignee is the usual way.
The Current Allocations list below shows every parish with its code, status and assignee. You can filter by name or code, sort any column, and drag the bottom edge to resize it. Clear All Allocations removes them all if you need to start again.
The Parish Allocations tab: CSV import, the expected columns, and the live allocations table.
Download a starter template
Rather than build the CSV from scratch, download the template below and edit it. It is seeded with real parish names and their official codes, a mix of allocated and vacant rows, and two worked examples showing the optional assignee and notes columns. Replace the rows with your own and import it on the Parish Allocations tab.