Link categories are the headed groupings on the dashboard. Each link sits inside exactly one category, and categories appear as labelled sections on the user’s dashboard.
Where to manage categories
Go to Dashboard → Categories. The list shows every category configured for your school.
Fields
- Name — the heading shown on the dashboard (e.g. Learning, Communication).
- Display inside — which dashboards this category appears on:
- Staff dashboard
- Student dashboard
- Parent dashboard
A single category can appear on multiple dashboards.
- Ordering — number controlling sort order on the dashboard. Lower numbers appear first.
- Font Awesome icon — optional icon to show next to the category heading.
- Mobile icon — optional Font Awesome icon for the mobile app variant.
Planning your categories
The most useful dashboards have two to five categories. Common patterns:
- By type of action — Learning, Communication, Wellbeing, Administration.
- By role — For Students, For Teachers, For Parents (one shared dashboard with role-specific categories).
- By system — Canvas, Library, Reports, Forms (when most links are to specific platforms).
Pick the structure that matches how users think about what they’re trying to do.
Editing or retiring
- Edit any time — the change appears on user dashboards immediately.
- Delete a category and its links are moved to the Uncategorised placeholder. You’ll typically move them to another category or delete them too.
Categories per dashboard
For multi-audience schools, separate categories per audience makes sense:
- Learning (Students) — for students.
- Learning (Parents) — for parents, with parent-facing links.
Even if the name is the same, treat them as separate categories targeted at each audience. The dashboards render whatever applies to the logged-in user.
Tips
- Use short names. Learning is better than Learning Resources and Platforms.
- Keep the order stable. Users learn where things live. Reshuffling categories without a reason annoys regulars.
- Audit at the start of each year. Categories built for last year’s needs may no longer make sense.