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🌱 Plot List Dashboard Guide – Red House Farm Allotments

Welcome! This guide explains how to manage plot assignments for your allotment site using the Plot List Dashboard. This system is designed to be simple and foolproof for non-technical users.

🚀 Quick Start Guide

Step 1: Promote a Member from Waiting List

  1. Go to your Members List page (separate from Plot Dashboard)
  2. Find the member on the waiting list
  3. Change their membership type from "Waiting List Member" to:
    • "Full Plot Member" (for a full plot), OR
    • "Half Plot Member" (for a half plot)
  4. Save the changes

Step 2: Assign the Plot

  1. Go to the Plot List Dashboard
  2. Find a vacant plot (green "Vacant" badge)
  3. In the Actions column, click the dropdown "Select member..."
  4. Choose the member from the list
  5. Click the "Assign" button
  6. ✅ Done! The plot is now marked as "Occupied" and the member's name appears

📊 Managing Plots

View Plot Information

The dashboard shows:

  • Plot Number: e.g., 7, 24x, 11A
  • Site: Main Site or Ext Site
  • Size: Full Plot or Half Plot
  • Status: Occupied (green), Vacant (yellow), or N/A (gray)
  • Holder: Member's name or "Vacant"
  • Actions: Assign members to plots
  • Notes: Add custom notes about each plot

Filtering Plots

  • Click stat cards at the top to filter by status:
    • Total Plots: Show all usable plots (186 total)
    • Occupied: Show only occupied plots (179)
    • Vacant: Show only vacant plots (7)
    • N/A: Show non-existent or subdivided plots
  • Use the search box to find specific plot numbers
  • Check "Hide N/A Plots" to hide unavailable plots
  • Click "Clear All Filters" (red button) to reset everything

Unassigning a Member (Moving Plots)

If a member needs to move from one plot to another:

  1. Find the member's current plot in the dashboard
  2. Click the red "✕ Unassign" button next to their name
  3. Confirm the action
  4. The plot becomes Vacant
  5. Now assign them to their new plot using the normal assignment process

Auto-Save Notes

  • Click in the Notes field for any plot
  • Type your notes (e.g., "Needs inspection", "Overgrown hedges")
  • Notes save automatically 1 second after you stop typing
  • Green "Saved" indicator confirms it worked

👥 Member Selection Dropdown

What You'll See

The dropdown shows ALL members with their current plots:

  • "John Smith" - Member without a plot (available)
  • "Jane Doe (currently: 24x)" - Member who already has a plot

Smart Assignment

When you assign a member who already has a plot:

  • Their OLD plot automatically becomes Vacant
  • Their NEW plot becomes Occupied
  • This happens seamlessly in one action

🏷️ Plot Status Explained

Occupied (Green)

  • Plot has a member assigned
  • Shows member's name
  • "✕ Unassign" button available

Vacant (Yellow)

  • Plot is available for assignment
  • No member assigned
  • Can be assigned to any Full/Half Plot Member

N/A (Gray)

  • Plot doesn't exist physically (e.g., Main Site only has plots 1-87)
  • Plot is a subdivision of an occupied whole plot (e.g., if Plot 7 is occupied, then 7A and 7B are N/A)
  • Cannot be assigned to members

🧩 Understanding Plot Subdivisions

Whole Plots

  • Example: Plot 7 is occupied by one member
  • Subdivisions 7A and 7B are automatically marked as N/A (not available)

Half Plots

  • Example: Plot 11 is N/A (doesn't exist as a whole)
  • Subdivisions 11A and 11B can be assigned separately to different Half Plot Members

Extension Site (x plots)

  • Example: Plot 24x is occupied by one member
  • Subdivisions 24xA and 24xB are N/A (whole plot, not subdivided)

📈 Statistics Summary

Your allotment currently has:

  • 179 Occupied plots - Members with assigned plots
  • 7 Vacant plots - Available for new members
  • 186 Total usable plots - Actual plots that exist
  • 414 N/A entries - Database entries for non-existent or unavailable plots

🔧 Troubleshooting

"Select member..." dropdown is empty

Solution: All members already have plots assigned. To reassign someone, first click "✕ Unassign" on their current plot.

Member not showing in dropdown

Check:

  1. Is their membership type "Full Plot Member" or "Half Plot Member"?
  2. Have you saved the membership change?
  3. Refresh the Plot Dashboard page

Plot won't assign

Check:

  1. Is the plot status "N/A"? (Can't assign to N/A plots)
  2. Is the plot already occupied? (Use "✕ Unassign" first)
  3. Check browser console for errors (F12 key)

Changes not saving

  1. Check your internet connection
  2. Look for green "Saved" confirmation messages
  3. Try refreshing the page to see if changes persisted
  4. Check you have admin permissions

✅ Best Practices

For New Members

  1. ✅ Update membership type FIRST
  2. ✅ Then assign plot on Plot Dashboard
  3. ✅ Add notes if needed (special requirements, etc.)

For Plot Swaps

  1. ✅ Click "✕ Unassign" on current plot
  2. ✅ Confirm the action
  3. ✅ Assign to new plot
  4. ✅ Update notes on both plots if needed

For Record Keeping

Use the Notes field to document:

  • Inspection issues
  • Special arrangements
  • Maintenance needed
  • Historical information

Notes save automatically (no save button needed)

💡 User-Friendly Features

Visual Feedback

  • ✅ Green notifications: Actions completed successfully
  • ❌ Red notifications: Errors or problems
  • 🟡 Yellow notifications: Saving in progress
  • Row highlighting: Shows which plot is being updated
  • Smooth animations: Changes fade in/out

No Page Refreshes Needed

Everything updates instantly without reloading the page:

  • Assigning plots
  • Unassigning members
  • Changing statuses
  • Saving notes
  • Filtering and searching

Confirmation Dialogs

The system asks for confirmation before:

  • Unassigning a member from their plot
  • Changing plot status to N/A (removes assignments)
  • Assigning someone who already has a plot (automatic move)

📋 Common Workflows

Scenario 1: New Member Joins

  1. Member pays and becomes "Full Plot Member" in Members List
  2. Open Plot Dashboard → Find vacant plot
  3. Select member → Click Assign
  4. Add notes: "New member - joined [date]"

Scenario 2: Member Upgrades Plot

  1. Member wants to move from Plot 11B (half) to Plot 24 (full)
  2. Go to Plot 11B → Click "✕ Unassign"
  3. Go to Plot 24 → Assign member
  4. Update notes on both plots

Scenario 3: Plot Becomes Available

  1. Member leaves → Go to their plot
  2. Click "✕ Unassign"
  3. Plot automatically becomes Vacant
  4. Add note: "Available - previous tenant left [date]"

Scenario 4: Correcting Mistakes

  1. Wrong member assigned to plot?
  2. Click "✕ Unassign" immediately
  3. Select correct member from dropdown
  4. Click Assign

🧩 Technical Details

  • Shortcode:
    • [allotment_management_plot_list_dashboard]
  • Involved Files:
    • allotment_management_30_plot_list.php
    • assets/js/plot-list-dashboard.js
    • assets/css/plot-list-dashboard.css
  • Database Tables:
    • wp_allotment_management_plot_list
    • wp_allotment_management_members
  • AJAX Actions:
    • update_plot_status - Change plot status (Occupied/Vacant/N/A)
    • assign_plot_to_member - Assign member to plot
    • unassign_plot - Remove member from plot
    • save_plot_notes - Auto-save plot notes

❓ Support

If you encounter issues:

  1. Try refreshing the page (Ctrl+F5 or Cmd+Shift+R)
  2. Clear your browser cache
  3. Check you're logged in as administrator
  4. Contact your web administrator

Last Updated: 2025-10-29 | System Version: 2.0.0