What's New (Update Guide)
We've rebuilt Child Check-in to be faster & safer — check in a child without creating a user profile, capture parents & guardians with pickup permissions, page parents by text, and (in an upcoming mob
We've given Child Check-in a major upgrade focused on two things: making check-in effortless for your volunteers, and making pickup safer for the families you serve. Here's what changed, and why it's better.
The headline: You no longer need to create a user profile for every child and parent before you can check them in — just enter a name and go. Children and their guardians are remembered for lightning-fast repeat check-in, you can text a parent to come get their child, and you can mark exactly who is allowed to pick a child up. This update applies to the web check-in station today, and is coming to the mobile app in an upcoming version.
What changed
Children stand on their own. A child is just a name and whatever details you have — no user profile required to check them in.
Capture parents & guardians right at check-in. Enter a parent's name and phone as you check a child in, and it's saved for next time.
Faster repeat check-in. Returning children and their guardians are remembered, so checking a familiar family in is a single tap.
We help you avoid duplicates. As you enter a new child or guardian, we surface matching existing records so you can reuse them instead of creating a second copy.
Update contact info anytime. Fix or add a guardian's phone or email from the check-in screen whenever it changes.
Contact vs. authorized pickup. Add as many guardians and emergency contacts as you like, and mark exactly who is authorized to take the child home.
Page a parent by text. With one tap, send a parent a text message asking them to come to the check-in area — from a dedicated check-in phone number.
Link to an existing user — optionally. If the child or parent is already in your directory, you can connect them. If not, no problem.
Coming to mobile. Check in and out, scan QR codes, and print labels from the mobile app — and parents can see when their own child is checked in.
The old way vs. the new way
Checking in a new child
You first had to create the child (and parents) as users
Just type their name — no profile needed
Parent / guardian info
Pulled from the family's directory profiles
Entered directly at check-in and saved for next time
Repeat check-in
Look the family up in the directory
Tap a recent child, or scan their card
Who can pick up the child
Not tracked
Each guardian is marked contact only or can pick up
Reaching a parent
Find their number and text them yourself
Tap Page to text them from your check-in number
Mobile app
Coming soon
Check in/out, scan QR codes, and print labels (upcoming version)
Checking in a child is now instant
Previously, checking in a child meant first adding the child — and often their parents — to your directory as users. That was a lot of setup for a busy Sunday morning check-in line.
Now you simply choose New Check-in, type the child's name, add a guardian or two, and you're done. The record is ready, a label prints, and the family is on their way. Familiar children show up in a recent list for one-tap check-in, and you can always scan a QR code to check a child in or out in about a second.
Parents, guardians & who can pick up
Every child can have one or more guardians — parents, grandparents, a babysitter, an emergency contact. For each one you capture a name, phone number, and relationship, and you decide whether they're contact only or authorized to pick up the child.
At pickup, the check-in screen shows exactly who's allowed to take the child home. A volunteer can still check a child out to someone who isn't on the authorized list when needed — but the system records that it happened, so there's always a clear trail.
Why this matters: Child safety is the whole point of check-in. Knowing at a glance who is authorized to collect a child — and having a record when an exception is made — gives your volunteers and your families real peace of mind.
No more duplicate families
When you enter a new child or guardian, we look for people who are already on file and suggest them as you type. Pick the match and you reuse the existing record instead of creating a second one. Over time your check-in list stays clean, and a family's history stays in one place.
Paging parents by text
Sometimes you need a parent — a diaper change, an upset child, an early pickup. Instead of hunting down a phone number, just tap Page next to a guardian. They receive a text asking them to come to the check-in area, sent from a dedicated check-in phone number so it's clear where it's coming from. Before it sends, we confirm who you're texting so there are no surprises.
Pages are sent as text messages and are billed at your normal per-SMS rate, the same as other texting in Lightpost.
Linking to an existing user (optional)
If a child or guardian is already in your directory — or is added later — you can link their check-in profile to that user at any time. Linking is always optional and never required, so it never slows down a quick check-in. When a parent is linked to their directory account, they'll also be able to see their own child's check-in status from the mobile app.
Coming to the mobile app
The next step is putting all of this in your pocket. In an upcoming version of the Lightpost mobile app you'll be able to:
Check children in and out, including by scanning their QR code.
Print labels directly from a supported mobile label printer.
Let parents see when their own child is checked in, right from their phone.
Update your app to unlock this. Mobile check-in requires the latest Lightpost mobile app. Grab it from the App Store or Google Play when it's released.
What happens to my current check-in history?
Nothing is lost. Your existing check-in records carry over automatically, and every child who has been checked in gets a profile created for them — along with their parents pulled from your directory, already marked as authorized for pickup. Records that were connected to a user stay connected; you simply gain the new flexibility on top.
Your existing printed QR labels keep working too, so you don't need to reprint anything to keep going.
Why this is better
Faster — check a child in with just a name, or a single tap for returning families.
Safer — track exactly who may pick up each child, with a record of any exceptions.
Cleaner — children and parents no longer clutter your member directory, and duplicates are prevented as you type.
Connected — page a parent by text the moment you need them.
Mobile-first — check in, scan, and print from your phone (coming soon), and let parents follow along.
Access is controlled by the same Child Check-in roles and permissions you already use, so the right people on your team keep exactly the access they had before.
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