Reporting on Admissions (Better Letters with Crystal)

Intended for:

Report Writers for One Admissions

Session length: 2 – 3 hours

Outline:

Using the example of Admissions Offer letters, but with techniques which can be used when reporting on any module or database, this session will cover conditional paragraphing in Crystal, showing report writers how to make reports and letters intelligently change their wording depending on the child’s circumstances. Using techniques covered in the course, delegates will be able to consolidate multiple letter reports into one report, meaning that any changes to the letter’s wording in future years only needs to be done once, and not multiple times across several letters.

The course will also show techniques designed to minimise common annual changes – e.g. updating dates throughout the report and how to avoid prompting users for some parameters every time they run a report.

What will be included:

• How to make a Crystal report change its output based on conditions within the data e.g. how to display a different paragraph, depending on whether a child has been allocated their first or second preference
  • This will include complicated conditions dependent on more than one record e.g. a child who has not been allocated any one of their first three preferences but does/does not have an alternative offer of a place
• How to select and filter children based on complicated conditions such as the above
• How to use the transfer group settings to select the correct transfer group based on the current year / time of year, thereby avoiding the use of a parameter which would have to be updated each year
• How to use the transfer group settings to minimise updating dates throughout the report each year
• How to guarantee that when batch-printing double-sided letters of varying length, new letters always start on the correct sheet and not on the back of the final page of the previous letter
• How to consolidate batch and individual versions of the same report into one report
• How to store the Head of Service’s information in the database and display this information on all letters
• A sample report at the end of the session which contains examples of the above
• Q&A / workshop – Time to ask the consultant queries specific to your Local Authority