Tuesday and Wednesday, every week
The scheduler sits down with the master rota spreadsheet. Twenty-odd sites, some static 24/7, some night-only, some with a weekend extra, a retail client with a Saturday event, a construction site closing for a week. Seventy guards, each with preferred shifts, a holiday booked, a second job on Mondays, a licence expiring next month and site inductions for some sites but not others.
The scheduler copies last week, then fixes it. A guard on holiday. A new site starting Thursday that needs two inducted guards. A guard whose hours are creeping up because he keeps picking up extras. By Wednesday afternoon it is done, sent out as a PDF or a WhatsApp message, and by Wednesday evening three guards have asked for changes.
Why the rota eats two days
A guarding rota is a matching problem with lots of rules. Each shift has requirements, each guard has limits, and the rules interact. A spreadsheet can show the answer but cannot help find it, so the scheduler holds all the rules in their head and checks each cell by eye.
- Site requirements such as hours, number of guards and client-specific training are in contract files.
- Guard availability, holidays and preferences are in messages and a holiday sheet.
- Licence expiry and site inductions are in separate records.
- Rest and hours rules your company follows are checked by adding up cells.
- Changes after publication are made by text and not always reflected in the master.
What a hand-built rota costs
Two days of a skilled person's week, every week. Mistakes that reach the site: a guard without the induction, a double booking, a guard with too little rest. Uneven hours, which upsets guards and can create cost through overtime you did not plan. And a published rota that is out of date by the time the week starts, so the control room and the payroll team work from different versions.
Working time and licensing requirements are for your company and its advisers. The system applies the rules you give it.
Rota planning built around guarding rules
- Each site is set up with its shift pattern, number of guards per shift, required licence type, required site induction and any client rules.
- Each guard's record holds licence type and expiry, site inductions, contracted hours, availability, holidays and preferences.
- Your rules are held as checks: minimum rest between shifts, maximum hours in a period, maximum consecutive nights, and anything else your policy sets.
- The planner suggests a rota for the week, starting from each guard's regular pattern, and fills gaps with eligible guards, balancing hours.
- The scheduler reviews and adjusts. Every change is checked immediately, and a rule broken is shown in red with the reason.
- Unfilled shifts are listed clearly, so recruitment or subcontract needs are visible early.
- Publishing sends each guard their shifts by app or text, and changes after publishing are sent as updates, with the guard confirming.
| Rule type | Example the planner checks |
|---|---|
| Eligibility | Licence valid on the shift date, site induction completed |
| Rest | Enough hours between a night finish and the next start |
| Hours | Weekly and period totals within your limits |
| Client | Only named or vetted guards on a particular site |
| Preference | Guards not rostered on days they have said they cannot work |
A week with rota planning
On Tuesday morning the scheduler opens next week's suggested rota, sees three gaps and two warnings, fixes them, and publishes by lunchtime. Guards confirm on their phones. When a guard asks to swap, the swap is checked against the rules before it is approved. The control room and payroll see the same rota. When a new site starts, its inducted guards are clear, and if there are not enough, the planner shows that before the week starts.
Does this sound like your scheduling week?
- The rota is copied from last week and fixed by hand.
- Licence and induction checks are done by eye.
- Rest and hours are added up in the scheduler's head.
- The rota goes out as a PDF or a group message.
- Payroll and the control room work from different versions.