How Notifications Work for View-Only (Limited Access) Parents

Overview

Setup Considerations for District

Step 1: Confirm SSO Is Enabled for the Provider

Step 2: Make Sure the Parent Is Linked on the Registration

Step 3: The View-Only Parent Sets Their Communication Preferences

Step 4: Emails View-Only Parents Receive

Step 5: Text Messages View-Only Parents Receive

Notifications Not Sent to View-Only Parents

Key Takeaways

Overview

In districts that use school SSO, a child's registration often involves more than one parent. One parent registers the child. Other parents can still see the registration from their own ActivityHero account. These are view-only (limited access) parents: they have an ActivityHero account and are linked to the child's registration, but they did not create it. They can view the registration but can't edit or cancel it.

View-only parents who are listed as Parent 1 or Parent 2 on the registration now receive registration-related emails and text messages directly. Each one gets messages based on their own Communication Preferences, so they stay informed about confirmations, schedule changes, waitlists, lotteries and session reminders. Payment and form actions stay with the parent who registered.

This document is for district admins, program coordinators and support staff who manage registrations in ActivityHero and answer parent questions about notifications.

Setup Considerations for District

Before relying on view-only parent notifications, districts should confirm:

• The provider/district has SSO enabled in ActivityHero. View-only access and view-only notifications only apply to SSO-enabled providers.
  
  
• The parent is linked to the registration in one of the two ways described in Step 2. To receive notifications, the parent must be listed as Parent 1 or Parent 2 on the registration, with an email or cell phone that matches their own ActivityHero account. A parent linked only through the student's school record can see the registration but doesn't receive notifications for it.
  
  
• The registration form is complete. View-only parents don't receive notifications for a registration whose form is still incomplete.
  
  
• Staff know that a view-only parent's own notification preferences control what they receive,  the "receive notifications" checkbox the registering parent filled in on the form.

Step 1: Confirm SSO Is Enabled for the Provider

View-only access and view-only parent notifications only apply to providers with SSO enabled. If SSO isn't enabled, other parents don't get view-only access. Notifications go only to the registering parent, and Parent 1 / Parent 2 contacts are CC'd as before.

Step 2: Make Sure the Parent Is Linked on the Registration

A parent who didn't create the registration gets view-only access in either of these ways:

A. Through the Parent 1 / Parent 2 contacts on the registration:

1. ActivityHero reads the Parent 1 and Parent 2 contact details entered on the registration form.

2. It matches the contact's email (or, if there's no email match, cell phone) to an existing ActivityHero account.

3. If the matching account isn't the parent who registered the child, that parent gets view-only access.

B. Through the student's school record:

1. A child on the parent's own ActivityHero account is connected to the same student school record as the registered child.

2. The parent is also listed as a parent in that student's school (SIS) records.

3. If both are true, the parent gets view-only access, even if they aren't listed as Parent 1 / Parent 2 on the registration.
   
   

How a parent's child gets connected to the school record depends on the provider:

• Providers that create user accounts from school data: When school data is synced, ActivityHero creates an account for each listed parent, adds the child and connects it automatically.
  
  
• Other providers: the child is connected when the parent adds the child to the cart or a waitlist for one of the provider's sessions and completes school verification.

Which parents receive notifications? Only parents linked through option A (Parent 1 / Parent 2) receive registration emails and texts. A parent linked only through option B can see the registration in My Registrations, use Scan Mode check-in/out, get a pick-up PIN and sync it to their calendar, but doesn't receive registration notifications.

NOTES:

• If the registered child isn't connected to a school record, option B doesn't apply. ActivityHero doesn't try to match by name and date of birth.
  
  
• Release contacts never get view-only access.
  
  
• If a parent should receive notifications but their account email or phone doesn't match the Parent 1 / Parent 2 contact on the registration, ask the registering parent to update those contact details to match the other parent's ActivityHero account.

Step 3: The View-Only Parent Sets Their Communication Preferences

Each view-only parent controls their own notifications from Communication Preferences in their ActivityHero account:

• Email notifications on: They receive registration emails at their account email.
  
  
• Text notifications on: They receive registration text messages at their account phone number.
  
  

A view-only parent's own preferences take priority. They still receive notifications if the registering parent unchecked "receive notifications" for that contact on the registration form.

Which address or number is used? Usually the account and the registration form have the same contact details. If they differ (for example, the account phone is 555-1234 but the registration form lists 555-9999), ActivityHero can send to both, with no duplicates.

Step 4: Emails View-Only Parents Receive

Step 5: Text Messages View-Only Parents Receive

If text notifications are on, view-only parents receive text messages for:

• Registration confirmation
• Cancellation confirmation
• Change/cancel request submitted
• Session reassignment
• Session location change
• Provider session information update
• Joined waitlist
• Lottery results
• Session reminder
• Provider bulk text (session updates)
  
  

Notifications Not Sent to View-Only Parents

These notifications involve actions only the registering parent can take, so they still go only to the registering parent:

• Form completion reminders
• Invitation off the waitlist (accepting a spot)
• Payments, invoices (sent, paid, failed), payment schedules and credit card payments made by the provider
• Refund notifications
• Review requests
• Marketing bulk emails

Key Takeaways

• View-only access and notifications only apply to SSO-enabled providers. Notifications start only once the registration form is complete.
  
  
• A parent gets view-only access when either their account email or phone matches the Parent 1 / Parent 2 contact on the registration, or a child on their account is connected to the same student school record and they're listed as a parent in the school's records.
  
  
• Notifications go only to view-only parents matched through Parent 1 / Parent 2. A parent linked only through the school record can see the registration but doesn't receive emails or texts for it.
  
  
• The view-only parent's own Communication Preferences decide whether they receive emails and texts.
  
  
• View-only parents receive informational updates (confirmations, schedule and location changes, waitlist, lottery, reminders) but no payment, form or action-required messages.
  
  
• Emails go to view-only parents as their own message, not as a CC, so no one receives duplicates.