How PaddleSafe works (by role)

In-app help: open Help → How PaddleSafe works (by role), or present it as slides.

A short walkthrough for participants, leaders, organisation duty, and emergency operators. Each section is one job — full step-by-step detail lives in the linked guides.

Why the app exists (personal log, club booking, shared responsibility): Why PaddleSafe exists (slides). Menu names: Words in the app.

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What it solves

PaddleSafe is four jobs on every trip — not only a duty radio.

PaddleSafe records. People decide. Purpose talk: Why PaddleSafe exists.

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One session loop

Every role fits the same loop: plan → join → on the water → safe return → close and archive.

flowchart LR
    A[1 Plan] --> B[2 Join]
    B --> C[3 On the water]
    C --> D[4 Safe return]
    D --> E[5 Close and archive]

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Roles at a glance

Privileged matrix (admin, Site administrator, membership): Account roles.

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Participants

Job: get on the roster, confirm you are back, keep your book.

• Adults can join with no website account via the leader’s link or QR.
• If the join page says Sign-in closed, the trip is usually still on. Planning means the leader paused new joins; on the water means it has started. That is not cancelled — contact the named leader or duty officer shown on the page. After Start they add you with Add participant (adult) or Add minor (with consent) on the leader page On the water card.
• Under-18s need a parent/guardian account or the leader.
• Tick the privacy notice on join. After sign-in you get a personal safe-return link — keep it until you mark safe.
• If you cannot make it, leave before the leader Starts. Home / My sessions / Account / My trips use a leave link that names whose place it is (Give up my place, Give up my place and the children's, or Remove [name] from this session). That only removes those people; the session stays on. After Start, mark safe first, then you may leave. If you are the named session leader, use Hand over to another leader or Cancel this session instead.
• Profile is your can-do log, not a Paddle Award. Logging waits until the leader completes the session. Sign up if you want that book kept without the trip link.
• Download a copy of your information from the safe-return page (or Personal details if you have an account). Hide your name from club peers on Personal details.

Detail: Join without an account · Join while signed in · Privacy and your data.

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How a guest joins

flowchart LR
    A[Open join / QR] --> B{Sign-in open?}
    B -->|No| X[Contact leader]
    B -->|Yes| C[Fill form]
    C --> D[Date of birth]
    D --> E{18+?}
    E -->|No| Y[Parent, guardian, or leader]

flowchart LR
    F[Privacy notice] --> G[Submit]
    G --> H[Keep personal page]
    H --> I[After trip: Mark as safe]
    H --> J["Cannot make it: Leave this session"]

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If you cannot make it

Leave before the leader Starts. That frees your place. It does not cancel or delete the session.

flowchart TD
    A[Cannot make the session] --> B{Has the leader pressed Start?}
    B -->|No — still planning| C[Open your personal page]
    C --> D[Leave this session]
    D --> E[You leave; session stays on]
    B -->|Yes — on the water| F[Mark yourself safe first]
    F --> G[Then Leave this session]

Leaving yourself also removes linked dependents you signed in. The trip stays on for everyone else. To come back, use the join link while sign-in is still open.

Detail: Join without an account · Join while signed in · Privacy and your data.

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Privacy and your data

The club is the data controller. The app records the tick, hides ICE from peers, and splits Past sessions (named archive) from Log / Profile (your book, no other names).

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Leaders

Job: plan the trip, share the join link, start on the water, confirm returns, complete — then Log / optional Coach pack.

Create needs title, date/time, and aims. Pick a named operating area for location; a route is optional. On the leader page, call the Present / Not present register, and Remove if they should not have a place. Read endorsed can-dos (capsize and rescue first) plus Paddle UK awards on each name. After Start, a booked late arrival is Present under Not on the water; Remove if they never launched; a new walk-up is Add participant.

If you cannot run a trip you lead, Hand over to another leader or Cancel this session from My trips / the personal page (or Session details on the leader page). That assigns another verified leader immediately, or calls the whole trip off. Give up my place is a paddler action and does not un-name you as leader.

Wrap-up Covered today is what you delivered with the group. It is not a remit.

flowchart LR
    A[Sign in] --> B[Home]
    B --> C[Create session]
    C --> D[Fill form]
    D --> E[Leader page]
    E --> F[Share join / QR]

flowchart LR
    F[Participants join] --> G[Enrolled — accept if needed]
    G --> H[Start]
    H --> I[Roster and safe return]
    I --> J[Complete]

If something goes wrong: Emergency summary on the leader page. Detail: Create a session. Sea A-to-B (launch to take-out vs a passage plan): Planning a sea kayak trip (A to B).

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Session lifecycle

stateDiagram-v2
    direction LR
    [*] --> Open: Session created
    Open --> Open: Participants join
    Open --> Started: Leader starts
    Started --> Open: Revert mistaken Start
    Started --> Started: Mark safe
    Started --> Completed: All safe
    Completed --> [*]

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Organisation duty

Job: watch active sessions from shore — live map, traffic lights, overdue alerts.

• Use Organisation (duty dashboard / live map). You do not get the Emergency Dashboard unless you also hold Emergency services / Site administrator.
• The duty dashboard has four on/off status chips (Scheduled, On track, Past end, Overdue). All four start on; turn Scheduled off to hide trips that have not launched.
• Pins need organisation home water and session launch / location set (see the duty guide). Session pins show leader (or title) initials so same-place trips stay distinct; colour is still the traffic light.
• Amber = past planned end, not all safe. Red = overdue after the grace period; duty may be emailed/texted.
• Organisation admins (a different tick) get a weekly first-aid / safeguarding digest for members whose declared dates are due soon or expired. Duty sees the glance on Members. Members are not emailed.
• Organisation admins (a different tick) get a weekly first-aid / safeguarding digest for members whose declared dates are due soon or expired. Duty sees the glance on Members. Members are not emailed.

stateDiagram-v2
    direction LR
    [*] --> Planning: Not started
    Planning --> Green: Leader starts
    Green --> Amber: End time / not all safe
    Amber --> Green: Everyone safe
    Amber --> Red: End + grace
    Red --> Green: Everyone safe

Detail: Organisation duty and live map · Overdue session alerts.

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Emergency operators

Job: regional picture of sessions that need attention — operational fields only.

• Emergency Dashboard for Emergency services and Site administrator (not Organisation duty unless those roles are also granted).
• SAR card: venue, contacts, craft counts, safe-return progress — not full medical or home address.
• PaddleSafe still does not call 999. People share the roster; see the next slide.

Detail: Emergency Dashboard.

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When something goes wrong

PaddleSafe does not call 999 automatically. People do — then use the app to share roster and ICE.

flowchart LR
    A[Planned end] --> B{All safe?}
    B -->|Yes| Z[No alert]
    B -->|No| C[Past end]
    C --> D{Grace over?}
    D -->|No| E[Finish returns]
    D -->|Yes| F[Overdue]

flowchart LR
    F[Overdue] --> G{Duty acks?}
    G -->|Within 15 min| H[Club procedures]
    G -->|No| I[Escalation]

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If there is immediate danger

flowchart LR
    J{Immediate danger?} -->|Yes| K[Call 999 or 112]
    J -->|No| E[Finish returns]
    K --> L[Emergency summary]
    L --> M[Copy share link]
    M --> N[Forward to coordinator]

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Sharing the responder view

How leader and duty share the same responder view:

flowchart LR
    subgraph Leader["Leader on coach page"]
        L1[Emergency summary button]
        L1 --> L2["Full page: location, ICE, safe status"]
        L2 --> L3[Copy share link]
    end

    subgraph Duty["Duty / escalation from alert"]
        D1[Email or SMS alert]
        D1 --> D2[Acknowledge link]
        D1 --> D3["Emergency and roster summary link"]
        D3 --> D4["Same ICE and roster view"]
        D4 --> D5["Copy link for 999 coordinator"]
    end

    L3 --> S["Share URL /duty/emergency/token"]
    D5 --> S

    S --> R["Responder opens link - no leader password"]

Full flows: Emergency response.

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Next guides