This guide has been created with the aim of helping users understand the system basics, refresh their knowledge after training, and serve as a recap when it’s hard to remember everything that was shown. It is useful for new staff getting familiar with the system, as well as for those looking to build their first form.

Some fields available in areas covered by this guide will not be explained. These can be ignored for the purpose of completing basic configuration.

What this guide includes

Within this configuration guide, you will find the steps to set up and configure a form along with the basic processes offered within MCS. These include:

• Creating a catalogue to hold forms.
• Creating a basic form.
• Creating your statuses.
• Creating a transition using your statuses and applying it to a form.
• Creating an email template.
• Creating a rule and applying it to your form to send automated emails upon submission.

Catalogues

What is a catalogue?

A catalogue acts as a container for forms, making it easier to categorise, manage, and retrieve them when needed. Proper usage of catalogues ensures users can quickly locate forms and restrict access between service areas. This section will walk you through setting up a catalogue.

Creating a catalogue

A catalogue can be created through forms builder. This can be located by navigating to the ‘Administration’ tab and selecting ‘Forms builder’ from the ‘Service request and Case’ region.

You will then need to tick the ‘catalogue’ box along with the subsequent options and click on ‘search’. Next select the ‘add catalogue’ button that appears in the below region to create your own catalogue.

This will open a new region to the right where you can enter the details of your catalogue.

• Set a name for your catalogue. This may be a specific service area.
• For creating forms completable by customers and admin users, the type should be set to ‘service request’.
• Enabling ‘sharing’ will allow forms created in this catalogue to be accessible to other councils in the ‘form store’ by default.
• The selected transition will act as the default transition for forms created in this catalogue. This can later be updated for individual forms.

Applying access control

When creating a catalogue, you will also have the ability to set the access level for users. This will allow you to lock down the catalogue and forms within to only specified access groups.

For example, if creating a ‘street scene’ catalogue, you can set the access to only those with a ‘street scene’ role, therefore preventing anyone outside of this catalogue from viewing submitted forms contained within. This is done by clicking on the ‘access roles’ button. Once you have selected your access role/s, click on ‘apply’ to confirm the selection.

If you do not select a specific access group, then the catalogue will be accessible by all administrators by default.

Forms

How are forms used?

Forms are used both internally and externally to capture information as part of a request or report across various council services. In My Council Services, forms can be configured to contains a variety of different items and components used to collect relevant data from the submitter. This section covers the basics of creating a form, including adding fields and configuring other settings.

Elements of a form

Forms within MCS follow a hierarchical structure. The diagram below illustrates the key components of a form and how they fit together:

• Catalogue – A catalogue serves as a container that holds multiple forms. It helps organise forms based on categories, making them easier to manage and access.

• Form – A form sits within a catalogue and is used to collect and process information for various council services. It consists of multiple pages to structure the user input logically.

• Page – Forms are divided into pages, helping to separate different sections of information. This makes it easier for users to complete forms in a structured way.

• Region – Within each page, regions act as containers for related form elements. They help in grouping fields and improving readability.

• Items – These are the individual fields or components within a region where users enter data. Items can include text fields, dropdowns, checkboxes, and other input elements needed for the form.

This structured approach ensures that forms are user-friendly, well-organised, and easy to navigate.

Creating a form

To create a form first navigate to the ‘Administration’ tab and select ‘Forms builder’ from the ‘Service request and Case’ region.

You will then need to tick the ‘catalogue’ box along with the subsequent options, select your created catalogue from the catalogue drop down box, and click on ‘search’. Next select the ‘add form’ button that appears in the below region to create a form within the selected catalogue.

After clicking ‘add form’, a region will appear on the right to enter the required details. Only the basic configuration options are covered within this guide.

• Name – Set the form name.
• Transition – Select a transition. If you have not yet created a transition, you can leave this as the default and update later on.
• Access – You can restrict forms to specific users within a catalogue. You can set specific access for individual forms. The steps for configuring access are the same as mentioned in the ‘catalogues’ section of this guide. You can further lock things down on a form-by-form basis.
• Status – Allows you to disable forms if not in use.
• Sharing – Allows the form to appear on the form store, available to other councils to import.
• Short URL – Enabling this will allow you to share a link to this form with external persons. For example, you may publish the short URL to your website to allow residents to submit it without having to go through the customer portal.
• Home routing – Setting this to ‘enabled’ will ensure that all submissions remain in your system regardless of the selected location. If this is disabled, then submissions will be automatically routed to the relevant authority where the selected location is outside of your boundary.

Once you have filled in the details as required, click on ‘add’ in the top-right.

Adding pages and regions

Now you have completed the first step towards building your form, you will need to begin to create the content.

The form tree will appear to the left of the screen, and you can use this to add a page, and then a region. Each page must have at least one region within it to hold the required items. Please refer to the form structure diagram shown previously for clarification on this.

To add a page, click on the ‘add page’ button. Once you have given your page a name and added it to the form, you can click on the ‘add region’ button to create a region.

Note that the page name will be visible to residents as they complete their form regardless of the channel used, while the region name will only be visible to them if completing through the mobile application.

Adding items to a page

Once you have configured a page and a region, you can begin to add items to your form. Items are the individual fields where users can enter information, such as text fields, dropdown menus (select lists), checkboxes, and date pickers. Items can also be used to display information, such as instructions, helping to guide users through the form and provide necessary context.

To add a new item, click on ‘add item’ from the form tree on the left-hand side. This will then open the item on the region on the right of the screen allowing you to configure that particular item. This process can be completed to add additional items as required.

Adding a textfield

A textfield item is an input field that allows users to enter a single line of text, such as names, email addresses, or short responses. It can be configured with default values, and validation rules to ensure accurate data entry.

Any item that is added should be given a label. This will appear as the text above the item on the form, for example ‘first name’. Access roles can also be configured against specific items, this can allow you request certain information from ‘guest’ users, without asking the question to signed in users, for example.

Please also note that buttons do not need to be added for the purpose of publishing forms to the customer portal. Buttons must be added to make the forms accessible for the mobile application, but this will be covered in a later guide.

Once you have configured the label of the item, you will need to define what type of item it is. The example below shows configuration for a ‘first name’ textfield. Fields can also be marked as mandatory or non-mandatory as required.

The ‘default value’ can be used to pull details from a customer’s profile into the form. This is useful to prevent users from having to re-enter information that they have already provided to the council. To use this functionality, click on the ‘dynamic fields’ text on the right, and select from the list of available options.

Fields can also be marked as mandatory or non-mandatory as required.

Once you have finished the configuration for your item, click on ‘add’ in the top corner to add it to your form. Once added, the item will appear in your form tree, and you can click on the item label to edit it again. You should also refer to the form tree to add a new item, page, or region.

Adding a select list

A select list item is a dropdown menu that allows users to choose a single option from a predefined list. It helps standardise responses, reduce input errors, and streamline form completion by presenting clear choices. Radio groups and check boxes follow the same configuration steps as a select list. A radio group displays all options on the page rather than a behind a selection box, and the check box item allows for multiple selections.

To add a select list, add a new item with the item type of ‘select list’, set the label, and click on add. Once added, scroll down on the configuration section for the select list item until you reach the answer region, from here you can add rows as required, and should set your answer values in the ‘value’ column. You can also define the order of the answers by inputting numbers into the ‘seq’ column, as per the below image. Once you have added your answers, click ‘save’ and they should appear in your form tree.

Once added, you will also have the option in the form tree to add a sub-item. These are items which will appear only when the parent answer is selected. For example, if an option on the select list is ‘other’ you may want to add a textfield as a sub item with the label ‘please specify’.

Adding a location picker

Components can also be added to a form to provide more details questions or functionality for the submitter. Common components include location pickers, file pickers, and more advanced functionality such as the ability to add booking plugins. This guide will only cover the core, basic, components.

To add a location picker, you should set the ‘item type’ of a new item to ‘component’ and select ‘location picker’ from the following list.

If you want the location selected in the location picker to be the main location that is associated with the address and immediately visible on the service request, you should set the component to ‘primary’. You can only have one primary location picker per form.

Page visibility

Page visibility conditions control whether a page in a form is shown or hidden based on user input. A select list item can be used to manage this by allowing users to choose an option that determines which pages appear next. This helps streamline the form by only showing necessary sections.

Clicking on a page within the form will allow you enable page visibility conditions. Once you have turned this on, you can click on ‘add’ to add a condition. This will allow you to select an earlier question from the form and define what answer must be made for the selected page to show. If a different answer is selected than that defined in the page visibility condition, the page will be skipped.

Publishing your changes

When you have finished making your changes to the form, it will need to be published. This can be done through the ‘action’ region at the top of the forms builder page, where unpublished pages will be clearly display. To publish the changes, simply tick the boxes next to the required pages, and click on publish.

Statuses

What are statuses?

Statuses represent the different stages a form can go through within MCS. They help track progress, control transitions, and ensure that forms move through a defined workflow. In this section, you will learn how to create and manage statuses to suit your process needs.

Creating your statuses

To create a status, you will need to navigate to administration, and the access the ‘status’ page found within the ‘service request and case’ region. Next, click on ‘add’ to create a new status. Statuses do not need to be bespoke for each form, for example, if all service areas use a ‘work in progress’ status, then generally only one version of the status needs to be created.

After clicking on ‘add’ you will need to set the name of the status, as well as some other parameters. Most of these can be left as their default setting.

• Name – This is the name of the status and will be visible to both admin users and form submitters.
• Type – The ‘type’ should reflect the type of status selected. If the created status will be the final in the lifecycle of the request, a ‘closed’ type should be used.
• Final – Used to define if the created status will be the final status in the lifecycle of a service request.

Repeat this process for each required status.

Transitions

What is a transition?

A transition defines how a form moves from one status to another. It allows you to control the flow of forms, ensuring that they follow the required steps. This section will guide you through creating a transition and applying it to your form.

Building a transition

Once you have created your statuses, you will need to add them to a transition. This can be done by navigating to administration, and the accessing the ‘transitions’ page found within the ‘service request and case’ region. Click on ‘add’ to create a new transition.

• Name – This will be the name of your transition and is visible only internally.
• Type – This should be set to ‘service request’ as we are creating a customer form.
• Initial status – This is what status the form will be in when it is first submitted.
• Final status – This should define the final status in the lifecycle of the service request.

Once you have set these initial parameters click on ‘add’ and the ‘status’ region will then appear. This is where you dictate the order in which the service request can change from status to status. There is no limit on the number of rows which can be added.

In the example above, when the service request is received in an ‘open’ status, it can then only be changed to ‘work in progress’, and when it is in the ‘work in progress’ status, it can then only be changed to ‘closed’. If a service request was closed in error, a new row would need to be added from ‘closed’ to ‘open/work in progress’, to allow it to be reopened. Please note that if you have rules which trigger on a status change to a specific status, these rules would be triggered again by this change.

Applying it to your form

To apply the transition to your form, navigate back to forms builder, search for and select your form, and update the ‘transition’ field to your newly created transition.

Templates

What are email templates?

Email templates allow you to automate and standardise communication within MCS, ensuring consistent messaging for residents, staff, and other relevant parties. templates can be used to send ad hoc emails, or in conjunction with rules to automatically send emails at defined points in a form’s lifecycle. This section covers how to create email templates on the system.

Creating an email template

From within the administration page, navigate to ‘templates’ under the ‘general’ region. Next, select ‘email template’ and click on ‘add’ to create a new template.

Next give your template a name, set the required access, enter a subject, and enter the body text of the email.

You can click on the ‘copy’ icon from the merge field list on the right to pull dynamic data through to the email. In the example above the dynamic field for the report reference number and recipient name are used, meaning when this email template is used these fields will automatically populate.

Rules (automation)

How is automation used?

Rules are used to automate actions within MCS, such as sending email notifications or triggering workflow changes. By setting up rules, you can enhance efficiency and reduce manual intervention. This section will guide you through creating and applying a basic rule to your forms.

Creating and applying a rule process

First, navigate to administration, and then select ‘rules’ from the ‘service request and case’ region.

We first need to create a process to categorise our rules. To do this, click on the ‘process’ button, and then ‘add’ from the following page to create a new process. You must give your process a name and a number. It is recommended that you use processes to separate rules between service areas, and sub-processes for categorising forms within these.

Once your process has been created, you will need to map it to your form in forms builder. To do this navigate to your form and select it. Then, scroll down until you reach the ‘rule process’ region, and select your created process. If you do not complete this step, then your created rules may not run.

Creating a rule

From the main rule page, click on ‘add’ to create a new rule and complete the required fields. This example will detail creating a rule that runs when a service request is submitter, however you can create rules to run in a variety of other scenarios, such as when a status is changed or a note added to a service request.

• Process – Set the process as required.
• Rule – Enter the name for your rule. This is only visible to administrators.
• Option – This is the scenario in which the rule will run. This example shows the creation of a rule that runs when a service request is created (service – added).
• Match conditions – You can configure multiple conditions that need to be met for a rule to run. Here you can define whether all conditions must be met, or just one of the conditions.

Once you have completed this, you must then click on ‘add’ to proceed. This will cause two regions to appear where you can add the conditions that must be met for the rule to run, and the actions that will be completed as part of this.

To create a condition, click on ‘add’. Again, there are a number of options available allowing you to define conditions such as specific question responses within a form. As we are creating a rule to notify the submitter that we have received their report, we will add the ‘form’ condition and select our created form. Select your form and then click on ‘add’ to confirm the selection.

So far, our created rule indicates that when a form is submitted, and that form is ‘example form’, our rule will run. We now need to add the automated action. To do this click on ‘add’ in the ‘action’ region. Once again, there are numerous automated actions that can be added here, but we will select ‘notify submitter’ to set a notification to send once a report has been submitted.

To configure this notification, set the notification type to ‘email’, set the content type to ‘message’ and select your email template from the drop-down list. If you do not want to use a configured email template, the ‘service request content’ content type can be used to send the complete request content using the standard system email formatting.

Once you have finished adding your rules and conditions, you can view them from the main page of the rule. From here you can add additional conditions and actions, or edit those that have already been created.

Next Steps and Further Support

This guide has provided a step-by-step overview of configuring forms within MCS, from setting up catalogues and forms to managing statuses, transitions, and automation rules. By following these instructions, you can create basic forms and workflows for use on the system.

If you require further assistance or have specific questions, please contact your assigned consultants or created a support ticket through the usual channels.