> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://pigeonholeapp.co.uk/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Emailing Parents
> How to send bulk emails to parents from the children's list, compose messages with the email editor, manage attachments, and use email templates.
# Emailing Parents
Pigeonhole allows you to quickly send emails to the parents of selected children directly from the children's list. You can compose rich-text emails, attach files, choose which types of contacts receive the email, and save your messages as reusable templates.
## Sending an Email
### Selecting Children
1. Go to the **Children** page.
2. Use the checkboxes to select one or more children.
3. Open the **Bulk Actions** menu and choose **Email Parents**.
A full-screen panel will open where you can compose your email.
### Choosing Recipients
At the top of the email panel, you will see two toggle switches under **Recipients**:
* **Parental Responsibility** - sends to contacts marked as having parental responsibility for the selected children.
* **Bill Payers** - sends to contacts marked as bill payers for the selected children.
You can enable one or both. At least one must be selected. If a parent is both a bill payer and has parental responsibility, they will only receive one copy of the email.
### Composing Your Message
Fill in the **Subject** line for the email. The **Reply To** field is pre-filled with your nursery's email address from your site settings, but you can change it. When a parent replies to your email, their reply will go to this address.
Use the message editor to write your email content. The editor supports:
* **Bold**, *italic*, ~~strikethrough~~, and underline text
* Headings (H1, H2, H3)
* Bulleted and numbered lists
* Links - select text, then click the link icon in the toolbar to add a URL
* Block quotes
* Horizontal dividers
* Template variables (see below)
To format text, select the text you want to change. A floating toolbar will appear with formatting options including bold, italic, underline, strikethrough, headings, alignment, and links.
### Using Variables
You can insert dynamic variables into both the subject line and body of your email. Click a variable button to insert it at the cursor position, or type it directly.
| Variable | Replaced with |
| ----------------------- | -------------------------------- |
| `{{todays_date}}` | Today's date (e.g. 11 June 2026) |
| `{{child_first_name}}` | The child's first name |
| `{{child_last_name}}` | The child's last name |
| `{{parent_first_name}}` | The parent's first name |
| `{{parent_surname}}` | The parent's surname |
Variables are replaced with real data when the email is sent. Each recipient receives a personalised email with their own details filled in.
### Adding Attachments
1. Click the **Attach Files** button.
2. Select one or more files from your computer.
3. Attached files will appear in a list below the button. Click the **X** next to a file to remove it.
Attachments are uploaded to temporary storage and included with each email sent. There is no strict file size limit, but keep attachments reasonable for email delivery.
### Sending
Once your email is ready, click **Send Email**. You will be asked to confirm before the email is sent. After confirmation, the email is queued for delivery to all matching parent email addresses. You will see a message confirming how many recipients the email was sent to.
## Email Templates
Templates let you save email content for reuse. This is useful for recurring communications like newsletters, reminders, or term updates.
### Loading a Template
If you have saved templates, a **Template** dropdown will appear at the top of the email panel. Select a template to load its subject, reply-to address, content, and any saved attachments into the editor.
### Saving a Template While Sending
When composing an email, if you have made changes (or are not using a template), a **Send & Save Template** button will appear alongside the Send button. Clicking this will:
1. Send the email to the selected parents.
2. Save the email content as a new template (using the subject as the template name), or update the existing template if you loaded one.
### Managing Templates
You can create, edit, and delete templates from **Settings** > **Email Templates** > **Parents** tab.
#### Creating a Template
1. Click **New Template**.
2. Enter a **Name** for the template - this is how it will appear in the template dropdown.
3. Enter the **Subject** line that will be pre-filled when the template is loaded.
4. Optionally set a **Reply To** address.
5. Compose the template content in the editor.
6. Attach any files that should be included by default when this template is used.
7. Click **Save Template**.
#### Editing a Template
1. Find the template in the list and click the pencil icon.
2. Make your changes to the name, subject, reply-to, content, or attachments.
3. Click **Save Template**.
#### Deleting a Template
1. Find the template in the list and click the bin icon.
2. Confirm the deletion.
Deleting a template also removes any attachments stored with it. This cannot be undone.
## How Emails Are Delivered
All emails sent through Pigeonhole include your nursery's name and logo in the header, and a standard footer. If a reply-to address is set, the footer will include a message directing parents to reply to that address. If no reply-to is set, the footer will advise parents not to reply to the email.
Emails are delivered individually to each parent. If the same email address appears for multiple selected children (for example, siblings), only one email will be sent to that address.
## Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Templates are optional. You can compose a new email from scratch every time.
Yes. Use the select all checkbox on the children's list to select all children, then choose Email Parents from the bulk actions menu.
You can attach any file type. Common types include PDF, Word documents, and images. Keep file sizes reasonable for email delivery.
The confirmation message shows the total number of recipients. Individual delivery tracking is not currently available.
Parents without an email address on file will not receive the email. Only contacts with a valid email address are included.