Quick start

This is the whole journey on one page, from buying the kit to the first lesson a learner books online. Each step links to the chapter with the details. Most schools get through it in an afternoon.

Features marked (Pro) need a Pro or Agency licence.

1. Buy and download

1. Buy the Driving kit and keep the receipt email: it has your licence key. See Buying and your licence.
2. Sign in to your licences page and download the three files: Gradespace Core, the Gradespace Driving plugin (a plugin is an add-on for WordPress) and the Gradespace Driving theme. Leave them as .zip files.
3. Check your hosting and take a backup if the website already has content. See Before you install.

2. Install, in this order

1. Gradespace Core, then the Gradespace Driving plugin, then the Gradespace Driving theme. See Installing.
2. Add your licence key under Settings → Gradespace licence and click Activate. Without a key the kit runs in Starter mode.

3. Run the setup wizard

The wizard opens by itself after installing. It asks about your school, the areas you cover, your instructors, your lessons and prices, your opening hours and online booking, and then adds starter pages, theory guides and a menu. See The Driving setup wizard and The setup wizard in general.

You can run it again later from Driving school → Settings → Run setup again.

4. Check what the wizard made

Go through each list once and fill in anything missing.

1. Areas covered: each area has the right postcode districts, for example "NG2, NG12". See Areas covered and the postcode check.
2. Instructors: each has a photo, a few words, their gearbox, car and the Areas they cover. Only instructors who cover a learner's area are offered online. See Instructors.
3. Lesson types: prices for manual and automatic, and whether the first lesson is free. See Lesson types and prices.
4. Opening hours and each instructor's teaching hours. See Settings and Instructors.
5. Packages (Pro): your blocks of hours and courses. See Block bookings and courses.

5. Choose your look

Pick one of the three designs (Signal, Neighbour or Glide) and a colour palette, add your logo and check the menu. See Designs, pages and menus and Your look.

6. Decide how online booking works

Open Driving school → Settings → Lessons and decide:

• whether each online booking is a request you confirm (the default) or is confirmed straight away;
• how much notice you need and how far ahead learners can book;
• until when learners can move or cancel online (48 hours before by default);
• (Pro) the travel time between areas.

See Settings.

7. Set up the people

1. Give each instructor who should see their own diary a sign-in with the Instructor role, and link it under Their sign-in on their profile. See Instructors.
2. Add office staff. See Staff and sign-in.
3. Check where emails go and who they come from under Settings → Email, and send yourself a test email. See Privacy and emails.

8. Take a test booking

1. Open your website in a private browser window and click Book a lesson.
2. Type a postcode in one of your areas, choose the gearbox, then a lesson, an instructor, a day and a time. See Online booking.
3. Fill in the pickup and your own details, and click Request the lesson.

9. Confirm it

1. Sign in. You land on Driving school → Today, where the booking waits under Lesson requests to confirm.
2. Click Confirm. The learner gets an email with the pickup, the instructor and a calendar invite. See Lessons and the diary.
3. Cancel your test lesson afterwards so the time is free again.

That's it: your school is taking bookings. From now on, start each day with Daily running.