Create and Manage a Small Group

This guide walks you through creating a small group (Circle) in SanctuaryOS, adding members, assigning a leader, setting a meeting schedule, and enabling the group on the public Group Finder so new members can discover and request to join.

Prerequisites

• Members who will join the group should already exist in Flock
• The person who will lead the group should have an active SanctuaryOS profile
• SUPER_ADMIN, LEAD_PASTOR, or PASTOR role to create groups

Phase 1 — Create the Group

1. Navigate to Circles → Groups
2. Click “New Group”
3. Fill in the group details:
   • Group Name — a clear, descriptive name (e.g., “Downtown Young Adults”, “Tuesday Morning Bible Study”)
   • Group Type — select from configured types (e.g., Bible Study, Fellowship, Prayer, Support)
   • Campus — which campus this group belongs to
   • Description — a short description that members will see on the Group Finder
4. Click “Create”

Phase 2 — Assign a Leader

1. Open the newly created group by clicking its name in the groups list
2. In the group detail page, find the Leader section
3. Click “Assign Leader” and search for the leader by name
4. Select the person — they are now the group leader and will be displayed on the Group Finder

Phase 3 — Add Members

1. In the group detail page, navigate to the Members tab
2. Click “Add Member”
3. Search for a member by name and click to add them
4. Repeat for each member you want to add
5. The member count updates in the group card on the groups list page

Phase 4 — Set the Meeting Schedule

1. In the group detail page, find the Schedule section
2. Set the Meeting Day (e.g., Tuesday)
3. Set the Meeting Time (e.g., 7:00 PM)
4. Optionally set the Location (e.g., “Smith Home” or a church room)
5. Set the Frequency — Weekly, Bi-weekly, or Monthly
6. Save the schedule

Phase 5 — Enable on Group Finder

The Group Finder is a public-facing directory where people can browse and request to join groups.

1. In the group settings, find the Visibility toggle
2. Enable “Show on Group Finder”
3. The group now appears on Circles → Finder with its name, type, meeting day/time, leader name, and description
4. Interested members can submit a Join Request through the Finder

Phase 6 — Monitor Group Health

SanctuaryOS calculates a health score for each group based on attendance regularity, meeting frequency, and member engagement.

1. Navigate to Circles → Groups
2. Each group card shows a health indicator:
   • Healthy (score 70+) — green
   • At Risk (score 45–69) — amber
   • Needs Attention (score below 45) — red
3. Click a group to see detailed health metrics and attendance history
4. Use the Circles → Health page for a bird's-eye view across all groups

What's Next