In this tutorial we will cover how to generate an invoice for an individual child and also how to do this in bulk for multiple children. We will then look at sending the invoice by email individually and in bulk.
Before generating your first invoice, we would recommend making sure you have your Invoice Configuration section filled in. This is where you can set what information is displayed in the header and footer sections of all PDFs you generate of invoices on your account. Here you can also the default due date for your invoices, which is the number of days after an invoice is generated that it becomes due. This tutorial will run you through the Invoice Config.
If you’d like relatives to have the ability to pay for their invoices directly through Tapestry then you will need to send the invoice to them after generating it, and you will need to have enabled Tapestry Pay on your account, as shown here.
Generating an Individual Invoice
The main invoices page is accessed from Management System → Finance → Invoices
To create a new invoice you can either click on the purple +New button in top right or you can select the + Create Invoice button for a specific child.
On the invoice generation page, you’ll need to choose which child the invoice is for by using the drop-down menu.
If you selected the +Create Invoice button next to a specific child then this will already be filled in with their name.
Then, select the date range you want this invoice to cover. By default the rate range will be a whole month and it will be the month you are currently in.
The invoice will automatically include any sessions, extra bookings, and extra charges that fall within the selected date range.
For example, here we can see that Benjamin has 10 regular schedule sessions and 2 extra bookings within this invoice period of May 1st to May 31st. You can also see how many funded and unfunded hours Benjamin has within this period.
At the end of each item’s row, you will see the price and then at the bottom you can see the total to pay. If you have selected a fixed or monthly invoice calculation method for the child, then the invoice will reflect this charge instead.
If you have Balance Brought Forward turned on, this will also appear.
If it is a positive amount, it will be deducted from the total due. If it is a negative amount, this will be added to the total of the invoice.
You can click on the drop-down icon to show the full details of each item type, or use the Expand All button in the top right to detail everything.
The other thing you can add to your invoices at this stage are Additional Line Items. This is where you can add anything additional to your invoice that isn’t covered by the child’s schedule, extra bookings, or extra charges.
You can add positive amounts to charge for something, and you can also add negative amounts for refunds or discounts, etc.
Just add in your item name and price, and you’ll see the invoice total update. The total will also take into consideration the balance brought forward. Additional Line Items can be removed if needed uisng the Bin icon.
Once you are happy with these details you just need to click one of the purple Generate buttons.
After generating an invoice, you will be taken back to view it. From here you can create an invoice for the next child in the list that doesn’t have an invoice for that period, or you can return back to the main invoice page.
Here you can also download a PDF copy of the invoice and/or mark it as sent. Marking as sent is for when you will manually send the invoice to the relative yourself.
Let’s now look at generating invoices in bulk.
Generating Invoices in Bulk
The main invoices page is accessed from Management System → Finance → Invoices → Select Bulk Invoice
A list of children who don’t have an invoice for the selected date range will appear.
The invoice period can be changed by selecting a different month or choosing a custom date range, and you can also filter the list by room. The invoice date defaults to today, and the due date is generated based on your configuration settings, but both can be edited by clicking the relevant fields.
Invoices can be previewed in a new tab, though invoices cannot be generated for children without an assigned bill payer – refer to the linked tutorial if needed. All children are selected by default, and you can deselect any by unticking the box next to their name. You may Cancel to return to the previous screen, or proceed by selecting Generate.
A popup box will then appear confirming the invoice details and how many children an invoice will be generated for. Cancel to make any changes on the previous screen or proceed by clicking on Generate.
Once all the invoices have finished generating, you’ll see a confirmation screen and message about the invoices that were successfully generated and any that could not be, along with the reasons.
Next, you’ll likely want to send them see the next tab for sending invoices.
Sending Invoices by Email
Invoices are sent to relatives through Tapestry via email and internal notifications. The email is sent as soon as you send an invoice to a child’s bill payers and is sent regardless of whether relatives are permitted to receive notifications through your Tapestry account or not. There are two places within the Tapestry Booking feature where you can send invoices: from the individual child’s Invoices tab and from the main Invoices page.
Sending Invoices by Email from Child's Page
We will start by accessing the invoice from the Child’s Page.
Select Management System → Children → Select the Child → Select the Finance tab → Invoices →Cog next to the invoice → Send Invoice
A message will then show at the top right of the screen to confirm the invoice has been sent.
Sending Invoices by Email from the Invoices Tab
You can send the invoice from the main Invoices screen by navigating to Management System → Finance → Invoices. The tabs at the top to find Unsent or Awaiting Payment Invoices. Dates and Rooms can be changed as required or you can use the search box to find a specific child. Once you have found the invoice you want to send select the Cog Icon → Send Invoice. A confirmation message will then appear top right of the screen. Once an invoice has been sent the option to send will change to re-send.
Sending Invoices in Bulk by Email
Invoices are sent to relatives through Tapestry via email and internal notifications. The email is sent as soon as you send an invoice to a child’s bill payers, regardless of their notification permissions. Invoices must be generated before they can be sent.
If you want to send invoices one at a time, follow the steps in the tutorial. To send invoices in bulk, go to Management System → Finance → Invoices → Unsent Invoices. This page shows all invoices that haven’t been sent yet, and you can filter the list by room. To send all invoices on the page, click Send All.
A popup box will then appear confirming the action. To return back to the previous screen select on Cancel. Or to proceed with sending the invoices click on Send.
Once the invoices have been sent, a message will show confirming how many invoices have been sent (and they will no longer appear on the Unsent Invoices page), along with any invoices that can’t be sent. To close the message click Finish.
