ARTICLE: PARENTS - Welcome to your Reach Portal

ARTICLE: PARENTS - Welcome to your Reach Portal


Welcome to Reach Student Life Management 

The Reach platform is the global leader in student life management software, which creates peace of mind. With over 400 locations across five continents under our management, including boarding facilities, schools and long-term camp facilities. You’ll benefit from all we’ve learned, and you’ll discover how our systems have evolved to meet the increasing challenges faced by today’s institutions.

Access 24/7 from Web Browser or Mobile App
Reach is cloud-based and can be accessed from any device with an internet  connection, using either a web browser or via the mobile app, which is available for Apple and Android devices through their online stores.



Notes
NOTE: Not all schools will issue parent login accounts for parents to access Reach.  Some schools will only require parent interaction with Reach via email authorization for Leave Requests for their child(ren).

Via The Reach Web Portal 

How to Access Reach

Once you have registered at your new school, the staff will create a personal profile for you in the Reach portal, then connect (associate) you to your child and the student profiles to which you will become an authorized host. Then, with your new username and password, open a web browser and enter your school's specific Reach portal web address and sign in with your assigned credentials.

Alternatively, your school may have emailed you an invitation to login to their Reach portal, if so, follow the prompts in the email and login.

NOTES: 
  1. By default, your username will be your email address.  If you do not have your email address registered, then your username will be FirstnameLastname (note the capital letters). These details should be provided to you by the school after they create your personal profile.
  2. If your identity cannot be authenticated, then you will be presented with an error message. Please retry your credentials and click Sign-In.
  3. If you continue to get an error message then your credentials are most likely different from what you have been advised.
    1. Please contact your school and they can reset your credentials for you.
  4. The Reach portal login is case sensitive to upper and lower case text, so be aware during login.
  5. Once you have logged in, you can manage your details/settings via the My Account section.
  6. Click on the area of your name/Reach logo/profile photo in the top right corner, then click Account, update/change details as required, then click Save.

Reach Web Software Basics

How to Navigate in Reach
The navigation sections of the Reach Portal screen are; Main Menu, Header Bar, and My Account.  The available functions and features will differ with permission settings and extension modules specific to your school.



Main Menu
The icons on the left-hand side of the screen, are the Main Menu, this list provides you with quick access to the software functions. Click an icon to reveal the mini menu within each function.

Header Bar

The icons across the top of the screen are indicators of functions or quick links to your available features.

  1. Three Lines Menu - Click this to expand or collapse the Main Menu, to show icons only, or icons plus titles
  2. Cloud - Glowing green indicates you are currently online
  3. Bell - Click this to open the Notifications Mailbox, the Bell will change color to notify of incoming messages
  4. Calendar - Click this to open the Calendar tab 
  5. Lightning Bolt - This is Pulse, and it indicates the Reach portal is actively connected to the main server for fast updates
  6. Question Mark - Click this to open the Reach support website in a new browser window - support.reach.cloud
  7. Chat Bubbles - Click this to open the Reach-Now Communications module
My Account 

In the right-hand corner of your Reach screen, you will see your name and your profile image. The Reach Logo will appear if no image has been loaded. Click this area to open the drop-down menu, the menu options are; My Account, Messages, Help, and Lock Screen.

  1. My Account - this will open in a new tab, here you can update/change the details of the following sections; Personal, Address, Security, and Theme (any updates/changes made require you to click save before closing My Account tab)
  2. Messages - this will open the My Mailbox tab, this is the same as clicking the bell icon from the top menu bar
  3. Help - this will open in a new tab, this is support.reach.cloud, a Reach software information portal
  4. Lock Screen - this will lock the Reach portal browser window, to unlock, your personal Reach PIN is required (PIN can be set in My Account)

Via The Reach Mobile App

The  Reach app is designed for use as a transaction platform, it is free and available for use by all parents that have an account on your school's Reach portal. The app provides access to the major transaction elements for parental users. It is not a complete replication of all functionality available via the Reach web portal.  To view detailed explanations of each section of the app, please view the: Parent Mobile App User Guide

How to Access Reach 

Once you have a profile created via the Reach web portal by your school, your login will be set, at this point, you also have access to the mobile app.
Download the app, it is free and available to download for Android and Apple devices.
Search for 'Reach Student Life Management' in either the Google Play Store or iTunes store.              
To view more detailed explanations please read the Article:  How to Access & Use the Reach on a Mobile Device

Reach App Software Basics

How to Navigate in the Reach App

The main menu areas of the app are as follows;


Firstly, the home screen is sectioned into ‘cards’ for fast access to the main areas of Reach available to you.


Secondly, the red menu bar across the bottom of the app, these buttons are quick links to features.


Thirdly, the central PLUS button at the bottom of the screen, once tapped, will pop up a list of quick access features. 



Home Screen / Metrics View
The Home Screen is your base Metrics View and launch point for the main functions of the app.  In the top right corner is the Reach Now messaging icon for fast access to the Communications feature.  Each section of the home screen is explained in detail via this support guide;  Parent Mobile App User Guide
Notes
NOTE: This icon may not appear, as Reach Now is an extension module to Reach and must be enabled by your school.

Getting Support

User Guide

Web - Click the Help icon in the main menu and select User Guide, this will open the  Parents Portal
App - Quick Link:   Parent Mobile App User Guide
Additional support:   Reach Help Center

Knowledge Base & Help Desk

At the top of your Reach web portal, you will find a question-mark icon. Clicking this icon will take you to the Reach Help Center, the Knowledge Base support website for Reach users, where you can search for answers, and if need be, create a support ticket for our help desk or participate in the community discussions.
Quick Link: Reach Help Center
Video Tutorials:  Parent User Support Videos