How to build a weekly rota in 6 steps

1. 1

   Forecast the week’s demand

   Look at last week’s covers or sales, any bookings already on the diary, and known events (paydays, sport, local events). Translate that into how many staff you need on each shift.

2. 2

   Confirm availability and time-off requests

   Check who is on holiday, who has a fixed day off, and any new availability changes. Approve or decline pending time-off requests before drafting shifts so you don’t have to rework the rota later.

3. 3

   Draft shifts from your templates

   Drag pre-built shift templates (open, mid, close, kitchen prep, etc.) onto each day. Templates keep timings consistent and stop you re-typing the same hours every week.

4. 4

   Check working time compliance

   Make sure no one exceeds the 48-hour weekly average without a signed opt-out, that everyone has at least 11 consecutive hours rest between shifts, and that under-18s get the stricter limits they’re entitled to.

5. 5

   Publish and notify the team

   Publish the rota at the same day and time each week so staff know when to look. WorkSchedule sends an email and notification to each employee with only their shifts.

6. 6

   Handle swaps and last-minute changes

   Open a shift swap marketplace so staff can cover each other with manager approval. Log late changes so you can track patterns and reduce no-shows over time.