Using Templates

Templates are the fastest way to set up new projects. This guide covers how to create, manage, and apply templates to your projects.

Creating a Template

1. Go to your Template Library from the dashboard
2. Click Create Template
3. Enter a name (e.g., "Class 2 Residential - Standard CC")

Adding Items

Add items to your template with:

• Description — what document or evidence is required
• List-specific description — additional context for this template (composed with the base description when applied to projects)
• Review sequence — suggested submission order

Adding Document Checks

For each item, you can add AI-powered checks:

1. Click Add Check on the item
2. Enter the check prompt (e.g., "Verify this certificate is signed by a registered engineer")
3. The check name is auto-generated

Checks on template items automatically propagate to all active projects using this template.

Adding Reference Documents

Upload example documents or templates to help applicants understand what's needed:

1. Click Add Document on the item
2. Upload the reference file
3. These documents are copied to projects when the template is applied

Applying Templates to Projects

During the project wizard, select From a template:

1. Choose one or more templates
2. Items are populated in the approval list
3. If the same item appears in multiple templates, it is included only once
4. Descriptions are composed from the base description plus any list-specific descriptions
5. Document checks and reference documents are copied

Combining Templates

You can apply multiple templates to a single project. This is useful when different aspects of a project have their own standard checklists:

• General Building template (structural, accessibility, energy efficiency)
• Fire Safety template (detection, egress, resistance levels)
• Plumbing template (water supply, drainage, gas)

Items are deduplicated, so overlapping items appear only once.

Updating Templates

When you update a template, some changes propagate to active projects:

Change	Propagates to Active Projects?
Add a check	Yes
Update a check prompt	Yes
Delete a check	Yes
Add an item	No (template only)
Edit item description	No (project items keep their own)
Add reference documents	No (only copied at creation)

This means you can continuously improve your document checks and all your active projects benefit immediately.

Template Best Practices

1. Start broad, then specialise — create a general template first, then create focused templates for specific project types
2. Invest in document checks — good checks on templates save review time across every project
3. Use list-specific descriptions — keep base descriptions reusable and add template-specific context via list-specific descriptions
4. Review after each project — after completing a project, consider what items or checks could be improved
5. Combine rather than duplicate — use multiple focused templates rather than maintaining one massive template with everything