Duplicate Parent Records

Why avoiding duplicate parent records matters

In EnrolNow One, the parent/guardian record is the link that ties a family together. Keeping a single parent record for each parent, rather than two or more duplicates, matters because:

Sibling links: Children are connected as siblings through their shared parent record. If a parent has duplicate records, their children can become split across them, and the system won't recognise the children as siblings.
Prior connection to your service: A family's existing relationship with your service is tracked through the parent record. Duplicates can break this link, so a returning family may not be recognised as having a prior connection.
One source of truth: With a single parent record, any update to contact details or other parent information is made in one place and stays consistent everywhere it appears. Duplicates mean changes can be made to one record but not the other, leaving the family's information out of sync.

What to do if duplicate parent records are created

Where you identify that the same parent exists as two (or more) records, the goal is to consolidate everything onto a single parent record — we'll call this the record you're keeping — and then retire the duplicate. We recommend the following:

Decide which record to keep. Where possible, keep the parent record that already has the most children correctly linked to it, and/or the most complete and up-to-date details.
Update the duplicate parent record: Update the name of the Duplicate Parent record to include DUPLICATE. Ensure that the phone number and the email address of the duplicate parent is accurate (the same as the record you're keeping). This step avoids the system automatically using this duplicate record in the future. See Updating Parent's Details for how to edit a parent record.
Re-link the children to the record you're keeping. For each child currently attached to the duplicate parent record:
- Open the child record.
- Update the Parent/Guardian 1 Name field (or Parent/Guardian 2 Name) to point to the parent record you're keeping, in place of the duplicate. Important Note: select the parent from the picklist of parents after typing the parent name
- Save, and check the child's contact details still reflect the correct parent.

How EnrolNow reduces duplicate parent records (the dupe check mechanics)

EnrolNow has an inbuilt duplicate check that helps prevent duplicate records from being created in the first place. When a registration is received, EnrolNow first looks for an existing child record using the child's details. It then checks each parent on that child against the parent details submitted on the form — matching on the parent's full name together with their email address or mobile number. If that doesn't find a match, it searches your existing parent records for the same parent by name and email or phone. Where there's a match, the existing record is updated rather than a new one being created.

Despite this, a duplicate parent record can still occur — for example, where a parent uses a different email address or a slightly different name on a later form.

Related article: Duplicate Child Records