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The directory issues checker runs a series of automated checks and fixes across your People directory. Most issues are resolved automatically — the screen reports what was found and what was done, so you can see the state of your data at a glance. A few checks require a decision from you before anything changes.
Go to Church Admin → People → Check for directory issues. The checks run immediately and results appear on screen — there is no separate “run” button.
When to run it
- Immediately after a CSV import
- After a period of self-registration on the website
- As a periodic data health check — every few months keeps the directory clean
- Before a bulk email, mailing label run, or SMS send, to make sure your data is in good shape
What each check does
Empty households
Automatic fix. Finds household records with no people attached and deletes them. These can be left behind when a person record is deleted without also removing the household. The screen reports how many were deleted, or confirms none were found.
People detached from a household
Automatic fix. Finds person records with no household assigned and creates a new empty household for each one, reattaching the person to it. This prevents orphaned records from causing errors elsewhere in the plugin. The screen lists each person fixed by name.
Member type issues
Requires your input. Shows how many people are assigned to each member type, then checks whether anyone has a member type that no longer exists — for example if a type was deleted after people were assigned to it. If invalid member types are found, you are shown a form to move those people to a valid member type before the fix is applied.
Head of household not set
Automatic fix. Every household needs a designated head of household for mailing labels and directory display to work correctly. This check finds any households where no head of household is set and fixes them automatically — single-person households are set to that person; multi-person households are set to the first person based on their order and people type.
Google Maps API and address geocoding
Reports status, links to fix. If a Google API key is set up, this check counts how many households have addresses but no geocoded coordinates. If any are found, a button links directly to the Bulk geocode screen to resolve them. If no API key is set, you are reminded to add one with a link to the setup tutorial. See Google API key setup and Geolocating.
Mobile numbers in e164 format
Automatic fix. SMS sending via Twilio requires mobile numbers to be stored in e164 international format (e.g. +447911123456). This check finds any mobile numbers that have not yet been converted and saves the e164 version automatically, using your configured country code from the SMS settings. It also fixes any numbers that have been incorrectly doubled up (e.g. ++44+44…). See e164 phone number format.
People not in any small group
Automatic fix. Everyone in the directory should be either assigned to a small group or marked as unattached. This check finds anyone who is neither and marks them as unattached, so the small groups module can account for every person in the directory. The count of people moved to unattached is reported on screen.
Duplicate entries in small groups, ministries, and classes
Automatic fix. Removes any duplicate membership entries where the same person has been added to the same small group, ministry, or class more than once. Also removes orphaned entries where the person record no longer exists. The count of duplicates and orphans removed is reported on screen.
GDPR — show on address list check
Reports status only. Checks how many people have set themselves to appear on the member-facing address list and have a GDPR data protection reason recorded. This is an information check rather than a fix — it confirms your directory has some visible, consented entries. See General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR).
Duplicate person records
Requires your input. Finds people with identical first and last names appearing more than once in the directory and presents them in a table showing the address, last updated date, and household size for each occurrence. For each duplicate pair you can:
- Merge — combine the two records, choosing which data to keep from each. The first occurrence is treated as the original.
- Delete — permanently remove one of the records if it is clearly a stray entry with no useful data
- Display household — open the household record to review it in full before deciding
See Merging duplicate entries for the full merge process.
Households with different last names
Requires your review. Lists any households where the people within them have different last names. This is often completely legitimate — Church Admin is used by congregations worldwide and many cultures have married couples with different surnames, or naming conventions where a wife takes her husband’s first name as her last name rather than sharing a surname.
Review each flagged household to confirm whether the different names are correct or whether two unrelated people have accidentally been joined into the same household. For each household you have two options:
- Click the household link — opens the household record so you can check the details and separate them if needed
- Ignore different last names in future — marks this household so it is no longer flagged on subsequent checks, confirming that the different names are correct and intentional