Availability management: Step-by-step instructions for Helpers

Updating availability 

Step 1: Open Availability in the Lookout App

• Log in to the Helper App.
• Go to your Profile → Availability, or use the schedule view where the +Add availability option is available.
• Open Availability Preferences.
• Review your current, pending, upcoming, past, declined or cancelled availability schedules. 
• Tap Update availability or +Add availability (if selecting from schedule view).

Once either option is selected, you will be presented with a:

1. A manual availability submission form; or
2. Lookout Assist chat (if availability assistant agent is enabled for your organisation)

Step 2: Manual form submission

To continue manually adding availability yourself, input:

• Start date: Choose when this new schedule should take effect (cannot be in the past)
• End date (optional): Leave blank for an ongoing schedule, or set a date if it's temporary
• Note (optional): Add context, e.g. "School holidays", "Study commitments", or "Personal and family reasons".
• Weekly availability - for each day of the week:
  • Check the box to mark yourself as available on that day
  • Set your start time and end time for each day
  • You can add multiple time slots per day (e.g. morning and afternoon blocks)
  • Or tick All day for full-day availability

Step 3: Submit the availability

Any conflicts with your new availability request will display here along with submitting. Click submit availability. You should then see:

• A confirmation message (either "Availability updated" or "Request submitted")
• Your new schedule listed under Current, Upcoming, or Pending requests depending on its status

After submission, the helper will see either:

• Availability updated - if the request was auto-approved.
• Request submitted - if the request needs admin approval.

Lookout Assist chat

If Lookout Assist is enabled, a chat experience will open. Helpers can explain the change in plain language, for example: “Starting April 1, I can no longer work Saturdays” or “I’m available Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm” or in one of their native supported languages.

Step 2: Describe your availability in plain or supported native language

The helper simply types their availability in their own words. For example:

• "Monday to Friday, 9am to 3pm"
• "Weekdays 9 to 5, starting next week"
• "All day on weekends, for the next 3 months"
• "I'm available Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8am to 2pm"

They can also mention a start date (e.g. "starting next Monday") or an end date (e.g. "until June"). If they don't mention a start date, it defaults to today.

Helpers can submit availability using free text in English or in their native language. Lookout Assist supports the following languages:

Step 3: Add Context

The assistant may ask: "Is there anything you'd like to add as context, for example, school holidays or study commitments?"

The helper can type a reason or simply skip this if they've already mentioned one or don't want to add anything.

Step 4: Review the summary

The assistant presents a plain-text summary of the proposed schedule — showing the days, times, start date, and any end date or notes. It will also mention if any existing pending requests would be withdrawn.

The message ends with: "You can now submit this for approval, or keep describing any changes."

A "Submit this availability" button appears alongside the summary.

Step 5: Make changes (if needed)

If something doesn't look right, the helper can simply describe the changes in the chat (e.g. "Actually, make it 8am to 4pm on Fridays"). The assistant will show an updated summary with the button again.

Step 6: Submit availability

When the helper is happy with the summary, they tap the "Submit this availability" button. (Important: they must use this button — just typing "submit" or "yes" won't trigger the submission.)

Step 7: Confirmation

After submitting, the helper will see one of two messages:

• If auto-approved: "Your availability has been updated. Any impacted visits will be reviewed." A "View my availability" link appears.
• If it needs approval: "Your availability has been submitted for approval. You'll be notified once someone has reviewed your request." A "View my availability" link appears.

Tips for using Lookout Assist chat

Good example: I’m available every Friday from 8 AM to 12 PM starting this week until end of July. 

Less clear example: I’m free Friday morning. 

Troubleshooting

For a more detailed overview of our new availability features, please refer to our availability management article.