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Time Date	System Updates
Update 1526 5 October 2026	A final HOPS update from Danny Hello everyone, Here is a final HOPS update from me. The week before last the new HOPS directors (Graham, David, Ernest, Rob, Alex and me) met for the first time and started to get to grips with the key details of behind-the-scenes of HOPS. I can report that, from this meeting, Alex was elected as a director, and Graham was elected the chair. Alex started officially working for the company as an employee on Monday just gone. He has of course been closely-involved in HOPS as a volunteer almost since the very beginning, and has been gradually ramping-up managerial involvement over the last month, up to a point where, by last Friday, I have completely handed-over day-to-day management of HOPS to Alex. Alex will now be the key senior point of contact for HOPS matters instead of me. All other staff are still in place, eg Alan for accounts and Steve for Retail Systems, so please continue to use those contacts where you would have done previously. Here is a link to view the full HOPS team if you wish to: https://www.hops.org.uk/about_team.php Thank you to everyone who has given feedback and helped steer the recent succession planning work. One concern that was raised that I think is appropriate to address relates to confidentiality. Several of the new HOPS directors are managers of their own railways, and there was some concern about other railways' commercially-sensitive data that is stored in HOPS. To address this we have made it policy that directors without management roles don't have access to other railways' data in HOPS. The only directors that have access are Alex and me (Danny), which is the same as it has been for a long time. It is already clearly understood by all directors that we are here to represent the best interest of HOPS and its customers, rather than to be representatives of our own railways. All of us are committed to ensuring HOPS provides long-term benefit to the sectors and communities it serves through the provision and development of HOPS services. We hope this gives some reassurance. I am glad that a new management team is now in place, and I am buoyed that already lots of new things are being keenly discussed or pursued, both in terms of program development and wider business development. I have confidence I can look forward to seeing HOPS making adventurous new developments in the future! I am still involved in HOPS in a few small ways, eg I am still a director for the moment, to assist with continuity over the coming months, and I will still take part in some bits of development, especially on parts of the system that were originally built by me and on the upcoming transition of document repositories to New HOPS format. I'll also make myself available for any advice required about previous developments or decision rationale. I would like to thank everyone involved in HOPS, both in the past and those who are taking it forward for the future. It has been a pleasure working with the HOPS team, and with the HOPS admins and other managers at all our railways, tramways, museums and other centres. When I started building HOPS 17 years ago I would never have predicted that we would be where we are now! I hope HOPS and I have served you well, and I look forward to seeing HOPS continue to grow and support everyone to make further and better use of the system and all its developments in the future. If you have any questions about any of the above please contact Alex or me or any of the new directors and we will be happy to help. Thank you very much again Danny Scroggins
Update 870 15 June 2022	The availability matrix in HOPS has a new 'white stripe' added when a person is fully utilised. A person is considered fully utilised when they have been allocated the number of turns they asked for or, if they indicated 'unlimited', when they have been allocated a turn on every day they are available. This makes it easy to visually distinguish a 'Yes' that is able to be used (green) from a 'Yes' that can't be used as the person is already working their max amount (green with white stripe). If all Ys are green/white, the max utilisation has been reached and therefore the best efficiency from the roster availability. Link to examples: https://www.facebook.com/HeritageOps/photos/a.274448152666082/5101371096640406/

Time Date

System Updates

Update 1526
5 October 2026

A final HOPS update from Danny

Hello everyone,

Here is a final HOPS update from me.

The week before last the new HOPS directors (Graham, David, Ernest, Rob, Alex and me) met for the first time and started to get to grips with the key details of behind-the-scenes of HOPS. I can report that, from this meeting, Alex was elected as a director, and Graham was elected the chair.

Alex started officially working for the company as an employee on Monday just gone. He has of course been closely-involved in HOPS as a volunteer almost since the very beginning, and has been gradually ramping-up managerial involvement over the last month, up to a point where, by last Friday, I have completely handed-over day-to-day management of HOPS to Alex. Alex will now be the key senior point of contact for HOPS matters instead of me. All other staff are still in place, eg Alan for accounts and Steve for Retail Systems, so please continue to use those contacts where you would have done previously. Here is a link to view the full HOPS team if you wish to: https://www.hops.org.uk/about_team.php

Thank you to everyone who has given feedback and helped steer the recent succession planning work.

One concern that was raised that I think is appropriate to address relates to confidentiality. Several of the new HOPS directors are managers of their own railways, and there was some concern about other railways' commercially-sensitive data that is stored in HOPS. To address this we have made it policy that directors without management roles don't have access to other railways' data in HOPS. The only directors that have access are Alex and me (Danny), which is the same as it has been for a long time. It is already clearly understood by all directors that we are here to represent the best interest of HOPS and its customers, rather than to be representatives of our own railways. All of us are committed to ensuring HOPS provides long-term benefit to the sectors and communities it serves through the provision and development of HOPS services. We hope this gives some reassurance.

I am glad that a new management team is now in place, and I am buoyed that already lots of new things are being keenly discussed or pursued, both in terms of program development and wider business development. I have confidence I can look forward to seeing HOPS making adventurous new developments in the future!

I am still involved in HOPS in a few small ways, eg I am still a director for the moment, to assist with continuity over the coming months, and I will still take part in some bits of development, especially on parts of the system that were originally built by me and on the upcoming transition of document repositories to New HOPS format. I'll also make myself available for any advice required about previous developments or decision rationale.

I would like to thank everyone involved in HOPS, both in the past and those who are taking it forward for the future. It has been a pleasure working with the HOPS team, and with the HOPS admins and other managers at all our railways, tramways, museums and other centres. When I started building HOPS 17 years ago I would never have predicted that we would be where we are now! I hope HOPS and I have served you well, and I look forward to seeing HOPS continue to grow and support everyone to make further and better use of the system and all its developments in the future.

If you have any questions about any of the above please contact Alex or me or any of the new directors and we will be happy to help.

Thank you very much again

Danny Scroggins

Update 870
15 June 2022

The availability matrix in HOPS has a new 'white stripe' added when a person is fully utilised.

A person is considered fully utilised when they have been allocated the number of turns they asked for or, if they indicated 'unlimited', when they have been allocated a turn on every day they are available.

This makes it easy to visually distinguish a 'Yes' that is able to be used (green) from a 'Yes' that can't be used as the person is already working their max amount (green with white stripe).

If all Ys are green/white, the max utilisation has been reached and therefore the best efficiency from the roster availability.

Link to examples: https://www.facebook.com/HeritageOps/photos/a.274448152666082/5101371096640406/

Generated at 16:11:58 13/10/2026