How to cancel an event

When an event can no longer take place, you can cancel it instead of deleting it. A cancelled event stays visible in your calendar, on your website, and in your event widgets, clearly marked as cancelled. This way, everyone can see that the event isn't happening, instead of it simply disappearing.

The Benefits of cancelling instead of deleting:

• Parishioners see that the event is cancelled rather than wondering where it went.
• You are still able to edit the title, description, and images, for example, to point to an alternative event or a new location.
• Booked users can be notified by email straight away.

Availability

Cancelling events is available to all ChurchDesk customers using the Calendar.

Content

• Rights and roles
• How to cancel an event
• How cancelled events are displayed
• What happens when you cancel an event
• Limitations
• Restoring a cancelled event

Rights and roles

Cancelling an event requires the same permissions as deleting one:

• The Event author: Can cancel the events they created.
• The Group admins: Can cancel events in their groups.
• Users with permission to edit all events: Can cancel any event.

How to cancel an event

1. Open the event in the Calendar.
2. Click "More" and select "Cancel event".
3. Choose whether to notify booked users by email.
4. Confirm the cancellation.

Once cancelled, users can see a message at the top of the event in the calendar that shows who cancelled it and when.

Editing a cancelled event

A cancelled event is mainly read-only, but you can still edit the following:

• the title,
• the public description,
• images.

Cancelling instead of deleting

If you try to delete an event, ChurchDesk suggests cancelling it instead. That way the event stays visible and people are informed.

How cancelled events are displayed

Cancelled events remain visible wherever the event was shown before:

• Calendar: The time slot is struck through and "Cancelled" is shown in front of the title. The event title itself is struck through.
• Rota schemes: The time slot is struck through and the duty cells are empty and disabled.
• Website and event widgets: The event stays visible with the "Cancelled" label and a struck-through time slot.

Events can also be struck through when you, as a user, were booked, but you declined the booking.
The visual difference is: all text is struck through, not just the time slot, also the background is made white, and the title doesn't say "Cancelled".

What happens when you cancel an event

• Rota duties: Everyone assigned to a duty on the event is removed, and it no longer appears in their personal calendar feeds.
• Booked users: Booked users are removed from the event, so it no longer appears in their personal calendar feeds.
• Intentions: Intentions are removed from the event and can be assigned to another event.
• Resource calendar feeds: The event stays in resource calendar feeds but is marked as cancelled.
• Sign-up forms: Check whether a form is connected to the event and close it if needed.

Limitations

• Only future events: Events that have already started or are in the past cannot be cancelled.
• Active loans: Events with an active inventory loan cannot be cancelled until the loan is resolved.
• Cannot be undone: A cancellation is final.

Restoring a cancelled event

Because a cancellation cannot be undone, copy the cancelled event if it takes place after all. The copy is a regular event that you can edit and publish as usual. It does not contain any previous sign-ups for the rota schemes or booked users.

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Updated on: 30/09/2026