Kids check-in systems protect against the most common child safety risk in churches — custody disputes. A noncustodial parent showing up while the custodial parent is in the service, with no system in place, is a real legal and safety issue.

Micheal and Kari walk through how a matching security code system works: one tag on the child, one with the adult who dropped them off. The codes must match at checkout. Everyone checks in and checks out, every time — consistency is what makes the system work.

B1 Checkin is a free Android app that runs on a Samsung Galaxy Tab or Amazon Fire tablet and connects to a Brother label printer over WiFi. One-time hardware cost of around $200 to $350 total. No monthly fee, no per-device charge.

Competing systems: KidCheck starts at $25 per month per device. Planning Center can run up to $200 per month.

New features covered: custom background image for the kiosk screen (upload your church photo or logo), idle screen slideshow to display announcements between check-ins, and QR code guest registration so first-time families can self-register on their phone and check in immediately without a volunteer.

Try It This Week: set up attendance groups in B1 Admin, upload a background image under Attendance then Kiosk Settings, enable QR guest registration under Mobile then Check-In, download B1 Checkin on an Android tablet, and do a full test run before Sunday.

Resources:
support.churchapps.org
github.com/ChurchApps
b1.church
Brother QL-1110NWB printer (recommended)
Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 (recommended tablet)