Note: Custom record types are available on the Standard, Premium, and Ultimate plans.
One of the most powerful features in Beacon is the ability to create custom record types. These allow you to structure your data in a way that reflects the real-world complexity of your work - whether you're supporting people, managing grants, coordinating volunteers, or running events.
Often, it's tempting to try and store everything in one place - adding more fields to a Person or Grant record. But over time, this can become cluttered, confusing, and inflexible.
That’s where custom record types come in.
If you find yourself needing to record the same type of information multiple times, or if certain data only matters in specific situations, it may be a sign that your information would be better stored in a related custom record type.
In this article, we’ll walk through:
What a custom record type is
Linking custom record types to other records
How to spot when you need one
Examples of when you might use a custom record type
How to create custom record types in Beacon
By the end, you’ll be able to design smarter data structures that make your account easier to use - and far more powerful.
What is a custom record type in Beacon?
A custom record type in Beacon is a way to create a new type of record that stores information which doesn’t quite fit into the standard record types like People, Organisations or Payments.
Think of it as creating your own building block in your database — one that matches the specific way your charity works.
You might create a custom record type to track things like:
Grant reports linked to a Trust and Foundation grant
Volunteer assignments linked to a Person
Case sessions linked to Cases
Pet adoption records linked to Animals
Custom record types display in your sidebar alongside all of your core Beacon record types:
How is it different from a field?
A field holds one piece of information (like a name or a date).
A custom record type holds an entire set of fields, grouped around a specific concept or action.
Linking custom record types to other records
In most charities, people are at the centre of your work, so it makes sense that most custom record types will link back to a contact - whether that’s an individual person or an organisation.
For example:
A volunteer assignment might link to a Person
A Corporate partnership might link to an Organisation
But that’s not the only way to use them.
⛓️ Custom record types can link to:
Contacts (people or organisations) - the most common use case
Other core record types - like Grants, Payments, or Cases
Other custom record types
Example:
You might have a custom Grant report record type that links to a Grant record
It's common for custom record types to also link to more than one record type.
Example:
A Counselling session record that links to:
a Case AND
a person.
How to spot when you need one
Not sure if it’s time to create a custom record type? A good rule of thumb is: if you're repeatedly storing the same kind of information for the same Person, Grant or Case, it's probably time to split it out.
If you're adding extra fields like “Report 1 due”, “Report 2 due” to a Grant record, and so on or using long drop-down lists or notes to record repeat data - that’s a sign your current structure is being stretched too far.
Luckily, Beacon’s core structure offers a great example of how we recommend splitting and structuring data that should be linked to rather than directly stored on a record.
Use that as a reference point when designing your own. Once you start recognising the patterns, you’ll know exactly when a custom record type can make your data cleaner, more flexible, and much easier to work with.
Why not take a look at some handy examples of when you might want to split out your data here?
Creating custom record types
Now that you've identified that you need a custom record type, it's time to create it!
Follow the steps here to create your new record type.