Page Content Sections - Documents Section

Use the Documents Section when you want to place part of your Document Library directly onto a page.

What this section is for

This section is useful when you want to:

• show board materials on a board page
• place forms and reference files on a membership page
• keep policy documents together on an about or governance page
• build a page that acts as a document hub for one topic

Helpful detail:

• You do not upload files inside this section. Documents must already exist in the Document Library.

Fields in the Documents Section

Section Title

Use Section Title to help your team identify the section while editing the page.

Helpful detail:

• This title is for internal use only. It is not shown on the website.

Background Color

Use Background Color to control the color styling for the document category blocks in this section.

Helpful detail:

• This setting affects the category block styling, not the entire page background.

Document Categories

Use Document Categories to decide which document groups should appear in this section.

How it works:

• if you leave the category field blank, the section shows the full document-category structure
• if you choose categories, the section shows only those selected top-level category groups
• child categories appear underneath their parent category group

Practical tip:

• If you use parent and child categories, select the parent category when you want that branch to appear on the page.

Active

Use Active to control whether this section is included when the page is rendered.

Helpful detail:

• If Active is turned off, the section stays in the page editor but does not appear on the website.

What visitors see on the website

When the section appears on the website:

• documents are grouped under category headings
• category groups can be expanded and collapsed
• the first top-level category starts open, and the others start closed
• child categories appear nested under their parent category
• each visible document shows its access icon, name, and date

Helpful detail:

• If a category has no documents available to show and no child categories beneath it, the section displays a short message saying there are no documents for that category at this time.

What controls whether a document appears

The section only shows documents that are actually available to the current visitor.

That means:

• the document itself must be Active
• the document must belong to a category that this section is showing
• the visitor must have permission to view the document
• restricted admin-only documents do not appear in front-end document lists
• lapsed members can open only public documents

If you want more detail about who can see what, see Permissions and Access Control.

How to add a Documents Section to a page

1. Add or review your document categories in Document Categories.
2. Upload documents and assign them to categories in Document Library.
3. Open the page you want to edit.
4. Go to the Page Content area.
5. Click Add new section.
6. Choose Documents Section.
7. Enter a Section Title for internal reference.
8. Choose a Background Color if needed.
9. Leave Document Categories blank to show the full document structure, or choose categories to focus the section.
10. Make sure Active is turned on.
11. Save the page.

Practical planning ideas

• Use a focused category selection when the page is about one topic.
• Leave the category field blank when the page is meant to act as a broader document library.
• Add a Simple Text Section above this section if you want a visible heading or explanation on the page.
• Use more than one Documents Section on the same page when different document groups need different placement.
• Review document permissions carefully if lapsed members or the public need access to renewal or rejoin materials.

If the section looks empty or incomplete

Check these items first:

• the page was saved after the section was added or changed
• the section's Active toggle is turned on
• the documents are active in the Document Library
• the documents are assigned to the expected categories
• the current visitor is allowed to view those documents
• if you use nested categories, the parent category is included when needed

Related topics

• Document Library - Upload files, assign categories, and control document access.
• Document Categories - Organize documents into parent and child groups.
• Permissions and Access Control - Learn how page and document permissions work.
• Pages - Learn how pages and page sections are managed.