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An events calendar for public libraries with public, no-login event registration, capacity limits, and an automatic waitlist.

Description

Public Library Calendar lets a library publish programs and events and lets patrons sign up without creating an account.

Features:

• Events custom post type with date/time, location, capacity, and categories.
• Public registration — patrons enter name, email, phone, and party size. No login required.
• Capacity limits with an automatic waitlist. When a confirmed guest cancels, the oldest waitlisted party that fits is promoted automatically and emailed.
• Email confirmations with a one-click cancellation link.
• Registrants manager in the admin: view, manually add, cancel, and export to CSV.
• Spam protection via a honeypot field and nonce-protected submissions.
• Month-grid or list view — drop the calendar anywhere with the [library_calendar] shortcode.
• Add to calendar — an .ics download button on event pages and in confirmation emails (works with Google, Outlook, Apple Calendar).
• Recurring events — repeat an event daily, weekly, or monthly; each occurrence is independent with its own capacity and sign-ups.

Installation

1. Upload the public-library-calendar folder to /wp-content/plugins/, or install the zip via Plugins → Add New → Upload.
2. Activate the plugin through the Plugins menu.
3. Go to Library Calendar → Add Event to create your first event.
4. Create a page and add the shortcode [library_calendar] to display upcoming events.
5. Review Library Calendar → Settings to set the confirmation email sender and staff notifications.

Shortcode

[library_calendar]

Attributes:

• view — list (default) for upcoming events, or grid for a month calendar.
• limit — maximum number of events to show in list view (default 20).
• category — comma-separated category slugs to filter by.
• past — set to yes to include events that have already started (list view).
• month — starting month for grid view, e.g. 2026-07.

Examples: [library_calendar limit="10" category="children,teens"] [library_calendar view="grid"]

Settings

Configure the plugin under Library Calendar → Settings:

• Confirmation emails — sender name/address and editable subject + message text for both confirmed and waitlisted registrations. Message text supports merge tags: {event}, {name}, {date}, {location}, {party_size}, {site}.
• Staff notifications — whether (and where) staff are emailed on each new registration.
• New event defaults — default registration on/off, capacity, and waitlist for newly created events.
• Registration form — show/hide the phone field, make it required, and set the maximum party size.
• Calendar page — the page holding your [library_calendar] shortcode; "browse events" and post-cancellation links point here.
• Advanced — whether deleting the plugin also deletes all events and registrations (off by default, so data is preserved).

Theming & developers

The front end is built to be restyled and overridden.

No-code styling. Under Settings → Appearance you can turn the plugin stylesheet off entirely (let your theme handle everything) and set an accent color used for buttons, badges, and highlights.

CSS custom properties. The stylesheet is driven by variables you can override anywhere in your theme CSS: --plc-accent, --plc-accent-dark, --plc-accent-soft, --plc-border, --plc-muted, --plc-radius.

Template overrides. Copy any file from the plugin's templates/ folder into your-theme/public-library-calendar/ and edit it there. Overridable templates:

• event-card.php — an event in the calendar list
• event-details.php — the when/where block on a single event
• registration-form.php — the public sign-up form

Hooks. Filters: plc_locate_template, plc_calendar_query_args, plc_event_card_html, plc_event_details_html, plc_registration_block_html, plc_single_event_html. Actions: plc_before_registration_form, plc_after_registration_form. Email and registration flows also pass through standard WordPress hooks.

Template tags. Output the calendar directly from a PHP theme template:

<?php plc_calendar( array( 'view' => 'grid', 'limit' => 10 ) ); ?> — echoes the calendar. <?php $html = plc_get_calendar( array( 'category' => 'teens' ) ); ?> — returns the HTML.

Both accept the same options as the [library_calendar] shortcode (view, limit, category, past, month) and enqueue the needed assets automatically.

Recurring events

When adding an event, use the Repeat box to repeat it daily, weekly, or monthly for a set number of occurrences. Occurrences are generated once when you publish. Each occurrence is a separate event with its own capacity, registration list, and cancellation handling — editing the original afterward does not change occurrences that were already created.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do patrons need an account to register?

No. Registration is open to the public with no login.

What happens when an event is full?

If the event has a waitlist enabled, additional sign-ups join the waitlist and are emailed. If not, registration closes for that event. When a confirmed guest cancels, waitlisted guests are promoted automatically in order.

Where is registration data stored?

In a dedicated database table ({prefix}_plc_registrations). Deleting the plugin removes this table and all events.

Changelog

1.5.0

• New: "Download flyer" produces a printable / save-as-PDF event flyer with the QR code, for sharing and bulletin boards.
• New: share actions on the event page next to "Add to calendar" — download flyer, email, and copy link.
• Improve: the event QR code now sits beside the date/location instead of below it, reducing scrolling.

1.4.0

• New: optional QR code on each event page (Settings → Appearance) that patrons can scan to open the event. Loads lazily and is filterable via plc_qr_image_url for self-hosting.

1.3.0

• New: the list view now groups events under a "Today" heading followed by upcoming months, and includes events happening earlier today.
• Change: default accent color is now a neutral slate instead of blue (still adjustable under Settings → Appearance).

1.2.2

• New: the month grid now previews early next-month events in the grayed-out trailing days, so visitors can see what's coming without changing months.

1.2.1

• Compatibility: confirmed for WordPress 7.0 (released May 19, 2026); no deprecated APIs in use.

1.2.0

• New: "Add Event" Dashboard widget for quickly creating an event (with a list of upcoming events) right from the WordPress dashboard.

1.1.2

• Improve: event times are now chosen from a clear time-of-day dropdown (15-minute increments, AM/PM) instead of a bare spinner. Increment is filterable via plc_time_picker_step.

1.1.1

• Improve: event date/time entry now uses separate, clearly labeled Date and Time fields instead of the browser's datetime-local control (which hid the time picker on some browsers).
• Fix: on single event pages the WordPress published date is now labeled "Posted on …" so it is not mistaken for the event date.

1.1.0

• New: plc_calendar() and plc_get_calendar() template tags for embedding the calendar in theme templates.

1.0.1

• Fix: event start/end dates and registration deadline not saving on some sites. The event editor now uses the classic editor so the date meta box posts reliably.

1.0.0

• Initial release.