---
title: Managing livestreams
excerpt: Add a YouTube livestream, set its video, timing and category, and show it on a page.
tags: [livestreams, youtube, video, events]
target: client:brentwood
---

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<p>Livestreams are Brentwood's scheduled and archived YouTube broadcasts — assemblies, chapel, games, ceremonies and more. Each one is a single entry with a title, a YouTube video, a start time and a category. You manage them under <code>Livestreams</code> in the left-hand menu, and display them on any page with the Brentwood Youtube List block.</p>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">How do I add a livestream?</h2>
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<!-- BWG-SHOT id="livestream-add-new" path="/wp-admin/post-new.php?post_type=livestream" region="the full Add Livestream edit screen — title field, Livestream Details box, Featured image panel and Categories box" caption="The Livestream edit screen. The event's name is the title at the top." -->

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<li>Go to <code>Livestreams → Add New</code>.</li>
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<li>Type the event's name in the title field at the top — this is the name shown on the site.</li>
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<li>In the <strong>Featured image</strong> panel on the right, click <strong>Set featured image</strong> and upload a photo — it's used as the video thumbnail wherever the livestream appears. Skip it and a generic placeholder photo is used instead.</li>
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<li>Fill in <strong>YouTube Video ID</strong>, <strong>Start Date &amp; Time</strong> and <strong>Length (minutes)</strong> in the <strong>Livestream Details</strong> box — see the sections below for each.</li>
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<li>Tick a <strong>Category</strong> in the Categories box on the right, if you use them.</li>
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<li>Click <strong>Publish</strong>.</li>
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<p class="bw-callout-label">Note</p>
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<p>Every livestream gets its own page automatically — you don't build it. It shows the video player, the title and date, and the recording note, plus automatically-updating lists of other upcoming and completed livestreams. Anything you type in the main content area appears further down that page, so it's fine to leave it blank.</p>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Where do I find the YouTube Video ID?</h2>
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<!-- BWG-SHOT id="livestream-details-box" path="/wp-admin/post-new.php?post_type=livestream" region="the Livestream Details box — YouTube Video ID, Start Date & Time, Length, and the Unlisted / Live broadcast only switches" caption="The Livestream Details box holds the video, timing and the two on/off switches." -->

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<p>The YouTube Video ID is the short code YouTube gives every video — not the whole web address. Open the video on YouTube and look at its link:</p>
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<li>A normal watch link — <code>youtube.com/watch?v=</code> followed by an 11-character code. That code is the ID.</li>
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<li>A shared link — <code>youtu.be/</code> followed by the same 11-character code.</li>
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<p>Paste it into the <strong>YouTube Video ID</strong> field in the <strong>Livestream Details</strong> box. Without it, the event's page shows a photo but no video plays.</p>
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<p class="bw-callout-label">Tip</p>
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<p>You don't have to trim it yourself — pasting the whole YouTube link into this field works too. The site pulls out the ID automatically.</p>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">How do I set the date, time and length?</h2>
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<p>Both fields are in the <strong>Livestream Details</strong> box:</p>
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<figure class="wp-block-table"><table><thead><tr><th>Field</th><th>What to put in it</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Start Date &amp; Time</td><td>Click the field and pick the date and time from the calendar. Enter it in Brentwood's local time — the site converts it automatically for visitors in other timezones.</td></tr><tr><td>Length (minutes)</td><td>How long the broadcast runs. This is what the site uses to work out whether an event currently counts as "ongoing" once its start time has passed — leave it blank and the event is treated as ending the moment it starts.</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What do "Unlisted" and "Live broadcast only" do?</h2>
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<p>These two on/off switches are also in the <strong>Livestream Details</strong> box.</p>
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<figure class="wp-block-table"><table><thead><tr><th>Switch</th><th>What it does</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Unlisted (hidden from lists)</td><td><strong>On</strong> — the livestream stays published and its page still works for anyone with the link, but it's left out of the Youtube List block everywhere, like an unlisted YouTube video. <strong>Off</strong> (default) — it appears in the lists as normal.</td></tr><tr><td>Live broadcast only (no recording)</td><td><strong>On</strong> — the event's page shows "This is a live broadcast only; no post-event recording will be made available." <strong>Off</strong> (default) — it shows "The recording of this event will be posted after the event has concluded and has been processed for upload."</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">How do I group livestreams by category?</h2>
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<p>Categories let you group related livestreams and filter the Youtube List block down to just one group. On the livestream edit screen, find the <strong>Categories</strong> box on the right and tick every category that applies. To create a new one, click <strong>Add New Category</strong> in that box and type its name.</p>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">How do I show livestreams on a page? (the Youtube List block)</h2>
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<!-- BWG-SHOT id="livestream-block-settings" path="/wp-admin/post-new.php?post_type=page" region="the Brentwood Youtube List block selected on a page, showing the Layout and Filter settings panels in the sidebar" caption="Insert the block, then use the Layout and Filter panels on the right to control what shows." actions="click:.editor-document-tools__inserter-toggle; waitfor:.block-editor-inserter__search input; type:.block-editor-inserter__search input|Brentwood Youtube List; wait:2000; click:.editor-block-list-item-bw-youtube-list; wait:4000; waitfor:.interface-complementary-area" -->

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<p>Livestreams are shown on a page with the <strong>Brentwood Youtube List</strong> block — a list of rows, each with a thumbnail, the event date, a watch link and the recording note, with built-in search and paging. Edit the page, click the <strong>+</strong> to add a block, and search for <strong>Brentwood Youtube List</strong>.</p>
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<p>With the block selected, use the settings panels on the right — Layout is open by default; click Filter to reveal the category and unlisted-event options:</p>
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<figure class="wp-block-table"><table><thead><tr><th>Setting</th><th>What it does</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Events to show</td><td>Completed (past, newest first) — the default; Ongoing (live right now); Upcoming (future, soonest first); or All.</td></tr><tr><td>Events per page</td><td>How many show before the list pages, from 1 to 50 (default 10).</td></tr><tr><td>Show search</td><td>Adds a search box so visitors can find an event by title.</td></tr><tr><td>Show pagination</td><td>Adds page-number buttons when there are more events than fit on one page.</td></tr><tr><td>Categories (under Filter)</td><td>Limit the list to one or more categories. Leave empty to show every category.</td></tr><tr><td>Show unlisted events (under Filter)</td><td>Off by default. Turn on to include livestreams marked Unlisted — otherwise they never appear in this block.</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>
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<p class="bw-callout-label">Note</p>
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<p>This block doesn't have its own title field. If you want a heading above the list, add a Heading block just before it.</p>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">How do I remove a livestream?</h2>
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<p>You have two options, depending on whether the change is permanent:</p>
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<li><strong>It's gone for good</strong> — open the livestream and move it to <strong>Trash</strong>.</li>
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<li><strong>Temporarily off the site</strong> (e.g. postponed) — open the livestream, switch its status from Published to <strong>Draft</strong> in the <strong>Status &amp; visibility</strong> panel, and click <strong>Update</strong>. It stays saved but disappears from the site until you publish it again.</li>
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<p class="bw-callout-label">Important</p>
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<p>Trashing a livestream removes it from every list and page it appears on. If you might need it again, use Draft instead — the video, timing and everything else are still there when you publish it again.</p>
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