This article explains how to log in, navigate departmental sites, and manage content on 4th Court. This guide covers the following:
How to reach 4th Court and sign in
How departmental SharePoint sites are organized
How to request Editor access and publish content
Refer to this article when you need to set up—or maintain—your department’s presence on 4th Court.
Logging In to 4th Court
URL: Browse to: https://4thcourt.joh.cam.ac.uk (bookmark this address for quick access).
Authentication: Use your University account to access (this will be CRSid@cam.ac.uk and your password).
Navigating the Homepage & Hubs
Once signed in, you’ll land on the 4th Court homepage, which features four main “hubs”. Each hub clusters related departmental sites:
- 4th Court (features curated content from across 4th Court)
Working (includes HR, Finance etc)
Living (includes Accommodation, Catering, IT & Digital Services, Maintenance, Porters etc)
Academic Life (includes Academic Support Office, Library & Archive, Master's & President's Office etc)
Each department is assigned to one of these hubs, simply click the department name to be taken to its site.
Departmental Site Structure
Within a department’s site, you’ll typically see:
Home Page: Contains an overview of your department, key contacts, and any high-priority announcements.
News & Announcements: A web part that displays recently posted news items. Use this to broadcast updates relating to your department.
Events & Calendar: Embedded calendar listing upcoming events (e.g., meetings, deadlines, social gatherings).
Team Documents: These can only be seen by members of your department, linked to your Team.
Shared Documents: These can be seen by anyone who can access 4th Court, used for any documents your department wants to share out to the college.
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Quick Links: Shortcut tiles to frequently used resources, these can include:
Room Booking
Duty Rotas
Booking Forms (e.g., catering orders, maintenance requests)
Training Materials (e.g., fire safety, GDPR refresher)
Becoming a SharePoint Editor
Every department should have at least one designated SharePoint Editor (ideally two) responsible for updating and maintaining content. If your department does not yet have an Editor:
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Email the Communications Team:
Address: communications@joh.cam.ac.uk
Subject: “Request for 4th Court Editor Access”
Body: Include your name, department, and a brief justification (e.g., “I will maintain our department’s news and document libraries.”)
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Communications Team Response:
They will assign Editor permissions to the specified account(s).
Editors will receive a confirmation email once permissions are granted.
Editing and Publishing Content
Once you have Editor permissions, you should first read the 4th Court content guidelines, then you can start editing content:
Edit Your Home Page
Navigate to your department site and click “Edit” in the top-right corner.
Make changes to web parts (e.g., update news, swap out hero images, adjust quick links).
Posting News & Announcements
In the News web part, click “Add” (or “+ New” → “News Post”).
Compose a headline, body text, and add any necessary images or links.
Set an expiration date if you want the post to disappear automatically after a certain time.
Click “Publish” to make it live.
Managing Document Libraries
From the left navigation, click “Documents” (or whichever library you need).
Use “Upload” to add new files or “New → Folder” to organize into subfolders.
To edit a document online, click the file name and choose “Open in Word/Excel/PowerPoint Online.”
Audience Targeting
If you only want an announcement to appear for specific groups (Staff, Fellows, Students), enable Audience Targeting on the News web part or individual news pages.
When editing the News web part properties, toggle “Enable audience targeting”, then specify the audiences.
Saving and Publishing
After making edits, click “Republish” (if you’re modifying an existing page) or “Publish” (for a new page).
Always preview before publishing to ensure the layout and audience targeting look correct.
Content Review & Maintenance
Quarterly/Annual Reviews
Each department should review its site content at least every six months.
Update or archive stale news, replace outdated documents, and refresh graphics.
Version History & Restoration
SharePoint automatically tracks version history. If you need to revert to an earlier draft, navigate to “Version History” from the ellipsis (…) next to a file/page.
Permissions Audit
Periodically check who has Editor access. Remove Editors who no longer require permissions, and add new ones if needed.
Common Troubleshooting
Issue: Unable to Publish News Post
Ensure you have Editor (or higher) permissions.
Check that you’ve provided required fields (headline, at least one image or text block).
Confirm that “Expire” date (if set) isn’t in the past.
Issue: Audience Targeting Not Working
Verify that you enabled “Enable audience targeting” both on the News web part and on the news item itself.
Check that the targeted group (e.g., “Fellows”) is set up correctly in SharePoint’s People and Groups.
Issue: File Permissions Seem Off
Document libraries inherit permissions from the site by default. If you customized library permissions, confirm that users/groups you expect have access.
For a Private Channel in Teams, make sure the channel members match your intended list.
If the issues persist, contact 4thcourt@joh.cam.ac.uk who will be able to advise you further.