oh my GOODNESS Martin you are a GENIUS! I was tossing and turning trying to sleep last night, thinking about how poorly I had worded my issue above. Martin, you have absolutely turned my week around. I was getting quite distressed and you have resolved it all. THANK YOU! I very much appreciate your suggestions, I agree with everything you have said. If you are interested, you can see what I have ended up with attached. I need to tidy up the alignment etc. and i am having trouble with the 'completed' state trigger, but I am getting there! wohoo, thank you so much.