The Area Menu is a secondary navigation tool that helps users jump between sections, sub-areas, and related content without relying on browser buttons or breadcrumbs.
This guide explains the available menu modes and walks you through setting up and displaying menus across your intranet.
Note: Area Menu is an add-on. To explore the menu and news templates, please reach out to your Account Manager or the Oak Support Team.
Area Menus operate in two distinct modes:
Automatic Mode
Dynamically mirrors the area hierarchy and auto-updates whenever new child areas, folders, or content items are published.
Manual Mode
Gives site administrators granular control to create custom links, nested dropdown tiers, and curated navigational paths.
This guide covers:
Before you start:
Ensure you have System Manager permissions to activate the feature in site settings.
To manage and build menus in a specific section, you will need Area Menu Manager permissions assigned for that target area, or as a Manager in Simplified Permissions.
Step 1: Enable Area Menus in system settings
Before assigning or configuring menus, ensure the application is active in your tenant:
Click the Actions button (cog icon) in the top-right toolbar and select Configure.
In the Control Panel, navigate to Site Settings under Configuration.
Select the Applications tab from the left sidebar.
Locate Area Menu, toggle the switch to enabled, and click OK at the bottom of the page to save.
Step 2: Manage permissions
Once the application is activated, assign delegation rights so relevant teams can maintain their own menus:
Open your target Area or Homepage, click Actions, and select Manage permissions.
Switch to Advanced permissions.
Select Area Menu from the sidebar.
Click Edit next to Area Menu Manager to assign specific users or user groups who should control navigation for that area.
Step 3: Create and configure your Area Menu
To build or modify menus, head to the site structure configuration:
Go to Actions > Configure > Manage Site Menu (under Site Structure).
Under the Area Menus section on the left, click the + icon to add a new menu.
Pick a Target: Choose the target area, department, or folder (e.g. People).
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Choose Menu Mode:
Automatic: Toggle Auto Populate on. This will automatically pull in all child folders, sub-areas, and published content items.
Manual: Toggle Auto Populate off to build links manually.
Click OK.
Step 4: Build manual menus and nested drop-downs
Manual mode lets you organise links into parent categories and reorder them on the fly:
Adding root links: Click the + button in the header toolbar to add an item.
Selecting targets: Click the link/paperclip icon next to Target. You can link directly to Areas, Folders, News, Blog Posts, or Custom URLs.
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Creating dropdowns and nesting:
Click the + icon alongside an existing item to create a sibling or child item.
Drag and drop items using the grab handles to nest them under parent headers or reorder the hierarchy.
Duplicating menus: If multiple areas require a similar structure (such as regional news hubs), select the Duplicate icon (two overlapping squares) in the top toolbar to clone the entire structure to another target area.
Save changes: Always click Publish at the bottom of the screen to push menu updates live.
Top tip: Selecting a target before entering a name automatically adopts the target's title, saving you typing time.
Step 5: Surfacing Area Menu on News Articles
When creating or editing content inside an area with an active menu:
When selecting a layout, click Change template in the bottom left.
Select a sidebar-ready template (e.g. Single column with sidebar, Multi column & image, or Single column with image & sidebar).
The Area Menu will automatically mount on the sidebar, allowing readers to jump directly across all sibling and parent stories without leaving the article view.