Here is a simple library that takes advantages of layouts in code igniter. You can call it in your controller like:

$this->layout->view('dashboard');

You can pass data to it just like load->view:

$data = array('foo'=>'bar'); $this->layout->view('dashboard',$data);

Either configure your autoloader to load the layout or load the library in your controller:

$this->load->library('layout');

If you wish to change the layout from default you do so in your controller:

$this->layout->setLayout('secondary');