Community sports and leisure facilities are often the cornerstone of the local community. Their societal importance in 2021 cannot be underestimated. The local football club, rugby pitch, community hall or bowling green all perform a vital role in the mental and physical wellbeing of local residents. At Pitchbooking, we value the benefits that local and community sporting activity, and the facilities that enable it, provide to our communities.
With an ever growing pressure on health care systems, it is more important than ever that we can take responsibility for the wellbeing of our local populations at a regional level. It is estimated that the National Health Service (NHS) spends in excess of £6 billion on overweight and obesity-related ill-health every year. Annual spend on the treatment of obesity and diabetes is greater than the amount spent on the police, the fire service and the judicial system combined (Public Health England, 2017). With this in mind, the fact that the process for accessing community sports facilities is a process fraught with difficulties. It is not always straightforward for groups, clubs and individuals to access the quality sports facilities or activities that are provided.
At Pitchbooking we strive to open community facilities to the wider public, with an online availability calendar and straightforward booking process. We have seen the results of this be beneficial for facility owners and for the general public alike. An increase in sporting activity in turn generates more revenue for the facility owners, that can then be reinvested into those community groups and centres.
The existing booking process for community facilities depends on the management arrangements for the facilities. Most commonly, community facilities are managed either by local authorities directly, or via community groups and associations who have taken over the management of a site or group of facilities. Assuming the booking process for these facilities is discoverable in the first place, it tends to be via phonecall, within limited office hours. Often it is the case that relevant contact information is buried within facebook pages or websites that is difficult to find or uncover.
As is the case with many community led facilities, employees and volunteers perform a wide range of duties to keep these groups, centres and teams operational. At Pitchbooking, we understand that a day spent answering phone calls and enquiries about pitch availability and pricing is not an ideal use of time for these individuals. Pitchbooking reduces the administrative time taken to handle bookings, freeing up volunteers to be involved in more impactful community support tasks.
Ultimately, the Pitchbooking online bookings and payments system enables community facilities to open up access, and allow these facilities to thrive financially and from an operations perspective. Removing the barriers to access is key.