Flitwick Community Football Centre in Bedfordshire is run by volunteers as a not-for-profit organisation providing facilities for the local community. The surplus money generated through the hire of the centre is reinvested in the facility so that the pitches and community hall are presented to a high quality.

We spoke with Cliff Simmonds, Director at Flitwick Community Football Centre for his feedback since partnering with Pitchbooking

Tell us about operations at Flitwick Community Football Centre before speaking with us

"My name is Cliff Simmonds, and I am one of three directors at Flitwick Community Football Centre. At our centre, we manage over 50 teams and have recently installed a new 3G pitch. Our primary challenge was efficiently managing the hire of the pitch when not in use by our internal teams. Previously, we relied on taking calls and booking slots via an excel sheet."

"This method was not only time-consuming but would have required hiring additional staff to manage the system, which is financially unfeasible for our charity organisation."

How did you go about finding a suitable online booking software to solve this?

"To address this issue, we approached Pitchbooking to explore their solutions. They provided us with a user-friendly system that not only facilitated easy booking adjustments but also processed payments, significantly simplifying our operations."

And what are the results so far?

"Integrating with Pitchbooking has streamlined our facility hiring process. During our initial Teams meeting, Pitchbooking took note of all our requirements. At the following meeting, they demonstrated a customised dummy site, showcasing the system's ease of use, from setting operating hours to pricing hire based on various user profiles."

Any key benefits you would like to highlight?

"One of the key benefits we've experienced with Pitchbooking is the ability to easily block out slots for our internal users, requiring minimal operator hours to keep the system updated."

"Additionally, the system allows external users, such as schools and 1-2-1 coaching sessions, to directly book slots online. This has led to an increase in off-peak hours usage, generating additional income that would have been missed with our old manual booking system."

Would you recommend us to similar facilities?

"I highly recommend Pitchbooking to other sports community clubs. The benefits of their system become apparent within the first few months of use. The customer support is of the highest standard I have come across, offering not only callbacks but also instructional video clips to assist users. This level of support ensures that any uncertainties are quickly resolved, making the training of new users straightforward and efficient."