Why Flexible Asset Management is a Game-Changer for Councils (and Why SpacetoCo Gets It)

As local government councils across Australia, New Zealand, and the UK look to modernise, the challenge isn't just finding an online booking system; it's finding the right one. Many platforms are built for generic businesses, forcing councils to adapt their complex operations to rigid software.

At SpacetoCo, we believe your venue management solution should be as dynamic and diverse as your community. We’ve worked alongside hundreds of councils to build a platform that doesn't just digitise bookings - it solves the unique, often overlooked, challenges of managing public assets.

The Challenge: When Management Doesn't Fit the Organisational Chart

You know the scenario well: a council owns a diverse portfolio of assets, from large sporting grounds and community halls to meeting rooms and camping sites. Each has its own management model. Some are centrally managed by council staff, while others, like a rural hall or a peppercorn lease footy ground, are run by a dedicated volunteer committee or community trust. In the UK,  the community asset transfer model is fast becoming the most cost effective way to deliver local venue hire services. 

Most booking platforms are built with a major flaw for councils: they require every manager to have an email address on the council's official domain. This creates a painful bottleneck. How can a community volunteer or an external committee member manage a property they oversee if they can't even get access to the system?

The SpacetoCo Solution: True Collaborative Management

SpacetoCo is the only solution that understands this reality. Our platform allows you to easily add users who don't work for the council, giving them the permissions they need to manage a specific property. This means your rural hall committee, your local sporting club, or a trust can have direct, seamless control over the asset they operate.

This ability to manage externally managed properties is a game-changer. It’s not always practical for a central council team to manage a hundred different assets; with SpacetoCo, you can empower the people on the ground who know these facilities best. This approach is more realistic, more efficient, and more aligned with the needs of your communities.

Solving for Succession and Sustainability

We’ve all heard stories about the tireless community volunteer, often well into retirement, who holds the keys (both literally and metaphorically) to a community hall. This is a testament to their dedication, but it's a significant risk for councils. What happens when they retire or are no longer able to manage the bookings? This creates downtime and leaves communities without access to their own spaces.

CASE STUDY: Taupo District Council created a bookable ecosystem of all rural halls

Taupo District Council in New Zealand have a mixed portfolio of community halls, some managed by council teams and others managed by volunteer committees. The council were concerned that the service delivery and access provided to locals and data they were receiving was inconsistent across the network of halls. In 2023, they moved all their venues to SpacetoCo so that the entire district could have one, easy way to find and book space in their local halls. 

The council has achieved the following outcomes:

• 86% reduction in average booking processing from 90mins to 12 mins
• Bookings increased without more human resources
• New classes and events happening at the facilities
• New people booking through the marketplace
• Improved efficiency by regular groups self-serving their bookings

Check out their local venue marketplace here.

Other councils who use SpacetoCo to create a consistent booking journey across a mixed portfolio of community asset operating models:

City of Onkaparinga, Adleaide - see their venues here.

City of Melville, Perth - see their venues here.

City of Marion, Adelaide - see their venues here. 

The SpacetoCo Solution: Stress-Free Succession Planning

Our booking software turns this challenge into a seamless process. The platform allows for the easy updating, adding, or removing of property managers with a few clicks. As new volunteers step up, a council can instantly grant them access and onboard them to the system, ensuring zero downtime and a smooth transition. This built-in succession planning is not only a lifeline for your volunteers but also a vital tool for the long-term sustainability of your community assets.

Beyond Bookings: Data, Compliance, and Community

The status quo for many councils is a lack of data. How often is that rural hall really used? How much revenue did that camping ground actually generate last year? Without a centralised system, this information is difficult to come by, making it challenging to allocate resources, justify repairs, or even know which assets are being used. SpacetoCo provides real-time data dashboards, giving you a clear picture of revenue and utilisation so you can make informed, strategic decisions.

We also tackle compliance head-on. Manual systems often lead to patchy form filling and incomplete compliance records (e.g., fire regulations, insurance details). SpacetoCo automates these processes, ensuring all required information is captured at the time of booking, giving your council peace of mind.

Ultimately, we believe your community assets should be easy to access. The days of having to call a specific person on a Sunday morning to book a public space are over. SpacetoCo provides a modern, 24/7 self-service experience for the community while providing your council with the control, compliance, and data it needs to succeed.