How South Shields Surf School went from a daily struggle to a modern booking system their whole team can use

South Shields Surf CIC is a Community Interest Company on the beach at South Shields, Tyne and Wear, set up to share the benefits of being in and around the sea and to make that as accessible as possible.

Surf lessons, paddleboarding, bodyboarding, rockpooling, snorkelling and beach school, alongside adaptive and accessible sessions, wellbeing sessions, and long-term programmes for schools and community groups. A team of around 15 instructors cover the lot — open every day through the school holidays, Wednesday to Sunday in term time, and Friday to Sunday over the winter.

South Shields ran on Bloowatch before Swellbase, and was looking for a modern tool to manage their bookings and operations.

The Challenge

Whenever a problem would come up, it would be an explanation on how to use a complicated system, rather than how the system could be improved.

And that just doesn't work, because then essentially all this thing is bringing is more admin. That's the last thing we needed.

A public booking flow that wasn't working. The customer-facing side of Bloowatch was complicated and difficult to use.
The complexity was permanent. Every problem came back as a lesson in how to work the system. The software itself never improved. A booking system that generates admin rather than removing it is the wrong way round, and there was no route to changing it.
The team was capped by the price tier. Bloowatch limited team members by plan, so how many of the team had access was a budget decision rather than an operational one.
No way to shut hire down. When conditions are unsafe, kit needs to stop going out. This had to be switched off item by item in Bloowatch, consuming unnecessary time.
Refunds were a chore to manage through the platform. Processing a refund meant logging in to Stripe separately.

The Solution

It's easier to use, and it's made things easier for our back of house. A lot of it has been streamlined.

I can block out hire through one switch, and I can process refunds in an effective way. Sharing booking links easily. It makes life easier for us.

South Shields Surf went live on 31st March 2026. We moved their products and upcoming bookings across from Bloowatch, and built the booking flow into their Wix site.

Operations

Hire closes in one switch. Availability windows and blackout periods, across the board or per item. The safety call gets made, the kit becomes not bookable, no workaround required.
Staff availability and unavailability. Team members update their availability in Swellbase, and so scheduling staff is easier and more efficient.
No limit on team members. All 15 have their own login. Seats aren't a pricing lever.
Refunds and cancellations handled where the booking is. No separate process, no cross-referencing.

Bookings

A modern booking flow customers can use. Easier for the business and easier for customers.
Shareable booking links. Copy a link to a specific session and send it to customers in one click.

The Results

The real benefit is your responsiveness. That's been a real win.

We talk to you and you understand what we need. And you understand why we need it, and respond in a really positive way. Focused on making our lives easier and not just on the system.

Hire management is a switch, not a scramble. In Nick's words, a big game changer — the conditions call gets made and the system follows it immediately.
The team picks it up easily. Onboarding an instructor takes a bit of guidance and then they're away. The time that used to go on teaching people the software doesn't.
The system costs them almost nothing to run. Bloowatch was a subscription, tiered by team size, paid by South Shields. Swellbase is a booking fee that South Shields passes on to the customer — and non-profits get a discount on the rate on top of that.
They can still absorb the fee where it matters. Passing it on is the default, not a rule. For community sessions, South Shields can absorb the fee on that item themselves with a simple toggle.
The requests get built. Hire blackouts, staff unavailability, discount codes, calendar improvements — all asked for by South Shields, all shipped, most within weeks.

Testimonial

The system has been better. The booking side is better. All of it is an improvement on the old system.

It's saved us time sorting out refunds and cancelling sessions, and it makes the day-to-day admin a lot easier. It's easy to show people how to use it too.

I'm using a better system and saving money. I'm pleased, 100%.

—Nick Jones (Director at South Shields Surf CIC)

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