Website
Booking Platform
Charity & Community

1st Cathays Al-Huda

A connected digital ecosystem: a community website for a Cardiff Scout group, plus a custom equipment and vehicle hire booking platform.

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1stcathays.org.uk

Client: 1st Cathays Al-Huda Scout Group
Industry: Charity & youth organisation
Services: Website Design & Development
Booking Systems
Full-Stack Development
E-commerce
Platform: WordPress website + custom booking platform
Status: Live
Website: 1stcathays.org.uk (opens in a new tab)
bookings.1stcathays.org.uk (opens in a new tab)

Overview

Project overview

1st Cathays Al-Huda is a Scout group in Cardiff for young people aged 6 to 18. They needed a website that reflected their community and made it easy for families, volunteers and supporters to get involved.

The work became two connected products. The public website at 1stcathays.org.uk handles information, the shop and getting involved. A separate booking platform at bookings.1stcathays.org.uk handles equipment and vehicle hire.

The challenge

A busy, volunteer-run organisation needed one place to explain who they are, their age sections and how to join. They also needed to take donations, sell items and recruit volunteers.

Separately, lending the group's equipment and vehicles needed a proper booking process instead of messages and manual tracking.

The solution

I designed and built a community website with clear routes for each audience: families joining the waiting list, supporters donating, volunteers getting involved, and members buying from the shop.

For hire, I deployed a branded booking platform on its own subdomain, built on my Booka system. Customers work through three steps (choose an item, select dates, give booking details), and Scout leaders have their own booking route.

Inside the project

1st Cathays Digital Ecosystem

Two connected but distinct digital products, each designed around its own audience: a public website for the community, and a booking platform for hire.

Product 01

Live

Public website

1stcathays.org.uk (opens in a new tab)

The website is the group's front door. Families find the right section for their child, supporters can donate, and volunteers can get in touch. Event ticketing and the waiting list link out to the specialist tools the group already uses.

WordPress
Elementor
WooCommerce

Section pages for every age group
Beavers (6–8), Cubs (8–10½), Scouts (10½–14) and Explorers (14–18), each with its own page.
Waiting list sign-up
A prominent ‘Join Waiting List’ route that links into the group's Online Scout Manager waiting list.
Online Scout Manager (third-party)
Online shop
A shop for group items such as the starter pack, with basket and checkout.
WooCommerce
Donations and volunteering
Dedicated donate and volunteer pages, with contact and volunteer sign-up forms.
Community information
About, trustees, FAQs, safeguarding links and social channels, all in one place.
Editable content
The group can update pages and content themselves without a developer.
WordPress + Elementor

Product 02

Live

Equipment & vehicle hire platform

bookings.1stcathays.org.uk (opens in a new tab)

A separate web application on its own subdomain, branded for 1st Cathays and powered by my Booka platform. Customers pick what they'd like to hire, check availability and give their booking details. Scout leaders sign in through their own route.

Booka
React
Firebase

1st Cathays booking platform: Hire the right equipment or vehicle, with ease.

Booking step one of three: choose what you'd like to hire.

Three-step booking
Choose item → select dates → booking details, with progress shown throughout.
Availability and rates
Choosing an item shows its description, rates and availability.
Leader bookings
A dedicated route for Scout leaders booking on behalf of the group.
Account login
Sign-in for returning users and staff.

System / user flow

How it works

How the two products connect

11stcathays.org.ukPublic website
2Booking linkFrom the main site
3bookings.1stcathays.org.ukCustom booking platform
4Choose itemEquipment or vehicle
5Select datesCheck availability
6Booking detailsTell us about your hire
7AdministrationManaged in the Booka dashboard

Technology

Built with

WordPress
Elementor
WooCommerce
Booka (React, Firebase)

I choose the platform to suit each organisation: WordPress or Shopify when the team wants to manage everything themselves, and custom applications when the workflow needs something built specifically for it.

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