# Facility hire

> Let members book club spaces such as pitches, courts, halls, and rooms, with availability rules, pricing tiers, and online payment.

Canonical: https://www.clubpal.app/docs/facility-hire/overview
Section: Facility hire

Facility hire lets members book club spaces such as pitches, courts, halls, and rooms.

You can run facility hire as a member booking flow and an admin-managed workflow.

## Before you start

- Anyone can browse the facility list and see public pricing without signing in. Signing in is required at the point of booking.
- The feature must be enabled for your club before the **Facility Hire** menu appears.
- Admins need the **Manage Facility Hire** permission to access **Admin > Facility Hire**.

See [Permissions](https://www.clubpal.app/docs/general/permissions) for permission setup.

## Key concepts

**Facility**
A bookable space, for example "Main Pitch", "Court 1", or "Meeting Room A". Each facility has its own availability schedule, pricing tiers, and an optional photo and amenities.

**Availability schedule**
Defines when a facility can be booked, day by day. You set opening and closing times for each day of the week. Days can also have multiple open windows.

**Pricing tier**
Defines the price for a specific duration. A facility can have multiple tiers such as 60 minutes, 90 minutes, and 120 minutes, each with its own price.

**Buffer**
An optional changeover period added after each booking. The buffer is not included in the member's booking time; it is only used internally for scheduling.

**Blockout**
A period when a facility, or all facilities, is unavailable. Use blockouts for maintenance, club training, bank holidays, or any other time you want to prevent bookings.

**Booking reference**
Each confirmed booking is assigned a unique reference code shown to the member and visible in the admin booking list.

## How it works

Members can browse available facilities, check availability, and book slots. Admins set up facilities with pricing, availability windows, policies, and manage all bookings.

1. A member selects a facility, chooses a date, and picks an available start time.
2. They select a duration and review the pricing for their membership tier.
3. After accepting any terms and conditions set for the facility, they proceed to checkout.
4. A pending booking is created immediately, holding the slot while payment is completed.
5. Once payment is received the booking is confirmed and a confirmation email is sent to the member.
6. If payment is not completed within the checkout window, the pending booking is released automatically.

## Global defaults

Before creating facilities you may want to configure your club-wide defaults at **Admin > Settings > Facility Hire**. These defaults pre-populate new facilities and reduce repetitive configuration.

## Email notifications

ClubPal automatically sends transactional emails to members for key events in the booking lifecycle:

- **Booking confirmed**
- **Booking cancelled**
- **24-hour reminder**

Emails are only sent when the club has email notifications enabled and the member has not opted out.

## Guides

- **[Managing facilities](https://www.clubpal.app/docs/facility-hire/managing-facilities)**, create and edit facilities
- **[Availability and pricing](https://www.clubpal.app/docs/facility-hire/availability-and-pricing)**, configure opening hours, durations, and prices
- **[Blockouts](https://www.clubpal.app/docs/facility-hire/blockouts)**, prevent bookings during closures or reserved periods
- **[Managing bookings](https://www.clubpal.app/docs/facility-hire/managing-bookings)**, view, create, and cancel bookings as an admin
- **[Deposits](https://www.clubpal.app/docs/facility-hire/deposits)**, let members pay part now and collect the balance automatically
- **[Making a booking](https://www.clubpal.app/docs/facility-hire/making-a-booking)**, member booking flow and cancellation rules
- **[Troubleshooting](https://www.clubpal.app/docs/facility-hire/troubleshooting)**, common issues and solutions

## Related features

- [Discount codes](https://www.clubpal.app/docs/payments/discount-codes), apply discounts to bookings
- [Permissions](https://www.clubpal.app/docs/general/permissions), grant access to facility hire features