Why Local Authorities are moving beyond legacy systems

The shift from established tools to smarter, connected operations

Across the UK, local authorities are rethinking how they manage their infrastructure – from highways and lighting to drainage and green spaces. Many still rely on long-standing, modular systems that were once ideal for the job – and for many years, they’ve delivered. But today’s demands require a different kind of agility.

Faced with rising public expectations, tighter budgets, and growing service pressures, more councils are choosing to modernise. Cloud-based platforms like Causeway Alloy offer the connectivity, automation and real-time visibility needed to stay responsive and efficient.

Why councils are choosing to modernise their systems

Long-trusted systems like Mayrise were designed to meet the needs of a different era – and many have served councils well for decades. But today’s service demands are evolving fast, and newer platforms are stepping up to meet them.

Here’s what many councils are navigating today:

• Siloed modules
  Managing services like highways and street lighting through separate modules can lead to duplicated effort, slower updates, and reporting blind spots.

• Manual processes and reporting lag
  From paper-based job tickets to static reports, legacy platforms often require manual updates – especially when feeding into audits or claims.

• Limited flexibility and configurability
  When you want to tweak a form, add a new asset type, or configure a mobile workflow, older systems often need vendor support or workaround solutions.

• Reduced visibility and insight
  Without a centralised dashboard or mobile interface, it’s harder to monitor progress, track SLAs, or respond to issues in real time.

What modern platforms do differently

Modern systems like Causeway Alloy are built around how your teams actually work – helping you move faster, collaborate better, and deliver a higher standard of service.

• See what’s happening, at a glance
  • Real-time dashboards and map-based views surface key data across teams and services. Track SLAs, prioritise work, and give each user the data they need.
• Automate the everyday
  • Inspections, follow-ups and maintenance tasks are scheduled and assigned automatically - reducing manual admin and speeding up responses.
• Understand context, not just location
  • Layer data like flood zones or soil types to make smarter decisions in the field. Mobile teams can search, report, and update jobs directly from the map.
• Build confidence with audit-ready logs
  • Every job, inspection and decision is traceable - supporting compliance, claims and service transparency.
• Integrate, don’t duplicate
  • Link with CRM, GIS, or BI systems to streamline reporting and data sharing.
• Migrate with confidence
  • Pre-configured packages for highways and street lighting mirror how councils already work - making the switch easier, faster, and lower risk.

What councils are seeing after switching

Authorities who’ve made the move are seeing real improvements:

• Monitor in-field operations in real time – including operative locations – to prioritise and respond faster.

• Track SLAs live in dashboards, not via spreadsheets.

• Smarter test scheduling and fault management – especially for street lighting.

• Real-time job progress, asset condition and service performance.

• Mobile-first working – operatives update tasks in the field, reducing admin and improving data quality.

The result? Less time chasing updates. More time delivering services for communities.

When is it time to move on?

If your system is making everyday tasks feel harder than they should, it might be time to explore what else is possible. Look out for signs like:

• Using separate tools for different asset types

• Compiling reports manually from different systems

• Relying on spreadsheets or printed job tickets

• Needing vendor input to make workflow changes

• Lacking mobile access or real-time dashboards

If you're already considering a move and want to understand what a modern system could look like for your service areas:

Please get in touch.