Let’s face it—being a parish or town clerk is like herding cats, but with more paperwork. You’ve got meetings to schedule, budgets to balance, residents to keep happy, and let’s not even talk about keeping track of who has the keys to the village hall.

But fear not! The cloud is here to rescue you from the depths of paper-based despair. Below is your ultimate cheat sheet of must-have cloud apps that’ll make your council run smoother than a well-oiled minute book.

📢 Communication and Collaboration‍

Because Emails Are Never “Just a Quick One”

You need to email, video call, and schedule meetings without losing your mind. These tools will help:

• 📧 Email Services: Office 365, Google Workspace, Zoho Office
• 📹 Video Conferencing: Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, Zoho Meeting
• 💬 Instant Messaging: Slack, Microsoft Teams, WhatsApp
• 📆 Meeting Scheduling: Doodle, Calendly, Zoho Bookings

🚀 Best for Parish Councils: Microsoft 365 – Because Outlook, Teams, and SharePoint play nice together, and let’s be real, you were going to use Outlook anyway.

📂 Document and Content Management

Goodbye Paper Chaos, Hello Digital Zen

Your filing cabinet called. It’s overwhelmed. Go paperless (or at least pretend to) with these tools:

• ☁️ Cloud Storage: Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, Zoho WorkDrive
• 📄 Document Management Systems: SharePoint, Box, Zoho Docs
• ✍️ Digital Signatures: DocuSign, Adobe Sign, Zoho Sign
• 🔗 File Sharing: WeTransfer

🚀 Best for Parish Councils: Microsoft SharePoint & OneDrive – Keep everything in one place so Dave from the council stops asking where the risk assessments are.

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💰 Finance and Accounting

Because “Budget Oversight” Is a Fancy Word for “Don’t Mess It Up”

From annual audits to paying invoices, these apps will make sure your books stay balanced (and your auditor stays happy).

• 📊 Cloud Accounting: Scribe Accounts, Rialtas, EdgeIT, Gov-Finance, Sage Business Cloud, Xero, Zoho Books
• 💳 Payment Processing: PayPal, Stripe, Zoho Checkout

🚀 Best for Parish Councils: Scribe Accounts – Designed specifically for local councils, so you don’t have to explain to your accounting software what a precept is.

👥 Human Resources and Payroll

Because “Just Pay Them” Isn’t a Legal Payroll Strategy

Even small councils need to manage staff, timesheets, and payroll like pros. These apps keep everything above board and HMRC-friendly.

• 📝 HR Software: BrightHR, Croner, Peninsula, BambooHR, Workday, Zoho People, Worknest
• 💰 Payroll Software: Basic PAYE Tools, Sage, Zoho Payroll, Brightpay, Payroll Manager

🚀 Best for Parish Councils: BrightPay – Easy, HMRC-approved, and doesn’t require a finance degree to use.

📢 Marketing – Because

“No One Reads the Parish Website” Is a Lie

If residents don’t know what’s happening, they’ll assume the worst. Keep them informed, engaged, and (mostly) off your back with these:

• 🌍 Websites: Canva, WordPress, Wix, Ionos, HugoFox, Aubergine 262, Parish Online
• 📱 Social Media Management: Hootsuite, Buffer, Zoho Social
• 🎨 Graphic Design: Adobe Spark, Canva
• 🎬 Video Editing: VEED, Canva, Adobe Premiere Rush
• 📧 Email Marketing: Mailchimp, ActiveCampaign, Zoho Campaigns, GovMarketing
• 📈 Analytics: Google Analytics

🚀 Best for Parish Councils: Aubergine 262 – The most compliant provider in terms of accessibility. Their customer service is excellent, and while they’re not the cheapest, they are undoubtedly the best choice for councils that want a professional, legally compliant website.

📌 Project and Task Management

Juggling 20 Things at Once, But Make It Organised

From committee tasks to fixing the play area’s dodgy slide, these apps help you track everything like a pro:

• 📅 Project Management: Trello, Notion, Asana, Zoho Projects, Office365, Monday.com
• 📝 Task Management: Todoist, Microsoft To Do, Zoho Tasks
• 🎫 Support Ticketing: Zendesk, Freshdesk, Zoho Desk, GoDesk
• 🗳️ Data Collection Forms: Google Forms, SurveyMonkey, Microsoft Forms, JotForm, Zoho Forms

🚀 Best for Parish Councils: Trello – A visual, drag-and-drop solution that even the most tech-averse councillor can grasp.

🏛️ Asset and Facility Management

Keeping Track of All the Things That Need Fixing

From cemetery records to who left the allotment gate open, these apps have you covered:

• ⚰️ Cemetery Management: Scribe Cemetery, Epitaph, Plotbox, CloudyIT, Rialtas
• 🏡 Allotment Management: Scribe Allotments, EdgeIT, CloudyIT, Rialtas
• 🛠️ General Asset Management: Civic.ly, Parish Online, PSS Live, Site Audit Pro
• 📍 Mapping & GIS: Civic.ly, Parish Online, Google Maps, ArcGIS

🚀 Best for Parish Councils: Civic.ly – Council-specific asset management, plus powerful GIS mapping. So you know exactly where that missing park bench was supposed to be.

🎟️ Event and Meeting Management –

Because Chaos-Free Meetings Are the Dream

Meetings don’t have to be soul-crushingly tedious (but let’s be honest, they still might be). These tools help:

• 🎫 Event Ticket Management: Eventbrite, Cvent, Zoho Backstage, GovMarketing
• 📜 Meeting Management: Decisions (in Microsoft Teams), Modern.Gov, MinuteDock
• 📅 Booking Management: Scribe Bookings, Hallmaster, LemonBookings

🚀 Best for Parish Councils: Decisions (in Microsoft Teams) – Integrated directly into Teams, making agenda prep and meeting minutes easy. Available via CloudyIT.

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Final Thoughts – Welcome to the Future, Parish Clerks!

Embracing cloud-based tools isn’t just about efficiency—it’s about keeping your sanity intact. Whether you’re dealing with finance, meetings, or residents who want “something done” about the potholes, these tools make life easier, smoother, and a little less stressful.

💡 TL;DR – Best Picks for Parish Councils

• Email & Collaboration: Microsoft 365
• Finance & Accounting: Scribe Accounts
• Website & Public Engagement: Aubergine 262
• Project Management: Trello
• Asset & Facility Management: Civic.ly
• Meeting Management: Decisions in Microsoft Teams

With the right tools, you’ll be the digital wizard your council never knew it needed. Now, go forth and tame the paperwork beast! 🚀

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