Today, I’m thrilled to share an important milestone in Zencity’s journey to redefine how local governments engage with their communities. We’ve officially acquired Commonplace, a UK-based leader in community engagement with a special focus on zoning and planning.
We couldn’t be happier to welcome Benjy, Mike, and the rest of the team to Zencity and to continue serving the 100+ UK organizations supported by Commonplace today.
This acquisition represents more than just a growth opportunity for Zencity — it’s a step toward creating a comprehensive solution that empowers governments around the world to listen to, understand, and take action to positively impact their communities.
Here’s why we’re excited — and why you should be, too.
Why Commonplace? A Shared Mission
Since Zencity’s early days, we’ve been on a mission to help local leaders make data-informed decisions that reflect their community’s real priorities. We’ve partnered with cities, counties, and agencies across the globe to make resident feedback more actionable — whether that feedback comes from surveys, social media, 311 systems, or other channels.
Commonplace has developed a reputation over 11 years in business as the gold standard software for place-based engagement in the UK. Their customers include the City of London, Westminster Council, Leeds City Council, Camden Council, and the Mayor of London. The company’s technology has powered engagement with over 10 million community members on behalf of more than 3,500 individual projects across the UK. Commonplace is particularly recognized as a unique market leader in zoning and planning, and its industry-leading map-based features and subscriber management will be widely adopted into the Zencity platform.
From our very first conversations, we were deeply impressed by the incredible work Mike, Benjy, and their team have accomplished. Their commitment to empowering governments and their clear leadership in the UK made this partnership a natural fit.
Over the past few years, the UK has grown to be one of the most exciting markets for us to work in. Our first UK customers included the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government (MHCLG), British Transport Police (BTP), and various local councils, including North Hertfordshire and Tewkesbury. We’ve found incredible public servants hungry to understand their communities in order to serve them better across the country.
With the acquisition of Commonplace, we’re doubling down on our investment in the UK. We’re opening a new office in central London to serve our growing customer base in the region and provide even greater support and responsiveness to both Zencity and Commonplace customers.
What This Means for Commonplace Customers
One of the things we’re really excited about is what this means for the strong existing Commonplace customer base. Over the next few months, we will combine the Commonplace capabilities with the wider set of Zencity capabilities to provide the most comprehensive community engagement platform available in the UK. Our combined team of almost 150 people will ensure that Commonplace customers continue to enjoy the same thoughtful service they’ve always received — while also gaining access to new tools and insights that come with Zencity’s broader capabilities.
From gold-standard resident surveys to advanced AI-driven sentiment analysis, we’re excited to offer Commonplace customers enhanced ways to understand what their communities want and need — and to do it efficiently without juggling multiple vendors or disconnected systems.
We’re proud to bring Zencity’s experience working with leading UK government bodies to this partnership, ensuring that Commonplace customers can count on the same stability and reliability they’ve always trusted, now with expanded capabilities.
What This Means for Zencity Customers
If you’re a Zencity customer, this acquisition also expands what’s possible for your community.
With Commonplace’s expertise in zoning and planning, we’re adding powerful new tools for project-specific engagement—from major infrastructure projects to neighborhood-level developments. We know that planning and development projects often spark the most passionate conversations in a community. Now, Zencity customers will have best-in-class tools to navigate those conversations confidently.
This acquisition also strengthens our position as a global leader in community engagement. With new talent joining our team from Commonplace and a dedicated London office, we’re enhancing our ability to serve communities across Europe and beyond.
Looking Ahead
We believe that more inclusive, more actionable, and more timely community engagement leads to better decisions — and better outcomes. That’s why this acquisition matters so much. Together, Zencity and Commonplace will continue to set the standard for how local governments listen to and act on resident feedback, ensuring that public services reflect real public priorities.
This is just the beginning. Over the coming weeks and months, we’ll be working closely with the Commonplace team to ensure we continue creating new ways to deliver even more value to our customers.
I want to thank our customers, partners, and team members who’ve made this milestone possible. Your trust and commitment to improving community engagement have fueled our growth, and we’re excited to continue this journey together.
I especially want to thank Mike for choosing to continue the commonplace journey with us. Excited for what’s to come.
This is just the beginning.
Eyal
