Monitoring & Evaluation Platform

Eyes on the ground for improved cities

Helping organisations monitor and evaluate projects and initiatives that improve cities.

HeadsUp is a community-powered monitoring and evaluation platform that helps organisations measure whether their investments are improving cities. Through our network of community contributors, continuous place monitoring and structured evidence framework, we produce auditable precinct intelligence that supports better decisions, stronger accountability and measurable progress towards SDG 11.

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Community MonitoringImpact MeasurementSDG 11Built in South Africa

Every investment should create measurable impact.

Across cities, organisations invest millions in public spaces, infrastructure, mobility, safety, community programmes and urban development. Yet one question remains difficult to answer.

Is it making a difference?

Traditional monitoring often relies on surveys, inspections and periodic reporting. HeadsUp provides continuous community reporting that helps organisations understand what is changing, how people experience places and where greater impact can be achieved.

Continuous

Reporting from the people who use these places daily.

10 layers

Of the Improved Cities Framework™ monitored per place.

Evidence, not anecdote

Lived experience captured, verified and structured into data organisations can report on.

What HeadsUp helps organisations measure

Instead of measuring projects alone, HeadsUp measures how people experience the places those projects are designed to improve. Using our Improved Cities Framework™, we monitor ten interconnected layers that shape inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable cities.

The HeadsUp Improved Cities Framework: ten interconnected layers
1Lighting & Visibility

Working streetlights, dark corners, tree cover blocking light, lit routes, lighting near taxi ranks, bus stops, residences and public spaces.

2Safety & Security

Visible patrols, security guards, CCTV, emergency response, active streets, safer crossings, natural surveillance, safe waiting areas.

3Cleanliness & Waste

Bins, illegal dumping, overflowing bins, street sweeping, smells, blocked drains, litter hotspots.

4Mobility & Access

Sidewalks, crossings, traffic calming, public transport access, parking, cycling, disability access, wayfinding.

5Public Amenities

Toilets, benches, shade, water points, charging points, Wi-Fi, public taps, rest areas.

6Utilities & Resilience

Electricity, backup power, water outages, load-shedding impact, stormwater, flooding, heat, shade.

7Local Economy & Visibility

Shops, informal traders, cafés, services, events, specials, operating hours, queues, footfall.

8Public Life & Activation

Events, sport, markets, running clubs, culture, recreation, night-time activity, community gatherings.

9Inclusion & Lived Experience

Women's safety, youth access, disability access, affordability, community voice, who feels welcome or excluded.

10Governance & Response

Who is responsible, escalation channels, maintenance turnaround, municipal/BID/private-owner response.

Community-powered monitoring

Every day, thousands of decisions are made in cities. Communities experience these changes first.

A streetlight stops working.
A public space becomes more active.
A business opens later than usual.
Foot traffic shifts.
Public amenities improve.
Infrastructure deteriorates.

Instead of waiting for annual surveys, HeadsUp captures these everyday observations through continuous community reporting, transforming lived experiences into measurable evidence.

Live community reports mapped across Braamfontein and Johannesburg
Our vision

To create improved cities where people move with confidence, businesses thrive, infrastructure is well maintained and communities enjoy a higher quality of life.

Our mission

To help organisations monitor, evaluate and improve projects and initiatives that strengthen cities by transforming community experiences into trusted evidence for better decision-making.

Every community experience matters.Every observation becomes evidence.Every insight helps improve cities.
HeadsUp mascot supporting local

Helping organisations measure progress towards SDG 11

Sustainable Development Goal 11 calls for cities and communities that are:

InclusiveSafeResilientSustainable

HeadsUp helps organisations measure their contribution towards these outcomes using continuous community reporting, place monitoring and impact measurement. Rather than simply supporting SDG 11, we provide the evidence organisations need to demonstrate progress.

Built with communities. Designed for organisations.

The same community that helps people know what's happening before they go also creates valuable evidence that helps organisations understand cities. As people share updates about the places they use every day, HeadsUp builds a continuously evolving picture of how cities are changing.

Communities receive better information.
Organisations receive better evidence.
Cities become easier to understand and improve.
See the community side: In the City →
Braamfontein streets

Working alongside organisations improving cities

We're proud to work alongside organisations that believe better decisions create improved cities. Together we're building new ways to monitor, evaluate and strengthen communities through trusted community reporting.

Jasiri Talent Investor
Venture Creation Partner
Technology Innovation Agency (TIA)
Technology & Innovation Partner
Standard Bank
Entrepreneurship Development Partner
South Point
Student Community Partner
Walkable Network by Suncasa
Urban Mobility Partner
Aura
Community Safety Partner
Joburg Theatre
Community Activation Partner

Ready to measure what matters?

Whether you're improving a precinct, managing public infrastructure, evaluating a community programme or measuring progress towards SDG 11, HeadsUp provides the evidence needed to make better decisions.

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