Spaces are the next evolution of Community Groups. They’re designed to feel more intuitive and familiar for students, with a scrollable feed, threaded conversations and a more visually-rich experience.
Spaces are live and available to add into your Community, and already driving strong student engagement.
So, first things first - How are Spaces different from Groups?
Spaces introduce a more social, feed-style experience.
Conversations are organised into threads, so replies don’t get lost.
Find answers instantly: Search makes it easy to browse past discussions, reducing repetitive questions.
Students can like and comment, lowering the barrier to engagement.
Multiple conversations can happen at once without becoming chaotic.
The experience supports both real-time and asynchronous participation.
Community Spaces are built for sustained engagement, not just bursts of chat.
✨ What’s coming next ✨
Community Spaces is evolving quickly, with ongoing improvements focused on making the experience simpler, more intuitive, and more engaging for users. Read on to see what’s already live, and what’s coming next...
Now Live
❗To use the new student-facing features below, Students and Ambassadors will need to update their Unibuddy app manually, or if auto-updates are enabled, it will update automatically via the App Store or Google Play❗
🗑️ Post deletion
Users can delete their own posts, giving them more control and reducing moderation requests.
🧑🤝🧑 Streamlined structure
Public group creation has been disabled as Spaces become the primary Community structure, reducing duplication and encouraging activity in Spaces.
Private groups will remain available and easier to access.
🤝 Improved onboarding
New users will see a clearer, more guided onboarding experience, with updated copy and flow, helping users understand how Spaces work, and encouraging early engagement.
🌐 Access via Web (Students and Admins)
Admin web access for Spaces is now live. This enables you to view and manage Spaces from your desktop, respond to posts, and oversee multiple Spaces.
Students can also access and participate in Spaces via the web, making it easier to engage in conversations beyond mobile.
🏷️ Labelled Spaces
Now, Spaces are labelled with the University Community name or “Unibuddy Space”, so users can distinguish what space belongs to what Community.
🧑🚀 My Spaces - view
The “My Spaces” tab has been refreshed, with joined Spaces now displayed in a list view instead of a grid, making them easier to browse and navigate.
💬 Threaded replies visibility
Replies will keep the original post visible, making conversations easier to follow.
💡 User-requested Spaces (Student App)
Users can request their own Spaces (Admins can review and edit), allowing Communities to grow organically around shared interests, hobbies, and experiences.
🔔 Push Notifications
Push notifications for new replies and reactions to a post. Notifications will be sent to the original poster and anyone who has replied in the thread.
🔍 Search Functionality
Users can search names and info about Spaces to quickly find relevant discussions and content.
📈 Spaces Analytics in your University Dashboard
Spaces Analytics gives you a clearer understanding of how students are engaging across your Spaces, helping you spot trends, identify what’s working, and optimise content and activity over time.
Space name
No. of members / No. of posts
No. of reactions / No. of comments (total and average).
ℹ️ View more info about a Space
Users can click on a Space header to see more information about the Space.
🔴 Unread post count
Inside “My Spaces” there will be a notification badge with a count of unread posts in individual Spaces
🔎 Searching between Spaces
Search functionality has been improved so that when Users search, posts and threads will be included.
👤 View User Profile
Users can now click on a name or profile photo from a post to view that user’s profile, making it easier to learn more about who’s contributing and connect with others in the community.
This will go live on the Ambassador app w/c 25th May 2026
🪐 Duplicating Spaces across Communities
When duplicating a Community, existing Spaces will now be carried across automatically, and previous public Groups will be duplicated as Spaces.
#️⃣ Ambassadors # replies on a post
Ambassadors can now see the number of replies on posts, bringing their experience more closely in line with the student app.
❤️ Reactions on posts
Reactions are now available in the latest version of the Unibuddy App.
Coming Soon
👥 View members list of Space
Users will be able to view a full members list within a Space, and click through to see profiles and start conversations with other members.
📊 Polls
Admins will be able to create polls directly within posts in Spaces, giving communities an easy way to gather opinions, spark conversations, and encourage participation. Students and Ambassadors can then vote and engage with polls directly from the post, helping to create more interactive and engaging community discussions.
🔗 Clickable links in posts
Users will be able to add clickable links directly within posts, making it easier for students to share helpful resources, recommend content, and support each other with useful information.
Coming Later
🔔 Push Notifications (Inactivity)
Users will receive push notifications after 5 days of inactivity, helping to re-engage users and bring them back into the Community.
🏷️ Admin/Ambassador tag on posts
Posts from Admins and Ambassadors will be clearly labelled, making it easier for students to identify trusted voices and know who they’re engaging with.
⛔️ Ability to leave a Space
Users will be able to leave a Space at any time, giving them more control over their Community experience.
🔇 Mute notifications to a thread/post
Users will be able to mute notifications for specific posts or threads, giving them more control over the conversations they follow.
🤩 Copy text from a post
Users will be able to copy text directly from posts, making it easier to save, share, or reference useful information from conversations within Spaces.
👍 Ambassador post reactions
In the Unibuddy Ambassador App, Ambassadors will be able to add emoji reactions to posts.
🔔 Push notifications for due To-Do's
Users will receive push notifications for upcoming To-do's, including reminders one week before and one day before tasks are due.
📃 PDFs in posts
Admins and Ambassadors will be able to upload PDFs directly into posts, allowing them to share important resources, guides, and documents more easily within Spaces.
⏱️ Time tracking for ambassador posts
Time tracking is currently available for private and direct messages within Communities. We’re working on extending this to ambassador-created posts, so activity across Spaces can also be tracked.
📝 Post Editing
Users will be able to edit their posts after sending.
💻 Spaces on Web (Ambassador Experience)
For now, Ambassadors will continue to access Spaces through the Unibuddy Ambassador app only, but web access for Ambassadors is planned.
✉️ Admin Insights
Spaces discussions will be included in your weekly Community Digest emails
How do I create a new Space?
Creating a new Space for your Community is quick and easy. Simply follow these steps:
Log into your University Dashboard
Navigate to the Community tab in the left-hand menu
Select the Community you'd like to add a new Space to
Go to the Spaces tab
Click + Create a space
Give your new Space a title, description, and a cover photo.
The upload limit for a cover photo is 15mb, and accepted formats are jpgs and .pngs.
Your title can be up to 200 characters - and should offer a clear and concise overview of what this Space is - i.e. Find a Roommate, or Life in Manchester.
Your description sets the scene - what can a student expect from this Space, and why should they join it?
Click Create space
What about my existing Community groups?
Your existing Community groups will not be affected. They will remain as Groups - but you will still be able to create Spaces, so your Community members can benefit. Students will still be able to find and join your current Groups.
You won't be able to create new Groups, but your existing Groups can still be managed in the Community tab within your University Dashboard - the tab will be relabelled as Spaces. Any Spaces you create will be displayed first in your dashboard, with Groups stacked underneath.
What does it look like if I have both Spaces and Groups in a Community?
Groups will remain editable, but new engagement will naturally shift towards Spaces.
This phased approach allows you to move at a comfortable pace without disrupting active Communities. Spaces will live under the Spaces tab, and Groups will still live under the Connect tab.
The below video shows that user experience for students in a Community with both Groups and Spaces.