our portfolio
Extraordinary founders backed by Daring Capital
Kerstyn Comley & Suzi Godson, Tellmi
Kerstyn and Suzi are on a mission to revolutionise health outcomes for young people.
We are living through a mental health catastrophe for young people: rates of serious mental health issues are at an all time high and waiting lists for treatment have never been longer.
What if, instead of making two million young people with mental health issues wait for treatment that may never come, we gave them the tools they need to help themselves, and each other?
Well, that’s exactly what Tellmi have done. They created a safe, inclusive digital community where young people can help themselves and help each other.
Tellmi provides:
Pre-moderated, anonymous peer support
Preemptive counsellor intervention for young people in crisis
Scheduled 1-2-1 Solution Focused Therapy
A directory of 600+ crisis, specialist, local and national resources
Available all day, every day. No referrals. No waiting.
Tellmi works: a study by UCL found that 72% of young people feel better when they use Tellmi.
Tellmi saves money for the NHS: a study by the York Health Economic Consortium found that Tellmi saves the NHS £196 per user per year.
AManda Bell & Victoria Nottage, SeparateSpace
Separation and divorce impacts every aspect of a person's life: where you live, how much money you have, your time with your kids, and your mental health. Navigating this complex process can be incredibly stressful, especially without knowing where to start and what to do.
Since the withdrawal of legal aid for divorces in most cases, access to affordable, high-quality advice has become even more limited: the average legal fees for a settlement are £8k outside of London and £18k inside of London! There's a massive amount of information available online but it's impossible for people to work out what's reliable or relevant to them. The result is that more cases are ending up in the court system, stretching court resources beyond their limits - the average time it takes to a judge to decide the financial outcome is well over a year, which in turn adds protracted litigation to the difficulties being faced by separating couples.
SeparateSpace offers a digital platform that provides a calm, simple, and affordable way to navigate divorce. It helps users sort out parenting arrangements, property, and finances. They have developed personalised, interactive pathways that coach users through each stage of divorce as well as guides and templates tailored to individual needs.
Kanu Bhatra & Nessrin Younes, Speek
Kanu and Ness are on a mission to support parents of children who are self-harming
1 in 5 teenagers self-harm, leaving almost 10m parents in the UK and US distressed and desperate to be part of the solution. Most treatment is focussed on supporting the young people directly and doesn’t cater for the needs of parents. The whole problem still carries an enormous stigma and parents end up feeling alone and isolated.
Speek can offers a range of support to parents including
Group Therapy sessions led by clinical psychologists
A personalised support plan including skills-building exercises
Access to a helpline staffed by clinical psychologists
They do all of this for an affordable price and offer a free service to those on low incomes.
Temi Akindele Barker, Inclusion labs
Temi is on a mission to make schools inclusive for young people, no matter who they are.
Inclusion Labs have developed a digital platform which enables schools to identify and prioritise their DEI activities with data-driven, focused actions. The platform takes schools through a DEI audit which assesses the experiences of inclusion of all stakeholders (students; parents; staff; and senior leadership team), detects the most pressing issues, determines what actions to take and how to prioritise those actions.
Inclusion Labs is already working with over 50 schools and you can find out how to get involved below.
Simon Tucker, beanbag Health
Simon is on a mission to ensure that everyone struggling with eating disorders get the help they deserve.
In the UK, up to 3.4m are struggling with an eating disorder. Eating disorders affect every aspect of a person’s life and have the highest mortality rate of any psychiatric disorder. Despite this, adults are faced with the choice of waiting 12 - 18 months for NHS treatment or forking out thousands of pounds to go privately.
Inspired by seeing the impact of eating disorders on those closest to him, Simon set up Beanbag as part of the Zinc Venture Builder programme
Beanbag have developed a Duo Lingo style app that provides users with a 20 week programme to treat their eating disorder. The programme can be self-guided or supported by a coach. From just £15 per month and with means tested discounts, this is an affordable way to treat an eating disorder.
The programme is based on CBT-E principles and was developed in partnership with leading psychiatrists and psychologists
SOPHIE O’BRIEN, POLLEN CAREERS
Sophie is on a mission to transform the entry-level careers market into a more inclusive and equitable space.
Pollen are disrupting the entry-level jobs market by doing away with CVs. They are building a community of talented and motivated entry-level job seekers, providing support and guidance through a mentoring program and curated jobs board.
Pollen’s community of over 3,000 jobseekers benefits from a mentor directory, an engaging Slack community, and a jobs newsletter, building self-confidence and skills. Employers receive well-matched candidates through Pollen’s recruitment process, minimizing biases and focusing on suitability for the role.
RITU KIRAN, AUBILITIES
Ritu is on a mission to transform workplaces into more neuro-inclusive and supportive environments.
Aubilities is empowering companies to embrace neurodiversity by providing tools and resources to support both neurodivergent and neurotypical employees.
Aubilities offers online education, digital assessments, and unique data insights to foster understanding, drive acceptance, and enable evidence-based decisions on neuro-inclusion.
Through these initiatives, Aubilities is creating workplaces where every individual can thrive, unlocking potential and productivity for all.