8 Mental Health Startups in London You Should Know About
“Mental Health Startups in London You Should Know About” by Bryan Hunter, Founder of Space To Be You
Everyone has their challenges to fight. We can’t pretend to understand what everyone is going through, but we do know that investing in mental health is just as, if not more important than maintaining physical health.
Mental health issues are on the rise as a direct result of the Covid pandemic, but fortunately, mental health is also becoming more widely recognised as an essential component of overall employee wellness, and more often than not, of workplace productivity.
Below we have collated a cross-section of successful mental health businesses that have sprung up across the capital, all intending to improve people’s quality of life.
If you’re looking for some support in these challenging times, then some of the startups below could well help you out.
MasLife
Maslife provides mental and financial clarity, peace of mind, and empowerment. They guide you through cutting through the clutter and guiding you straight to your financial well-being—a step-by-step approach to figuring out what you want and how to obtain it. Maslife gives you smart tools to help you attain a healthy lifestyle balance that is good for your finances and health.
Maslife was founded on the concept that to live a healthier—and wealthier—lifestyle; we must learn how our daily lifestyle choices affect our financial well-being. MasLife, which raised £3 million in its most recent investment round in February, aims to balance customers’ financial, mental, and physical health by encouraging a better awareness of their habits and behaviours.
Clementine
Clementine is a confidence-boosting software created by women for women who are dealing with anxiety, poor self-esteem, or simply feeling overwhelmed by the daily grind. Clementine aids women in sleeping better and feeling very relaxed. Clementine was founded in 2017 and was accepted into the We In Social Tech incubator. In October 2020, the company received £1 million from Fortunis at a pre-money valuation of £2.9 million in its first fundraising round.
After going through a terrible phase in her life, Kim Palmer, the founder, came up with the idea for Clementine. Kim got the notion to create an app to aid other women with similar problems, and Clementine was born.
InsideOut
InsideOut is a network of thoroughly vetted coaches and therapists that give individualised care and support along your path. InsideOut connects you to curated information and experienced mental coaches and therapists through a one-of-a-kind matching procedure. InsideOut is a workplace wellness movement transforming the way we think about mental health so that everyone may be a better version of themselves and succeed in life and at work.
While working in the city, the Founder, Laura, realised the need for mental health solutions in the workplace. InsideOut was founded due to her own experiences to ensure that everyone has access to personalised content and vetted mental health professionals in a secure environment. InsideOut has received £666k in funding throughout four rounds. In its most recent fundraising, which took place in March 2020, it raised £446K at a pre-money valuation of £3.7M.
Space To Be You
Speaking of therapists and the city, if you’re looking for a beautiful physical space for talking therapy, then Space To Be You is a London-based full-service psychotherapy, counselling, complementary, bodywork, and massage treatment centre. The therapists at Space To Be You assist clients in making thoughtful and meaningful decisions and believe that therapy of any kind may be an effective tool for fostering personal growth.
Bryan and Izabela Hunter used the EU startup financing initiative to launch Space To Be You. Space To Be You is now cash flow positive and has carved itself a position in the fast-growing London psychotherapy and mental health market.
MeeToo
The MeeToo app allows you to communicate anonymously with people your age or experience level about challenging topics. You can seek assistance for your problems or share your knowledge with others. The app is a secure area where all postings and responses are reviewed before going public to ensure there is no harassment, bullying, or grooming. It has received finance in two rounds, the most recent of which raised £480K at a pre-money valuation of £5M.
Suzi wanted to build a safe environment where young people could ask anonymous questions and receive trustworthy help and guidance. She’d been listening in on Kerstyn’s discussions for weeks because she knew she worked in technology and education. Suzi and Kerstyn had started the study that would lead to the creation of the MeeToo app. The trials went well, but they needed to improve the app, so they put their funds into it and received a £5,000 grant from the School of Social Entrepreneurs. Suzi and Kerstyn created MeeToo in September 2017; with a team of four counsellors, ten moderators, and 34 super-peers, the app now assists over 30,000 users.
Mindful Healthcare
Mindful Healthcare provides customised and inexpensive programs to suit your specific requirements. It guides you through recovery by collaborating with schools and colleges to offer unique programs to students with mental health difficulties. In addition, it engages with corporate HR teams to provide targeted, collaborative healing for employees who are dealing with mental health issues. Finally, Mindful Healthcare connects with University Wellbeing teams to provide students with mental health difficulties with individualised, collaborative recovery.
The biggest impediments to rehabilitation are powerlessness, isolation, and stigma. Mindful addresses these issues by building positive connections, allowing people to overcome obstacles and reach their full potential. Mindful uses video technology to deliver recovery programs to people who are in need. Mindful Healthcare, which Crowdcube backs, has raised £111K in two investment rounds. The most recent round, which closed in March 2020, raised £21K at a pre-money valuation of £1.1M.
Hello Tomo
Tomo is a mental health and wellbeing behaviour change tool that helps you control the habits that keep you healthy. Tomo was created as a result of their personal experiences with mental illness. One of the Co-founders, Fahad, started a WhatsApp group for his family and friends years ago to encourage him to take positive actions while battling mental illness. Fahad’s approach to giving back to our community is Tomo. He understands that simple, everyday practices lead to long-term positive development.
Unmind
The Unmind platform provides employees with professionally validated digital solutions to help them improve their mental health. Unmind approaches mental wellness from a holistic perspective. Based on clinical psychology and powered by technology, the program allows employees to track and control their mental health in seven critical areas. Unmind was launched in 2016. Today, the platform helps organisations worldwide improve their performance while encouraging people to live better, happier lives. The company has raised £4.7M in funding and has customers such as John Lewis, Square Enix, and Made.com.
Dr Nick Taylor had to deal with high-pressured frontline employees’ absenteeism, presenteeism, and turnover. Nick was determined to find a solution and realised that by merging clinical research with corporate wellness, businesses could assist their employees in taking care of their mental health and, as a result, increase productivity. Nick had teamed up with Ry Morgan, a serial business founder with lived mental illness, Nick Tong, an entrepreneurial techie, and Steve Peralta, a top corporate wellness practitioner. The four of them came up with the concept of a “whole-person approach” to supporting mental health at work.
About the Author
Bryan Hunter is a digital marketing expert and founder of Space To Be You, a mental health and wellbeing startup based in London. He also works in the property sector for the world’s largest provider of flexible office space. He can mostly be found picking up children’s toys from his living room floor in his spare time but has been known to venture out for a run around a local park on occasion.
