Tellmi

What Tellmi does

Tellmi is a British Social Enterprise that operates a digital mental health peer support platform targeting children and young people aged 11-25. The platform is fully pre-moderated by trained human staff, anonymous, age-banded (users under 18 only see posts from others within two years of their age), and includes preemptive counsellor intervention that redirects high-risk posts to a clinical team before publication. Core products are the Tellmi App (formerly MeeToo/MeeTwo, launched in 2017), Tellmi Therapy (text-based Solution Focused Therapy available in NHS-commissioned areas), and the Tellmi Directory (700+ national and local resources accessed via AI-powered smart signposting). The app is distributed via iOS, Google Play, and web, and is integrated into the youHQ school wellbeing platform.

The platform's technology stack combines human moderation with AI features developed in partnership with the University of Sussex and University of Bristol. Natural language processing classifies user posts into more than 200 topic tags, reportedly doubling moderation throughput, and a risk-assessment model is in development to bypass standard queues for crisis-level content. Safeguarding architecture includes encrypted contact details accessible only to the safeguarding team, GDPR-aligned data processing, and COPPA-exempt status as a preventative service.

Tellmi's revenue model is anchored in B2B/B2G commissioning. NHS trusts, Integrated Care Systems (notably BOB ICB and NHS Somerset), county councils (Oxfordshire, West Berkshire, Wokingham, Leicestershire, Reading, Kingston), and Welsh commissioners pay for access on behalf of their populations; corporate sponsorship provides a secondary CSR-funded stream. End users receive the service for free. As of 2024, Tellmi has supported 80,000-100,000+ users and was ranked 27th in Tussell's Tech200 fastest-growing UK public-sector technology companies. The company holds an HSJ Silver Award for Best Mental Health Partnership with the NHS and an NHS Innovation Accelerator Fellowship, and has undergone independent UCL evaluation demonstrating statistically significant mental health improvement.

Name

Tellmi

Legal name

Tellmi

Website

https://tellmi.help

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Tellmi is a UK digital mental health platform offering anonymous, pre-moderated peer support for young people aged 11-25, alongside text-based therapy and a crisis-resource directory, funded primarily through NHS and local authority commissioning contracts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Digital Mental Health Platform

NAICS

Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers (621420)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370)

akta.pro primary industry

Mental Health Therapist Marketplaces (HLALALAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Membership/Subscription Concierge Virtual Care (HLALAAAH), Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) & Emotional Regulation Programs (EDAMAIAC)

Keywords

• Digital mental health
• Peer support platform
• Youth mental health
• NHS commissioned services
• Anonymous support app

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. NHS and Local Authority Commissioning: Primary revenue stream from contracts with NHS trusts, integrated care systems (ICSs), county councils, and local authorities who commission Tellmi as a digital mental health service for their populations.
2. Corporate Sponsorship: Businesses sponsor Tellmi in specific geographic areas and schools to meet CSR targets. Sponsorship includes school selection, onboarding support, branded materials, campaign launches, and impact reporting.
3. Free User Access (Freemium Model): Core app is free for end users (young people aged 11-25). No direct revenue from users; service is funded through NHS/local authority commissioning and corporate sponsorship.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Tellmi operates a digital mental health platform built around the Tellmi App, an anonymous, pre-moderated, age-banded peer support community for young people aged 11–25, complemented by Tellmi Therapy (scheduled text-based Solution Focused Therapy), an in-app Tellmi Directory of 700+ curated resources, mental health promotional resources sold through the Tellmi shop, and a corporate Sponsorship programme. Revenue is generated through subscription-style NHS and local authority commissioning contracts and corporate CSR sponsorship, while the app remains free at the point of use for end users.

Product overview

Tellmi is a digital mental health platform offering a suite of interconnected services. The core product is the Tellmi peer support app (formerly MeeToo), which provides anonymous, age-banded, pre-moderated peer support for young people aged 11-25. This is supplemented by Tellmi Therapy, a text-based Solution Focused Therapy service available via the app. The Tellmi Directory provides personalised access to 700+ resources and local services. Additional offerings include mental health resources (workshops, posters, cards) sold through the shop, a Corporate Sponsorship programme for schools, the Tellmi About It podcast featuring young people's recovery stories, and educational webinars. The platform integrates AI-powered topic tagging and smart signposting to accelerate moderation and personalise resource recommendations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Tellmi App A digital peer support platform providing anonymous, pre-moderated mental health support for young people aged 11–25, with age-banded communities and preemptive counsellor intervention for crisis situations; commissioned by NHS bodies and local authorities and available free to end users.
• Tellmi Therapy A scheduled text-based Solution Focused Therapy service delivered via the Tellmi app by specialist trained therapists, available free in NHS commissioned areas for users aged 11+; supports self-referral as well as referrals from parents, carers and professionals.
• Tellmi Resources (Shop) A range of mental health promotional resources including workshops (Digital Safety Workshop, Peer Support Workshop), starter booklets, compliment cards, posters, flyers, stickers, pronoun stickers and beer mats; free to commissioned areas and sold to support Tellmi's mental health mission.
• Tellmi Sponsorship A Corporate Social Responsibility programme that delivers Tellmi mental health support and resources to chosen schools and local communities, including school selection, onboarding support, branded materials, campaign launches and impact reporting for sponsoring businesses.

Quantifiable outcome

• 82% of users feel connected to others with similar problems
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

AI capability5 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• youHQcoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2024youHQ is a school wellbeing platform used by 75,000+ students across schools, trusts, and local authorities. Integration provides in-app direct access to Tellmi's mental health tools for immediate intervention for students experiencing low moods. Currently available in Leicestershire County Council schools. youHQ facilitates in-person wellbeing check-ins while Tellmi expands specialist and peer support options.
• First Steps EDcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCharity partner for Leicestershire and Rutland providing eating disorder support. Data shared with First Steps ED as part of contracted service to match users to their service provision for wraparound support. Webinar collaboration on youth disordered eating and creating effective support pathways.
• Autism Research Centre, University of CambridgecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partnership with Professor Simon Baron-Cohen and Dr Carrie Allison focusing on challenges autistic Tellmi users experience and how to improve support. Includes ongoing research evaluating if Tellmi is reducing mental health crisis among autistic people. Professor Baron-Cohen serves as advisor.
• University of SussexcoreTechnology or IntegrationCollaboration with data scientists from University of Sussex on AI and machine learning research. Projects include using NLP to improve moderation speed and developing suicide prevention tools. Published research on improving mental health using machine learning to assist human moderators.
• University of BristolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Dr Lucy Biddle and Dr Myles-Jay Linton on Innovate UK funded suicide and self-harm research project. Explored AI-powered smart signposting with clinicians and young people with lived experience of suicidal ideation.
• Anna Freud CentrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner in independent evaluation of Tellmi. Joint research on supporting inclusive mental health in schools with digital peer support. Partner in webinar on bridging health inequalities.
• UCL Evidence Based Practice UnitcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConducted nine-month independent evaluation of Tellmi app published in 2022. Found statistically significant evidence that using Tellmi improved users' mental health, increasing confidence and decreasing loneliness.
• Health Innovation NetworkminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-host of webinars on autism and mental health, and bridging health inequalities with digital peer support. South West Academic Health Science Network funded anxiety research project.
• University of LeicesterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Professor Panos Vostanis, Professor of Child Mental Health, who has longstanding interest in peer support and extensive clinical experience with vulnerable children and families.
• South West Academic Health Science Network (SWAHSN)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFunded 2022 Tellmi anxiety study in Somerset exploring increase in young people experiencing anxiety and barriers to support.
• NHS Commissioning BodiescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNHS trusts, Integrated Care Systems (ICSs), CCGs, and county councils commission Tellmi as a digital mental health service. Major commissioning partners include NHS Somerset, Oxfordshire County Council, West Berkshire Council, Leicestershire County Council, and BOB ICB.
• Autism Centre for ExcellenceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Dr Tracey Parsons at the Autism Centre for Excellence on autism research and support improvements.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Kooth: UK-based, LSE-listed digital mental health platform providing anonymous, NHS-commissioned peer support and therapy for children and young people. The most direct competitor — similar service model, target commissioners, and user demographic, but larger, publicly funded, and with established multi-year contracts across many of the same ICS regions.
• Togetherall: UK digital mental health service offering 24/7 anonymous peer support and clinician-monitored forums, commissioned by NHS trusts and universities. Direct competitor in NHS-commissioned peer support space, though with a broader age range and university focus alongside young people.
• Qwell: UK-based digital mental health platform from Big White Wall / IESO Health, providing free NHS-commissioned online counselling and peer support for adults. Direct competitor for NHS mental health commissioning and uses a similar free-to-user, subscription-funded model.
• Healios: UK-based digital mental health provider delivering NHS-commissioned specialist mental health services including CBT, autism assessments, and family support. Direct competitor in the NHS digital mental health commissioning space with overlapping target populations.

Emerging players

• Wysa: AI-driven mental health chatbot platform used by NHS, employers, and health plans. Overlaps with Tellmi in NHS commissioning and youth mental health (Wysa for Teens) but takes an AI-first approach to early intervention rather than human-moderated peer support.

Broad incumbents

• YoungMinds: UK's leading charity fighting for children and young people's mental health, providing information, advice, parent helplines, and training. Not a peer-support platform competitor, but a key voice in the same youth mental health ecosystem and potential partner/risk to Tellmi's positioning.
• Headspace Health: Global consumer and B2B mental health platform offering meditation, mindfulness, and therapy. Overlaps with Tellmi in employer-sponsored youth wellbeing and broader mental health app market, but takes a US-centric, content-led approach rather than NHS-commissioned peer support.

Others

• Anna Freud Centre: UK mental health research and treatment charity focused on children and families. Already a research partner of Tellmi (co-published UCL evaluation), but also operates its own digital tools and could be considered an adjacent ecosystem participant.
• MeeTwo Health (legacy): Tellmi itself was formerly known as MeeToo/MeeTwo; other historical peer-support apps in the youth mental health space (e.g., 7 Cups, Mindgram) compete for similar user mindshare. Included for adjacency rather than direct comparability.
• ORCHA (Organisation for the Review of Care and Health Apps): UK digital health evaluation platform used by NHS to assess and recommend health apps. Functions as a gatekeeper/distribution layer in the NHS digital health ecosystem and could amplify or constrain Tellmi's reach to NHS commissioners.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat7 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubelinktr.ee/tellmiaboutit
• Xx.com/tellmi_helps
• Facebookfacebook.com/tellmihelps

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Tellmi