Sense
Sense is a UK disability charity founded in 1955 that delivers housing, education, social care, and wellbeing services for disabled people with complex needs, including deafblindness, across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1955
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount1,001–5,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Sense does
Sense is a UK-registered charity (charity number 289868) and company limited by guarantee, founded in 1955, that provides housing, education, support, and social healthcare services for disabled people with complex needs — particularly those who are deafblind or have multi-sensory impairments (MSI). The organisation operates across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland through a network of 417 locations including 109 shops, 76 bookable activity sites, 23 centres, and regional hubs in Belfast, Caerphilly, Denbigh, Birmingham, Peterborough, and Loughborough, employing between 1,001 and 5,000 staff. Its core service portfolio spans Day Services, Community Support (including Communicator Guides and Intervenors), 24-hour Residential Care, Supported Living, Sense Short Breaks, MSI Specialist support for under-25s, two specialist further education colleges, and a broad Arts, Sports and Wellbeing activities programme with 15,000+ participants and 100+ free online resources.
The underlying methodology is a "total communication" approach combining sign language, Makaton, Braille, Deafblind Manual, and tactile communication systems, augmented by assistive technology aids and a free Toy and Tech project for families. The business model is hybrid: a significant portion of services for adults is funded through local authority social care budgets, NHS continuing healthcare, and personal budgets or direct payments, while services for children and young people up to age 25, as well as many arts and wellbeing activities, are provided free of charge and funded through charitable donations, fundraising events, legacy gifts, and grants — including a strategic partnership with Arts Council England. Sense is regulated by Ofsted (Good Provider rating for its colleges) and the Care Quality Commission across its residential homes, and it reaches customers through self-referral, referrals from social workers, GPs, health professionals, and families, supplemented by a website, online booking system, and active policy campaigns on SEND and disability benefits.
Sense firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Sense
- Legal name
- Sense
- Website
- https://sense.org.uk
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1955
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1,001–5,000 employees
- Short description
- Sense is a UK disability charity founded in 1955 that delivers housing, education, social care, and wellbeing services for disabled people with complex needs, including deafblindness, across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Sense industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Disability Social Care Services
- NAICS
- Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (62412), Individual and Family Services (6241), Residential Intellectual and Developmental Disability Facilities (62321)
- SIC
- Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Nursing & Personal Care Facilities (8050)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Disability Services & Assistive Solutions (Accessibility, Assistive Tech) (BPAGALAM)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Deaf/Hard of Hearing & Vision Services (Audiology, Interpreting, Orientation & Mobility) (EDAJAKAI), Disability Services & Independent Living Support (BPAGAEAG), Note-Taking, Interpreting & Communication Access Services (EDALAGAD)
Keywords
Where Sense is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices8 records
Markets served
Sense business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Charitable donations and fundraising: Sense relies on public donations, fundraising events, and legacy gifts (Gift in Wills) to fund operations and services.
- Local authority and government funding: Many services are funded by local authority budgets, continuing health care, and social care budgets. Personal budgets and direct payments also fund services.
- Adult social care funding: Services for adults are funded through adult social care budgets, NHS continuing healthcare, and personal care budgets including direct payments.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Free | Free services for disabled children and young people |
| Freemium | Free | Free arts and wellbeing activities |
| Freemium | Free | Bookable activities - mostly free |
| Other | Local authority funded | Short breaks funded by local authority or direct payments |
| Other | Multiple sources | Day services funded by multiple sources |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels7 records
Sense product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Sense is a UK disability charity that provides personalised housing, education, social care, and wellbeing services for disabled people with complex needs, particularly those who are deafblind or have multi-sensory impairments. Its offering spans day services, community support (including Communicator Guides and Intervenors), residential care, supported living, short breaks, the Sense College for ages 16-25, and free arts, sports and wellbeing activities delivered through a network of regional centres across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Product overview
Sense is a UK disability charity offering a comprehensive portfolio of personalised services for disabled people with complex needs, particularly those who are deafblind or have multi-sensory impairments. The organisation operates a multi-service model spanning day services, community support (including Communicator Guides and Intervenors), Residential Care, Supported Living, and Sense Short Breaks. Specialised offerings include MSI Specialists for children and young people aged 0-25, Sense College (an independent specialist college for ages 16-25), and Arts, Sports and Wellbeing Activities including sensory football, sensory tennis, sensory walks, and accessible arts programmes. Early intervention is provided through Connect and Play sessions for children up to age 8, while Family Days and the Toy and Tech project support families. Services are delivered across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland through regional hubs including Sense Hub Belfast and Sense Cymru hubs in Denbigh and Caerphilly.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Day Services Structured daytime activities for adults with complex needs held at Sense centres across the UK, including cooking, swimming, hydrotherapy, arts and crafts, music sessions, and community outings.
- Community Support One-to-one support for disabled people with complex needs in their communities, including Communicator Guides for adults with acquired deafblindness and Intervenors for those born deafblind.
- Residential Care Round-the-clock 24-hour care for disabled people with complex needs living in Sense group homes, with personalised care plans tailored to individual preferences and needs.
- Supported Living Independent living accommodation for disabled people with complex needs where individuals are tenants with responsibilities, receiving flexible support from care staff as needed.
- Sense Short Breaks Respite care services including Get Out There holiday clubs, weekend clubs, and one-to-one personal assistants for disabled people, providing carers with breaks from caring responsibilities.
- MSI Specialists Free specialist support for children and young people up to age 25 with multi-sensory impairments or combined vision and hearing impairments, providing advice, play sessions, communication support, and family guidance.
- Sense College Independent specialist further education college for disabled people aged 16-25 with complex needs, including those with deafblindness, dual-sensory impairment, or multi-sensory impairment, offering Learning for Life, Foundation Learning, and Employability pathways.
- Arts, Sports and Wellbeing Activities Free accessible activities for disabled people including sensory football, sensory tennis, sensory snooker, sensory walks, art, music, dance, yoga, and chair yoga, with over 15,000 participants and 100+ free online resources.
- Connect and Play (Early Intervention) Free play sessions for disabled children with complex needs up to age 8 and their families, designed to help children develop communication skills, play abilities, and connections with others.
- Family Days Inclusive family events providing welcoming environments where disabled children can take part, have fun, and enjoy new experiences alongside their families.
- Family Support Service (Northern Ireland) Support service across Northern Ireland for children under 12 with sensory impairments and additional needs, including information, benefits guidance, signposting, family events, and one-to-one support.
- Sense Hub Belfast Hub providing activities, music sessions, performances, community events, and specialist support for children and adults with complex needs in Northern Ireland.
- Sense Cymru (Wales) Services across north and south Wales including Sense hubs in Denbigh and Caerphilly, community support, day services, and supported living in Tonypandy.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 15,000 people have participated in Sense's arts, sports and wellbeing activities
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Sense
Customer profileNamed customers13 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Sense technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Sense partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Arts Council EnglandcoreSense has partnered with Arts Council England to expand their vision of helping more disabled people discover art, music and dance. The partnership supports programmes open to deafblind people and those with complex needs, as well as their families.
- Jordanstown SchoolcoreIn partnership with Jordanstown School, Sense runs PlaySense sessions providing disabled children up to age 12 opportunities to try new activities in a safe and stimulating environment. Sessions take place after school and during holiday periods.
- Sense InternationalcoreAffiliated international organisation focused on deafblind people globally. Listed as a connected organisation on sense.org.uk.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Sense competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- RNIB (Royal National Institute of Blind People): UK charity supporting blind and partially sighted people with a similar multi-service model (education, community, advocacy) and Sense even acquired its former college (RNIB College Loughborough) in 2024. Direct overlap on the vision-impairment side of Sense's complex-needs work.
- RNID (Royal National Institute for Deaf People): UK charity for deaf people and those with hearing loss, providing community services, advice, and technology. Mirrors Sense's role on the deafness side of deafblind/multi-sensory impairment and competes for the same specialist referral funding.
- Deafblind UK: National charity dedicated to deafblindness, offering one-to-one support, advocacy and information services. Closest peer in the deafblind/MSI segment that Sense pioneered.
- Mencap: UK's largest learning disability charity, operating residential, supported living, and community services across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Direct competitor for the same local-authority funding pools for adults with complex needs.
- SeeAbility: UK charity supporting people with learning disabilities, autism and sight loss, with specialist services and supported living. Overlaps directly with Sense's combined vision-impairment-plus-complex-needs cohort.
- Hft (Home Farm Trust): National charity supporting people with learning disabilities, including residential care, supported living and day services across England. Comparable provider of personalisation-led adult social care commissioning.
- United Response: UK charity providing supported living, residential and community services for people with learning disabilities and autism. Competes for local-authority personal-budget contracts in the same geographies.
- National Autistic Society: UK charity for autistic people offering residential, education (schools/college), and community services. Direct competitor in the specialist education and adult support verticals and a source of policy advocacy benchmark for Sense.
Broad incumbents
- Guide Dogs: Large UK charity providing mobility and rehabilitation services for people with sight loss, including children and young people services. Operates across a similar beneficiary base but with a narrower mobility-assistance remit.
Emerging players
- Ambitious about Autism: UK charity focused on education and outcomes for autistic children, running schools and a college. Overlaps with Sense College and children's services on the autism side of Sense's complex-needs work.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Sense social profiles
Digital presenceSense financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Sense leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Sense subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries4 records
Sense funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Sense M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Sense
What does Sense do?
Sense is a UK disability charity that provides personalised housing, education, social care, and wellbeing services for disabled people with complex needs, particularly those who are deafblind or have multi-sensory impairments. Its offering spans day services, community support (including Communicator Guides and Intervenors), residential care, supported living, short breaks, the Sense College for ages 16-25, and free arts, sports and wellbeing activities delivered through a network of regional centres across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Is Sense a public or private company?
Sense is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Sense founded?
Sense was founded in 1955. It employs 1,001 to 5,000 people.
Where is Sense based?
Sense is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Sense make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Charitable donations and fundraising is the primary driver. The others are local authority and government funding and adult social care funding.
Who are Sense's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are RNIB (Royal National Institute of Blind People), RNID (Royal National Institute for Deaf People), Deafblind UK, Mencap, SeeAbility, Hft (Home Farm Trust), United Response and National Autistic Society. Guide Dogs is listed as a broad incumbent. Ambitious about Autism is listed as an emerging player.
Does Sense have an API?
No public API is recorded for Sense.
What industry is Sense in?
Sense's product category is Disability Social Care Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGALAM, Disability Services & Assistive Solutions (Accessibility, Assistive Tech), with a secondary code of EDAJAKAI, Deaf/Hard of Hearing & Vision Services (Audiology, Interpreting, Orientation & Mobility). Its NAICS code is 62412 and its SIC code is 8300.