Double Impact Services

What Double Impact Services does

Double Impact Services is a UK registered charity (No. 1139865) and company limited by guarantee (No. 6004537), founded in 1998 and headquartered at 22-24 Friar Lane, Nottingham, with additional offices in Nottingham (Hounds Gate), Lincoln and Gainsborough. It provides drug, alcohol and gambling addiction recovery services across Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire, delivered through peer-led support groups, one-to-one keyworker support, and structured education and employment pathways. Its core methodology is a peer-led model staffed by individuals with lived experience of recovery, channelled through programmes such as the Nottingham Academy, Clean Slate Academy (criminal justice), Recovery Connector Apprenticeship (Level 3 Health & Social Care), New Path to Employment, the TimeOut gambling service, and the inclusive Notts Recovery Collective and Inclusive Recovery Cities initiatives.

The organisation's technology stack is deliberately light: Zoom for remote peer groups, Stripe for payment processing, and JustGiving for third-party donations; the principal "technology" is the codified Academy model, which is now offered as a licensable package to other providers and funders. Underlying platforms are website-led (doubleimpact.org.uk) with Facebook as the main social channel; no proprietary software or mobile application is disclosed. Societal/operational differentiators are accrued via Café Sobar, an alcohol-free venue and restaurant in a 1929 former Nottingham Building Society building, which operates as a social enterprise whose profits fund the charity and which provides employment placements for people in recovery.

Double Impact is funded through a diversified mix of charitable donations, grants (notably National Lottery Community Fund for the Notts Recovery Collective and Café Sobar), commissioned services from NHS trusts and local authorities (for example via the Nottingham Recovery Network with Framework Housing and Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust), Academy Licence fees, and revenue from Café Sobar sales and venue hire. Services to individuals are free at point of use. Key institutional partners include Framework Housing Association, Addaction, We Are With You, Boston Recovery Pathways, Nottingham City Council and the Universities of Lincoln, Leeds Trinity, and Sheffield Hallam. The organisation holds ISO 9001 certification and has received the Clero Award, CSJ Award, SEG Award, Tripadvisor Certificate of Excellence, EMC Business Awards finalist recognition, and a Food Hygiene Rating for Café Sobar.

Name

Double Impact Services

Legal name

Double Impact Services

Website

https://doubleimpact.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Double Impact Services is a UK registered charity providing peer-led drug, alcohol and gambling recovery services across Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire through support groups, training academies, employment pathways and the Café Sobar social enterprise.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Addiction Recovery Services

NAICS

Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers (621420), Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers (62142)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Peer Support, Recovery Coaching & Sober Living Services (HLAFACAN)

akta.pro secondary industries

Substance Use Disorder Prevention & Recovery Services (BPAGACAE), Substance Use Recovery & Harm Reduction Support Services (BPAGAEAO), Dropout Prevention, Alternative Education & Re-Engagement Nonprofits (BPAGADAL)

Keywords

• Addiction recovery services
• Substance misuse support
• Peer-led recovery mentoring
• Social enterprise catering
• Recovery education training

Headquarters

HQ city

Nottingham

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Social Enterprise - Café Sobar: Café Sobar is an alcohol-free café, restaurant, and venue that operates as a social enterprise. All profits are reinvested directly into Double Impact charity to fund addiction recovery support services. The venue also provides employment and volunteering opportunities for people in recovery.
2. Donations and Fundraising: Charitable donations from individuals, corporate partners, and community supporters. Includes online donation capabilities and fundraising campaigns.
3. Academy License Model: The organization's successful Academy service model is offered as an off-the-shelf package to other organizations, providing materials, guidance, and support to replicate the recovery service. Available to both service providers and funders.
4. Venue Hire: Café Sobar generates revenue through venue hire for events, hosting recovery groups, social activities, and private bookings.
5. Charitable Grants and Commissioned Services: Funded through grants from the National Lottery Community Fund and partnership agreements with public sector organizations including NHS trusts and local authorities for delivery of recovery services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Double Impact Services delivers free-at-the-point-of-use addiction recovery services across Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire, including peer-led support groups, one-to-one keyworker support, structured Academy education and employment pathways, and the TimeOut gambling recovery programme. The charity also runs Café Sobar, an alcohol-free social enterprise venue whose profits are reinvested into recovery services, and licenses its Academy model to external organisations.

Product overview

Double Impact Services operates as a recovery charity offering a portfolio of addiction support services across Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire. The organization provides a layered approach including peer support programs (Recovery Connectors, peer mentoring), educational and employment pathways (Nottingham Academy, Clean Slate Academy, New Path to Employment), gambling recovery services (TimeOut), and community-based initiatives (Stronger Roots, Notts Recovery Collective, Inclusive Recovery Cities). The main social enterprise is Café Sobar, an alcohol-free venue that generates income for the charity while providing vocational training opportunities for people in recovery. Services are delivered through partnerships with Framework Housing Association, Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, and Addaction.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Café Sobar: East Midlands' first alcohol-free bar, restaurant and venue. A social enterprise providing safe social space for people in recovery and their families, and work placements to gain employment skills.
• Nottingham Academy
• Clean Slate Academy
• TimeOut

Products and services

• Café Sobar East Midlands' first alcohol-free bar, restaurant and venue operating as a social enterprise under the Double Impact charity. Provides a safe social space for people in recovery and their families, and offers work placements so people in recovery can gain confidence and employment skills. All profits are reinvested directly into the Double Impact charity. Also available for venue hire for events.
• TimeOut Gambling Recovery Service Solution-focused, peer-led gambling recovery service delivered by Double Impact Services. Provides support for individuals experiencing gambling addiction in the Nottinghamshire area.
• Nottingham Academy Education and training programme creating learning, training, volunteering and employment opportunities for individuals who have achieved abstinence. Based at the Nottingham Wellbeing Hub (73 Hounds Gate).
• Clean Slate Academy Recovery, education and employment pathway delivered as part of the Nottingham Recovery Network, specialising in supporting people involved in the criminal justice system through person-centred learning and employment routes.
• Recovery Connector Apprenticeship Scheme 12-month paid apprenticeship scheme where Recovery Connectors work part-time while studying towards a Health & Social Care Level 3 qualification, preparing them for full-time employment in the recovery and social care sector.
• New Path to Employment Employment support service for people in recovery offering CV support, interview coaching, benefits advice, and in-work support, helping individuals find sustainable employment with recovery-friendly employers.
• Changing Futures Peer Mentoring Programme Peer mentoring training programme providing mentoring training to people with lived experience of severe and multiple disadvantage, equipping them to support others through peer mentoring.
• Academy Licence Licensed package offering Double Impact's Academy recovery model as an off-the-shelf solution for other organisations and funders, providing complete resources, materials, guidance, and support to replicate or adapt the service in their own contexts.
• Café Sobar Venue Hire Venue hire service at Café Sobar enabling organisations and individuals to host events, recovery groups, social activities, and private bookings in an alcohol-free setting in Nottingham.

Quantifiable outcome

• Individuals achieving sustained sobriety with peer and keyworker support
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Framework Housing AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership in Nottingham Recovery Network. Framework works alongside Double Impact to deliver integrated recovery services including the Clean Slate Academy, which specializes in working with people involved in the criminal justice system. Provides person-centred learning and employment pathways.
• Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation TrustcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership in Nottingham Recovery Network delivering system-wide recovery support. The trust provides healthcare infrastructure and clinical governance for mental health and addiction services in Nottinghamshire.
• AddactioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership in Lincoln delivering addiction recovery services. Addaction is a major UK addiction support charity that collaborates with Double Impact to provide comprehensive services in Lincolnshire.
• Nottingham Building SocietyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBuilding owner that enabled the establishment of Café Sobar in their historic 1929 building originally the Nottingham Building Society headquarters, officially opened by Sir Joseph Stamp (Governor of Bank of England).
• We Are With YoucoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMajor UK addiction support charity that acts as a referral partner, signposting individuals to Double Impact services. Referenced in multiple service user success stories as initial point of contact.
• Boston Recovery PathwayscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorReferral partner providing gateway to Double Impact services for individuals in the Boston area of Lincolnshire. Provides keyworker support and coordinates with Double Impact for peer group activities.
• University of LincolnminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates on Art Project with Double Impact, providing opportunities for service users to engage with university students in creative activities, supporting recovery through non-judgmental artistic engagement.
• Professor David Best (Leeds Trinity University)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner leading the Inclusive Recovery Cities concept. Developed the Building Inclusive Recovery Cities Charter and supports cities including Nottingham in implementing recovery community frameworks.
• Dr Charlotte Colman (Sheffield Hallam University)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner collaborating with Professor David Best on the Inclusive Recovery Cities framework and national roundtable group activities.
• Nottingham City CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCivic partner in Inclusive Recovery Cities movement. Commits to working with Double Impact and other stakeholders to support people in recovery through coordinated city-wide initiatives.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Cranstoun: UK charity delivering substance use, domestic abuse, and criminal justice services. Comparable to Double Impact's Clean Slate Academy and criminal-justice reintegration work, plus its social-enterprise operating model.
• Humankind: UK health and social care charity providing drug, alcohol, and housing services across the North of England and Midlands. Comparable to Double Impact as a regional peer-led recovery provider delivering NHS-commissioned services.
• We Are With You: One of the UK's largest addiction support charities, providing drug and alcohol recovery services. Directly comparable to Double Impact as both deliver peer-led and structured recovery pathways in overlapping UK geographies and frequently refer between services.
• Phoenix Futures: UK charity providing residential and community-based recovery support including employment and education pathways. Comparable to Double Impact's Academy and New Path to Employment services, with similar emphasis on recovery through training and reintegration.
• Addaction: Major UK addiction charity (now part of the We Are With You group) that partners with Double Impact in Lincoln. Comparable as a directly named co-delivery partner for recovery services in the same East Midlands region.
• The Forward Trust: UK charity providing addiction recovery, employment, and resettlement services, particularly for people in the criminal justice system. Comparable to Double Impact's Clean Slate Academy and peer-led recovery-coaching methodology.
• Action on Addiction: UK charity funding and delivering addiction treatment and recovery research. Comparable to Double Impact in mission and target population, with overlapping family-support and residential recovery services.

Emerging players

• Club Soda: UK alcohol-free lifestyle community and venue operator. Comparable to Café Sobar as the social/marketing side of the alcohol-free movement, with shared target audience of people moderating or abstaining from alcohol.

Broad incumbents

• Turning Point: Large UK health and social care provider offering substance use, mental health, and learning disability services. Comparable because it competes for the same NHS-commissioned addiction contracts in regions where Double Impact also operates, but at substantially greater scale.
• Change Grow Live: National UK charity delivering drug and alcohol recovery, housing, and justice services. Comparable as a competing commissioned-service provider in Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire, with overlapping peer-support and recovery-coaching models.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/DoubleImpactServices
• Xx.com/di_recovery
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/double-impact-services

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Double Impact Services