SELFA Charity

What SELFA Charity does

SELFA Children's Charity is a registered UK charity (Charity Commission No. 1169686) operating a community-based youth services platform across Skipton, Bentham, and Settle in Craven, North Yorkshire. Its functional offering consists of three coordinated service lines: mental health support (Wellbeing Cafes for ages 7-19, the Wellbeing Warriors ten-week primary school programme, and Planned 1:1 Support for ages 4-25), term-time peer support and social action groups (over 20 weekly groups segmented by age and need across primary, secondary, SEND, and youth cohorts), and targeted holiday activities. The underlying 'platform' is human-delivered and place-based — services are run out of partner schools (Flourish/Ings School, Brooklands School) and community venues (Methodist Churches, Quaker Meeting House, Skipton Town Hall) by a small core team led by Chief Officer Emma Pears, supplemented by 16 active volunteers and 8 trustees.

The go-to-market is community-led: referrals are accepted from parents, professionals (teachers, social workers, health visitors, CAMHS), and self-referral by young people themselves, with no commercial sales motion. Beneficiaries are children aged 4-19 and young people with SEND up to age 25 who live, attend school, or are registered to a GP in North Yorkshire/Craven. The charity reports 170 children per week and 763 beneficiaries over the past year, with average weekly attendance of 196.

Revenue is generated entirely through donations, community fundraising, and grant funding — services are free to beneficiaries. Strategic positioning is reinforced by partnerships with CAMHS for specialist referral escalation and with West Yorkshire Health & Care Partnership via a Health Equity Fellowship held by the chief officer. The organisation differentiates on rural community presence, trauma-informed practice, integrated SEND provision, and embedded youth voice governance (Youth Board, Youth Action).

Name

SELFA Charity

Legal name

SELFA Children's Charity

Website

https://selfa.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

SELFA Children's Charity is a UK-registered charity delivering free mental health support, peer support groups, and holiday activities for children and young people aged 4-25 across Skipton, Craven, and North Yorkshire, funded by donations and grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Children and Youth Mental Health and Wellbeing Services

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Other Individual and Family Services (624190)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Mental Health, Counseling & Wellbeing (Education-Linked) Nonprofits (BPAGADAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Parent Mental Health, Stress Management & Wellness Programs (EDACALAJ), Family Engagement & Caregiver Support Programs (SEL/Mental Health) (EDAKAMAK), Transition & School-Readiness Support for Special Needs Children (HSAAAIAO)

Keywords

• Children's mental health
• Youth support services
• Peer support groups
• Community wellbeing programmes
• SEND support services

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: As a registered charity (No. 1169686), SELFA raises funds through donations from the public, fundraising activities, and likely grant applications to support their programmes.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

SELFA Children's Charity provides free mental health support, peer support groups, wellbeing programmes, and targeted holiday activities for children and young people aged 4-25 in Skipton, Craven, and wider North Yorkshire. Core offerings include Wellbeing Cafes, the Wellbeing Warriors in-school programme, Planned 1:1 counselling support, more than 20 weekly term-time peer support and social action groups (including SEND-specific groups), and a holiday activities programme. Services are delivered directly in schools and community venues by trained staff and supported by volunteers.

Product overview

SELFA Charity operates as a unified service offering centered on supporting children and young people aged 4-25 in the Skipton, Craven, and North Yorkshire area. The core offering comprises mental health support services (including Wellbeing Cafes, Wellbeing Warriors, and Planned 1:1 Support), term-time peer support and social action groups (over 20 groups weekly across primary, secondary, SEND, and youth categories), and holiday activities programmes. Services are delivered across multiple community locations in Skipton, Bentham, and Settle. The organization integrates youth voice through Youth Board and Youth Action groups, and extends support to parents through dedicated peer support groups.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mental Health Support Services One-to-one and group mental health support for children and young people experiencing mild to moderate mental health needs, delivered in schools and community settings across Craven.
• Term-Time Peer Support and Social Action Groups Over 20 peer support and social action groups offered weekly during school term-time in Skipton, Bentham, and Settle, catering for different ages, needs and abilities (primary, secondary, SEND, and youth-action).
• Wellbeing Cafes Small group sessions for children and young people seeking support for mild-to-moderate mental health needs, providing a safe space to explore emotions, devise coping strategies, and engage in peer support. Delivered for ages 7-19 in community settings across Craven.
• Wellbeing Warriors A ten-week programme delivered in small groups during the school day at primary schools across Craven, aiming to develop emotional intelligence and create positive coping strategies to help children manage their emotions.
• Planned 1:1 Support A series of planned one-to-one sessions with trained counsellors acting as mentors to support young people through mild to moderate mental health needs. Delivered in schools and community settings across Craven for ages 4-25.
• Youth Board A group for young people aged 12-18 (Years 10 to 13, SEND ages 19-25) giving them a real voice in decisions, helping shape what SELFA does and how it does it. Meets at Skipton Town Hall, Saturdays, 10am.
• Youth Action A group for Years 7-9 providing opportunity for young people to be active in making change happen in the local community on issues that matter to them. User-led group championing youth voice and participation. Meets at Flourish/former Ings School, Wednesdays, 6pm.
• SEND Groups (SELFA Leaders, SELFA Sensational, SELFA Shine, SELFA Sunshine, SELFA Superstars) Specialist groups for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities, available for all ages, meeting at Brooklands School on Saturdays and Sundays.
• Primary School Age Groups Multiple groups for primary school children including Bentham Primary Club, Community Champs, Inspire, SELFA Starters, Settle Primary Club, and Smile Project, offering activities for Reception through Year 6.
• Secondary School and Youth Groups Groups for secondary school age young people including Bentham Youth Club, Go Wild Youth, SELFA Wellness Group, Settle Youth Club, and others, meeting various days and locations.
• Holiday Activities Programme Targeted holiday activities for children and young people, providing enriching experiences during school holidays.
• Parent Support Group A weekly peer support group for parents, meeting at Coopers Cafe, Skipton on Tuesdays at 10am, focusing on supporting the wellbeing needs of both children and parents.

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and strategic.

• Schools (Flourish/Ings School, Brooklands School)coreOthersSchools host SELFA groups and provide space for after-school activities during term-time
• Community Venues (Methodist Churches, Quaker Meeting House, Skipton Town Hall)coreOthersCommunity venues provide space for SELFA's groups and activities across Craven
• West Yorkshire Health & Care PartnershipstrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on health equity initiatives; Emma Pears completed Health Equity Fellowship with the partnership
• CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerReferral pathway for young people needing more specialist mental health support

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Relate: UK charity providing counselling services including support for children, young people and families. Comparable family-systems and parent support lens, though its core brand is relationship counselling.
• BBC Children in Need: Major UK funder of projects supporting disadvantaged children and young people. Directly relevant as a likely grant-funder for charities of SELFA's size and mission.

Direct peers

• YoungMinds: UK charity focused on children and young people's mental health, advocacy and wellbeing. Shares SELFA's child-and-youth mental health focus but operates at a national policy/awareness level rather than community service delivery.
• Place2Be: UK charity providing school-based mental health counselling and support for children. Closely comparable to SELFA's in-school delivery model and 1-to-1 counselling for mild-to-moderate needs, though operating at national rather than regional scale.
• Anna Freud Centre: UK charity delivering mental health support, training and research for children and families. Directly comparable in mission, target age group and mental health service mix, though larger and more research-oriented.

Emerging players

• Kooth: Digital mental health platform commissioned by the NHS for children and young people. Comparable target population and mild-to-moderate mental health scope, but differentiated by online delivery versus SELFA's in-person community model.

Broad incumbents

• Mind: UK-wide mental health charity with services for young people as well as adults. Comparable mental health remit for younger users but broader and more national in focus.
• Barnardo's: One of the UK's largest children's charities, offering a broad portfolio including mental health, SEND and family support services. Comparable beneficiary profile but vastly larger scale and national scope.
• The Children's Society: National UK charity supporting disadvantaged children including mental health and SEND programmes. Overlaps SELFA's areas of work but operates nationally with a different funding and advocacy mix.

Regional players

• North Yorkshire Together: Regional partnership/collaborative of organisations supporting children, young people and families across North Yorkshire. Comparable geographic remit to SELFA and potential partner/co-funder for SELFA services.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SELFA_Charity
• Facebookfacebook.com/SELFAChildrensCharity
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/selfa-childrens-charity
• Instagraminstagram.com/selfa_charity

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about SELFA Charity