Bede House Association

Name

Bede House Association

Legal name

Bede House Association

Website

https://bedehouse.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1938

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Social Services

NAICS

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

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Domestic Violence & Abuse Support Services (BPAGAEAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Disability Services & Independent Living Support (BPAGACAG)

Keywords

• Community social services
• Learning disability support
• Domestic abuse services
• Voluntary sector charity
• Community fundraising

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: Individual donations through regular giving (Friends of Bede membership), one-time donations, and community fundraising events including marathon runners and local initiatives. Donations support Learning Disabilities services and domestic abuse support.
2. Grants and Funder Support: Funding from multiple organizations including National Lottery Community Fund, Southwark Council, Henry Smith Charity, and numerous other charitable trusts and foundations listed on their funders page.
3. Public Sector Commissioning: Contract with Southwark Council to deliver the Women's Safety Alliance (WSA) service for Violence Against Women and Girls, starting February 2026. This represents a commissioned public service contract.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Bede House Association is a Southwark-based charity providing free specialist community services to two main beneficiary groups: adults with learning disabilities and autism (through its day-centre Learning Disabilities service) and survivors of domestic and gender-based abuse (through its Starfish service offering trauma-informed advocacy, therapy, and group support). Supporting programmes include the award-winning Inside Outside befriending project, Travel Buddies independent-travel training, and a newly commissioned Southwark-wide Women's Safety Alliance VAWG service starting February 2026. The organisation operates entirely from community venues in Bermondsey/Rotherhithe and is funded through donations, grants, fundraising events, and public-sector commissioning rather than commercial fees.

Product overview

Bede House Association operates as a single unified charity providing social support services rather than a platform-plus-modules product. The core offerings consist of two main specialist services: Bede Learning Disabilities (a day center offering activities including arts, sports, computing, cafe training, and allotment programs) and Starfish: Ending Domestic Abuse (providing trauma-informed advocacy, therapy, and support for abuse survivors). Supporting programs include the award-winning Inside Outside Project for befriending, Travel Buddies for independent travel training, and the Womens Safety Alliance VAWG service. The organization also runs fundraising programs including challenge events and the Friends of Bede membership. All services operate from Bede House and the Bede Centre in Southwark, serving people with learning disabilities and survivors of domestic abuse in the local community.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Starfish: Ending Domestic Abuse: Bede Starfish works to end domestic and gender-based abuse (VAWG) in Southwark. Supports child and adult survivors to live free from fear and rebuild their lives through advocacy, talking and art therapy, group work and peer support.
• Bede Learning Disabilities

Products and services

• Bede Learning Disabilities A day-centre service for adults with mild to moderate learning disabilities and autism in Southwark, providing activities, training, volunteering and employment programmes including arts and crafts, computing, music sessions, sports, cafe training, and an allotment group, designed to build skills, confidence, independence, and supported work experience.
• Starfish: Ending Domestic Abuse A specialist domestic abuse and gender-based violence support service for survivors in Southwark, providing trauma-informed advocacy, advice, talking and art therapy, group work, and peer support; nearly 90% of clients live more safely as a result of the service.
• Women's Safety Alliance (WSA) A borough-wide Violence Against Women and Girls service commissioned by Southwark Council and led by Bede with consortium partners, providing coordinated trauma-informed support to women, children, young people, families, and male victims of domestic abuse and VAWG across Southwark.
• Inside Outside Project Award-winning volunteer befriending initiative that pairs adult volunteers with learning disabilities with housebound older Southwark residents for befriending visits, gardening help, shopping assistance and mutual social support; recognised with the Queen's Award for Voluntary Service in 2008.
• Travel Buddies Volunteer-based travel training and escort service that helps adults with learning disabilities travel independently on foot or on public transport (buses, tubes, trains) through matched volunteer 'travel buddies' who receive specialist training.
• Become a Friend of Bede Regular-giving membership programme for individual supporters who contribute monthly donations (£5, £10 and £50 tiers highlighted) and receive AGM invitations, quarterly newsletters and updates on Bede's community activities.
• Challenge Events Fundraising Programme Fundraising programme offering charity places in events including the TCS London Marathon (places available since 1981, raising over £1m), The Big Half half-marathon, and RunThrough 5k/10k races at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, supporting Bede's services.
• Child Art Therapy Service Time-limited, trauma-informed creative therapeutic interventions for children and young people aged 5-17 affected by domestic abuse or VAWG, delivered by self-employed art therapists at community venues across Southwark and Lambeth.

Quantifiable outcome

• 864 people supported directly per year
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Citizens Advice SouthwarkcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2025Consortium partner in the Southwark VAWG Alliance delivering the Women's Safety Alliance service on behalf of Southwark Council. Citizens Advice provides specialist advice services as part of the coordinated response to violence against women and girls.
• Southwark Law CentrecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2025Consortium partner in the Southwark VAWG Alliance. Provides legal expertise and support as part of the coordinated VAWG service delivery across Southwark.
• 1st Place Children's CentrecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2025Consortium partner in the Southwark VAWG Alliance. Delivers children and family support services as part of the VAWG response, particularly supporting children affected by domestic abuse.
• Lives Not KnivescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2025Consortium partner in the Southwark VAWG Alliance. Provides youth-focused support services as part of the broader violence prevention and support network.
• Southwark CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2025Public sector commissioner of the Women's Safety Alliance VAWG service. Bede Starfish was confirmed as Southwark's newly commissioned service for Violence Against Women and Girls starting February 2026. Also provides ongoing funding and support through various council programs.
• Clare College, CambridgeminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1885Historical partnership established in 1885 when Clare students set up a mission in Bermondsey. Clare students continue to support Bede through student placements and fundraising events to this day.
• Princess Marie Louise SettlementminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOriginal founding organization. Members of the Princess Club raised £400 to buy a former bakery near Southwark Park, which became the founding home of Bede House Association in 1938.
• Ballers AcademyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMulti-sport and football training partner. Bede/Ballers teams compete monthly in the South London Special League as part of sports activities for people with learning disabilities.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Refuge: Refuge is the UK's largest domestic abuse charity, operating the National Domestic Abuse Helpline and a network of refuges and outreach services. It is directly comparable to Bede's Starfish service as a specialist VAWG provider, though at substantially greater national scale.
• Hft: Hft (Home Farm Trust) is a UK charity supporting people with learning disabilities through supported living, day services, and personalisation. It is directly comparable to Bede's Learning Disabilities day centre and travel training programmes.
• Women's Aid Federation of England: Women's Aid is the national federation coordinating domestic abuse services across England. It is directly comparable as a domestic abuse service umbrella, with overlap in advocacy, helpline provision, and local member services.
• Solace Women's Aid: Solace Women's Aid is a London-based charity providing refuge, advocacy, and community-based support for survivors of domestic and sexual abuse. It is the closest direct peer to Starfish given shared geography (London), service mix, and council-commissioned delivery model.
• United Response: United Response is a national charity supporting people with learning disabilities, autism, and mental health needs. It is comparable to Bede Learning Disabilities through its day service, supported employment, and community integration offerings.
• Hestia: Hestia is a London charity supporting adults and children affected by domestic abuse, modern slavery, and mental health needs. It is directly comparable through its London-focused domestic abuse services and local authority commissioned delivery.

Broad incumbents

• Turning Point: Turning Point is a UK social enterprise providing services across learning disabilities, mental health, substance use, and employment. It is comparable to Bede as a multi-service social support provider, though significantly larger and operating nationally.
• Sense: Sense is a UK charity supporting people with complex disabilities including learning disabilities, deafblindness, and autism. It overlaps with Bede's learning disabilities service in supporting community integration and independence, though with a broader remit and national reach.
• Mencap: Mencap is the UK's leading charity for people with learning disabilities, providing a broad portfolio of services and advocacy. It is comparable to Bede Learning Disabilities as a learning disabilities specialist but operates at a national scale rather than single-borough.

Regional players

• Southall Black Sisters: Southall Black Sisters is a London-based charity providing specialist domestic abuse, immigration, and welfare support to Black and minority women. It is comparable to Starfish through specialist VAWG advocacy and community-led service delivery, though with a different beneficiary focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/bedehouse
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCH0UxuQL7tpSNtJndWIDleA
• Facebookfacebook.com/bedehouseassociation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bede-house-association
• Instagraminstagram.com/bede.house

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles20 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 Bede House Association