LifeLab, University of Southampton

What LifeLab, University of Southampton does

LifeLab is a non-profit educational research initiative operated by the University of Southampton, founded in 2008 in collaboration with the NIHR Southampton Biomedical Research Centre and University Hospital Southampton. Its mission is to empower children and young people through scientific discovery to make positive lifestyle choices, addressing unhealthy behaviours through evidence-based health education. LifeLab serves four user segments via its online platform and physical facility: teachers, students (primary through further education), parents and carers, and researchers. The Board of Directors comprises five University of Southampton professors, and the team totals seven employees.

The core product is LifeLab Online, a free Moodle-based learning management system at lifelabonline.org that hosts downloadable and interactive resources (PowerPoints, videos, PDFs, online learning modules) for health education aligned to the UK national curriculum. The product portfolio includes Early LifeLab (primary), LifeLab Secondary, Experience Medicine with LifeLab, the NxtGen Researcher Programme (HPQ/EPQ-aligned), Vaping Resources, COVID-19 Resources, Young Health Champions (RSPH-accredited), Work Experience, Meet the Scientist, and a Youth Panel for co-creation. Distribution combines the digital platform with in-school delivery and a purpose-built facility inside University Hospital Southampton, which has hosted over 13,000 young people since opening in 2014. International reach is delivered through the LifeLab Global Network with partners in Sydney, Soweto, and Dublin.

The revenue model is non-commercial: the platform is free, and the initiative is funded through university institutional support, NIHR grants (including a randomised controlled trial for the EACH-B research project), RSPH partnership, and a newly launched corporate sponsorship channel. There is no disclosed revenue, no paying customers, and no venture or private equity ownership. Since 2008, LifeLab has engaged over 17,500 students and trained over 800 teachers, with reported outcomes including 83% of students saying LifeLab will influence their health decisions, 100% teacher recommendation, and 93% student approval.

Name

LifeLab, University of Southampton

Legal name

LifeLab, University of Southampton

Website

https://lifelabonline.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

LifeLab, University of Southampton is a non-profit educational research initiative that delivers free, research-based health education to UK children, young people, teachers, and researchers via a Moodle-based online platform and a purpose-built facility at University Hospital Southampton.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Health Education and Science Engagement Programmes

NAICS

Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172), Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171)

akta.pro primary industry

Health Coaching & Lifestyle Coaching Education (EDAAAHAG)

Keywords

• Health education programmes
• School curriculum resources
• Youth research training
• Science engagement
• Widening participation medicine

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

LifeLab designs, develops and delivers evidence-based health-education programmes for UK primary and secondary schools, hosted on a free Moodle-based learning platform (LifeLab Online). It offers curriculum-aligned modules, RSPH-accredited qualifications, researcher engagement initiatives and widening-participation medicine experiences, supplemented by hands-on learning at its purpose-built facility inside University Hospital Southampton.

Product overview

LifeLab is an educational initiative by the University of Southampton built around a central learning management platform, LifeLab Online, which hosts a portfolio of programmes for different audiences. The platform serves teachers, students (primary and secondary), parents and carers, and researchers. Key programmes include Early LifeLab and LifeLab Secondary (curriculum-aligned health education modules), Experience Medicine with LifeLab (widening access to medicine), the NxtGen Researcher Programme (youth research training for HPQ/EPQ qualifications), Vaping Resources, COVID-19 Resources, Work Experience, Meet the Scientist, and the Youth Panel (co-creation initiative). The platform is powered by Moodle and provides both downloadable resources and interactive online learning modules.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• LifeLab Online Free Moodle-based learning management platform hosting downloadable and interactive health-education resources, programmes and self-directed learning modules for teachers, students, parents/carers and researchers.
• Early LifeLab Primary school health-education programme using science-based modules (including the Health Warriors programme) to teach children about health topics such as COVID-19.
• LifeLab Secondary Programme Secondary school programmes aligned to the UK national curriculum, including fully resourced educational modules for in-school delivery and on-site day visits.
• Experience Medicine with LifeLab Programme for students interested in studying medicine, comprising a summer school, virtual medical work experience and widening access to medicine initiatives.
• NxtGen Researcher Programme Training programme that meets HPQ and EPQ requirements, training young people aged 14-18 in research skills to conduct their own research projects.
• Vaping Resources Educational resources co-created with youth panels addressing vaping, including a VR experience and a policy brief on youth perspectives on vaping.
• COVID-19 Resources COVID-19 teaching resources including the COVID-19 Warriors programme for primary school children, saliva testing information and SEND resources.
• LifeLab EACH-B Research Project Programme integrating science and health education into the secondary school science curriculum as part of a NIHR-funded randomised controlled trial.
• Young Health Champions Qualification RSPH-accredited qualification enabling students to become peer mentors, including a COVID-19 Young Health Champions version launched in March 2021.
• Meet the Scientist Programme enabling researchers and scientists to share their work with young people, showcasing career opportunities in science through videos and profiles.
• Work Experience Programme Programme connecting researchers and scientists with young people through work experience opportunities, including the Meet the Scientist initiative.
• Working with Young People in Schools and Communities Continued Professional Development training course providing researchers with essential strategies, ethical considerations and insights for working with young people in educational settings.
• Youth Panel Panel enabling young people to co-create LifeLab programmes, producing outputs such as clinical trial animations, exam wellbeing guides and vaping awareness resources.

Quantifiable outcome

• 83% of students report LifeLab will influence their health decisions
• +2 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Medical Schools Council: UK body representing medical schools, including running widening-access initiatives. Comparable because LifeLab's Experience Medicine and Summer School programmes overlap directly with the Council's widening-participation agenda.
• Speakers for Schools: UK charity providing free talks and work-inspiration opportunities from professionals to state school students. Comparable to LifeLab's Meet the Scientist and Work Experience programmes that connect researchers with young people.
• British Heart Foundation: UK charity funding cardiovascular research and delivering health education, including school programmes. LifeLab's director Mark Hanson is a BHF Professor, creating direct programmatic overlap with BHF school-education initiatives.
• Wellcome: Major UK health-research charity that funds science education and public-engagement programmes. Operates in the same thematic space of health research for the public benefit and could fund, partner with, or compete with LifeLab for school-based programmes.

Direct peers

• Royal Society for Public Health: An existing LifeLab partner (since 2017) that accredits the Young Health Champions qualification. Operates in the same public-health-education space and provides the formal qualification framework that anchors LifeLab's secondary programmes.
• IntoUniversity: UK educational charity running local learning centres and university-access programmes for young people from disadvantaged backgrounds. Comparable in mission (engaging young people with health/educational pathways) and in operating from a physical facility with structured programmes.
• The Brilliant Club: UK widening-participation charity placing university researchers in schools to deliver tutorials and university-style courses. Directly comparable to LifeLab's school-based, researcher-led delivery model and similar target audience of students and teachers.
• The Access Project: UK charity supporting young people from disadvantaged backgrounds to access top universities through tutoring and mentoring. Comparable in target audience and educational-outcome orientation, and competes with LifeLab for school and teacher partnerships.
• In2scienceUK: UK charity that promotes widening access to STEM and research careers for young people from disadvantaged backgrounds through university-led programmes. Highly comparable mission and delivery model to LifeLab's NxtGen Researcher Programme and Experience Medicine pathway.
• Primary Futures: UK education charity (part of the Education and Employers network) connecting primary school children with volunteers from a wide range of professions. Comparable to LifeLab's Early LifeLab programmes in targeting primary-age children for early-stage inspiration.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC4C_m4bTG6PFxkGFWyCOguQ
• Instagraminstagram.com/lifelab_soton
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lifelab-university-of-southampton

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 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 LifeLab, University of Southampton