What Relationships Scotland does

Relationships Scotland is a Scottish charity (Scottish Charity Number SC038683) headquartered in Edinburgh that operates as Scotland's largest provider of relationship counselling, family mediation, and child contact centre services. It serves individuals, couples, separating or divorcing families, children and young people, and extended family members through a federated network of affiliated member services located across Scotland, with initial access provided via a national InfoLine (0345 119 2020) and a website-based service-finder. Core service lines include Relationship Counselling, Family Mediation, Child Contact Centres (including video contact), and Family Support (comprising Parenting Apart groups, Children and Young People's Counselling, and Young People and Families Mediation). The organization also operates a Training and CPD programme delivering the Certificate in Relationship Counselling, Diploma in Casework Supervision, and Certificate in Family Mediation, the last of which is credit-rated by the University of the West of Scotland (SCQF Level 9, 50 credits) and externally validated by The College of Mediators.

The underlying technology footprint is minimal: there is no proprietary platform, no mobile application, no published API, and no disclosed AI/ML systems. The organization relies on a standard website, blog, Instagram, and a Bluesky profile for digital outreach, with operational delivery executed by credentialled human practitioners. Pricing is hybrid — some services are provided free or subsidized (e.g., Parenting Apart), while others operate on a fee-for-service basis at the local member-service level.

Relationships Scotland operates as a community-led, nonprofit entity with revenue derived from a combination of government contracts, charitable foundation grants, and fee-for-service arrangements channelled through member services. It employs 51-100 staff at its Edinburgh headquarters, with no disclosed parent company, institutional investors, or public listing. The business model prioritizes scale of service delivery (86,000+ support hours and 14,400+ face-to-face clients annually) over margin expansion, consistent with its charitable mandate.

Name

Relationships Scotland

Legal name

Relationships Scotland

Website

https://relationships-scotland.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Relationships Scotland is a Scottish charity that operates Scotland's largest network of relationship counselling, family mediation, and child contact centre services, serving individuals, couples, separating families, and children through affiliated member services across the country.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Family and Relationship Counselling Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Individual and Family Services (6241), Educational Support Services (6117)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Family & Parenting Support Services (BPAGAEAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Family & Parent Support Services (Parent Coaching, Advocacy) (EDAJALAK)

Keywords

• Relationship counselling
• Family mediation
• Child contact services
• Couples therapy
• Family support services

Headquarters

HQ city

Edinburgh, Scotland

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Charitable Services Revenue: As a Scottish charity (SC038683), Relationships Scotland operates through a network of member services that receive funding from various sources including government contracts, charitable foundations, and potentially fee-for-service arrangements for some programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Relationships Scotland delivers professional relationship counselling, family mediation, child contact centre services, and supporting family programmes such as Parenting Apart groups and children and young people's counselling through a national network of affiliated member services across Scotland. It also runs a Training and CPD programme offering accredited qualifications in relationship counselling and family mediation for practitioners.

Product overview

Relationships Scotland operates as Scotland's largest provider of relationship counselling, family mediation, and child contact centre services. The organization offers a comprehensive portfolio of core services including Relationship Counselling, Family Mediation, Child Contact Centres, and Family Support (comprising Parenting Apart groups, Children and Young People's Counselling, and Young People and Families Mediation). Additionally, the organization provides professional development through its Training and CPD Programme, which includes Relationship Counsellor Training (Certificate in Relationship Counselling and Diploma in Casework Supervision) and Family Mediator Training (Certificate in Family Mediation). The services are delivered through a network of Member Services across Scotland, supported by over 60 years of experience in relationship counselling and over 30 years in family mediator training.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Relationship Counselling Professional counselling services for couples and individuals in Scotland experiencing relationship difficulties, including sex therapy support, delivered through the network of member services.
• Family Mediation Mediation services helping separating or divorcing families in Scotland resolve disputes and reach agreements about children, finances, and post-separation arrangements, delivered by trained and accredited mediators through local member services.
• Child Contact Centres Supervised and supported contact services enabling children in Scotland to maintain relationships with both parents following family separation, including video contact options for remote participation.
• Family Support Services Comprehensive family support umbrella covering Parenting Apart groups, children and young people's counselling, and young people and families mediation for families experiencing separation, conflict, or other transitions in Scotland.
• Parenting Apart Information sessions and support groups helping separated parents in Scotland understand how to support their children through family transition, typically delivered in 3-hour group sessions, sometimes free of charge.
• Children and Young People's Counselling Specialist counselling for children and young people in Scotland to help them explore thoughts and feelings about family changes, using techniques including art and play therapy.
• Young People and Families Mediation Mediation working with young people and their families to resolve intergenerational conflict and communication difficulties that affect family relationships.
• Training and CPD Programme Continuing professional development events and training courses for practitioners across the Relationships Scotland network, covering topics such as working with diversity, mediation techniques, and domestic abuse awareness.
• Relationship Counsellor Training Professional qualification programmes including Certificate in Relationship Counselling (CIRC) and Diploma in Casework Supervision, drawing on over 60 years of experience in delivering relationship counselling training.
• Family Mediator Training Certificate in Family Mediation training programme managed and awarded by Relationships Scotland, credit rated by the University of the West of Scotland at SCQF level 9 (50 credits), with professional validation from The College of Mediators and over 30 years of training heritage.

Quantifiable outcome

• 86,000+ hours of support provided to clients in last 12 months
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 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 minor and core.

• Cosca (Community Scotland)minorOthersCosca is mentioned as an organizational partner/affiliate. Cosca (Community Scotland) promotes community learning and development.
• University of the West of ScotlandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Certificate in Family Mediation course is credit rated by the University of the West of Scotland and awarded 50 credits at SCQF level 9.
• The College of MediatorscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerExternal professional validation for the Certificate in Family Mediation course is provided by The College of Mediators.
• Living Wage EmployerminorOthersAccredited as a Living Wage Employer, demonstrating commitment to fair pay for staff.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Marriage Care: Charity delivering relationship counselling and marriage preparation, with a national network. Direct peer on counselling services, though primarily England-based.
• Tavistock Relationships: London-headquartered charity providing relationship counselling, sex therapy, and a respected clinical training programme. Directly comparable training-plus-counselling model with strong academic affiliations.

Regional players

• Gingerbread: UK charity supporting single-parent families with advice, peer support, and training. Overlapping family-separation and parenting support segment.
• Scottish Women's Aid: Federated network providing domestic abuse support across Scotland. Operates in adjacent family-crisis territory and frequently cross-referrals with mediation/counselling services.
• Shelter Scotland: Scottish arm of Shelter providing housing advice, support and family-related services including for those experiencing domestic abuse. Comparable charity model and Scottish-only operating scope.
• Cruse Scotland Bereavement Support: Scotland's largest bereavement charity, sharing comparable volunteer-intensive, network-based charity delivery model in the family-support category.
• One Parent Families Scotland: Scottish charity supporting single-parent families with advice, information, and direct services. Operates in the same family support and separation-adjacent segment within Scotland.

Broad incumbents

• NSPCC Scotland: UK-wide children's charity with significant Scotland operations, including Childline and direct services. Comparable as a major Scottish charity providing face-to-face support for children and families.
• Relate: UK-wide relationship counselling and sex therapy charity offering counselling, mediation and education. Most directly comparable competitor at a national scale, though Relationships Scotland dominates within Scotland specifically.

Others

• Childline (NSPCC): Helpline and online service for children and young people. Comparable as a Scotland-reachable, family-adjacent support service often involved in the same referral pathways.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/relationships_scot
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/relationships-scotland

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 Relationships Scotland