What United Borders does

United Borders is a London-based nonprofit charity founded in 2018 by Justin Finlayson to support at-risk young people in communities affected by youth violence and knife crime. The organization delivers a wrap-around provision centered on music as its primary engagement pathway, supplemented by self-defence, arts, therapy, mentorship, financial education, fitness coaching, and employment coaching. Services are delivered through direct community outreach in London and via workshops at primary schools, secondary schools, and universities across the UK, with an online booking system available for session requests.

The core program stack includes SATS (Self Defence, Arts and Therapy schemes), Music Education and Production Services delivered in partnership with Sonos Soundwaves, Outreach Services for educational institutions and corporates, and a Mentorship Program pairing each young person with a named, trauma-informed youth worker. The technical footprint is minimal: a WordPress website, an online booking page, and physical studio facilities used for music production and therapy workshops. There is no proprietary software product, no app, and no API; the "technology" is fundamentally human-delivered services supported by light digital plumbing.

United Borders operates as a founder-led charity with approximately 5 employees and no parent company, subsidiaries, funding rounds, or institutional investment. Revenue comes from donations (including a public GoFundMe campaign), grants, and corporate partnerships such as Sonos Soundwaves; services are provided free of charge to beneficiaries. The organization has generated national earned media via BBC Inside Out, Good Morning Britain, and Metro Newspaper coverage, and self-describes as an award-winning charity, though specific award details are not publicly disclosed.

Name

United Borders

Legal name

United Borders

Website

https://unitedborders.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

United Borders is a London-based nonprofit charity founded in 2018 that supports at-risk youths affected by knife crime through music-led mentorship, self-defence, therapy, and outreach programs delivered in schools and communities across the UK.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

London

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. Donations and Charitable Funding: Charitable organization primarily funded through donations, grants, and corporate partnerships. GoFundMe campaign available for public donations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

United Borders is a London-based nonprofit charity that delivers wrap-around support services for at-risk young people, including mentorship, music production and music therapy workshops, self-defence and arts-therapy (SATS) schemes, fitness coaching, financial education, and employment coaching. Programs are delivered through direct community outreach in London and via workshops in schools and universities, and are provided free of charge to beneficiaries.

Product overview

United Borders is a London-based nonprofit charity offering a wrap-around support program for at-risk youths experiencing crisis. The organization operates several interconnected services centered around music as the primary engagement pathway. Core offerings include SATS (Self Defence, Arts and Therapy schemes) which combines physical training with creative arts and therapeutic support; Music Education & Production Services providing studio production and music therapy; Outreach Services delivering workshops in schools and universities; and a Mentorship Program pairing young people with trained youth workers. The organization partners with Sonos Soundwaves to deliver music education programs. All services are designed to help young people develop ownership of positive life pathways.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SATS – Self Defence, Arts and Therapy schemes A structured program combining self-defence training, arts activities, and therapy to help young people build confidence, physical capability, and emotional resilience; intended for at-risk young people in London communities affected by youth violence and crisis.
• Music Education & Production Services Music-based engagement programs using studio production, music therapy workshops, and mentoring to help at-risk young people express themselves and develop creative and transferable skills through music; delivered to individual youth beneficiaries and supported by the Sonos Soundwaves partnership.
• Outreach Services Presentations, talks, and workshops delivered at universities, companies, and schools addressing challenges faced by young people including body image issues, youth violence awareness, and raising aspirations; intended for educational institutions and corporate audiences.
• Mentorship Program One-to-one mentoring that connects young people with named mentors who provide support throughout and after their time with the program; mentors are trained in youth work, safeguarding, and trauma-informed support, and intended for at-risk young beneficiaries.

Named customers3 records

Segments3 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

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Sonos SoundwavescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Sonos Soundwaves is a social impact program created by Sonos to support youth music education around the world. United Borders serves as a UK partner, receiving support to continue delivering quality music education including studio production, music therapy workshops, well-being classes, and mentoring. The partnership helps young people pursue their ambitions via music education and supports the establishment of community programs.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• StreetDoctors: UK charity that trains young people in life-saving first aid as a response to youth violence. Directly comparable in mission (youth violence prevention) and beneficiary segment, though with a narrower training-based intervention.
• Redthread: UK charity embedding youth workers in A&E departments and justice settings to support young people impacted by violence. Highly comparable on target beneficiary (at-risk youth affected by violence) and intervention philosophy.
• MAC-UK: UK charity integrating music and mental health to support marginalised young people. Highly comparable on the music-plus-mental-health youth intervention model that underpins United Borders' core approach.
• Youth Music: UK national charity funding music education for children and young people, including those facing barriers. Most directly comparable to United Borders due to its music-first engagement model targeting disadvantaged youth.

Broad incumbents

• Mind: Major UK mental health charity providing advice, support and advocacy. Overlaps with United Borders on mental health and wellbeing support for young people, but operates at national scale across all age groups.
• The Prince's Trust: Large UK youth charity supporting disadvantaged young people into education, training and employment. Comparable beneficiary profile and employment-coaching goals, but vastly larger scale and brand recognition.
• NSPCC: Leading UK children's charity focused on child protection and safeguarding. Comparable on safeguarding-trained youth work and child welfare outcomes, but vastly larger and broader in scope.
• Catch22: UK social business delivering services across education, justice and youth employment. Comparable on youth services and violence prevention, with much broader institutional scale and government contracts.
• Centrepoint: Major UK charity focused on youth homelessness and disadvantage. Comparable on crisis-intervention support for vulnerable young people, but operates at substantially greater scale and national footprint.

Emerging players

• Restless Development: International youth-led development agency placing young people at the centre of social change. Comparable on youth-led empowerment philosophy, though focused on international development rather than UK knife-crime intervention.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/united-borders

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 United Borders