London Friend

What London Friend does

London Friend is the UK's oldest LGBTQ+ charity, founded in 1972 and registered as a charity (No. 299307) and company limited by guarantee. Operating from 86 Caledonian Road, London N1 9DN, it delivers a portfolio of human-delivered, volunteer-supported services to LGBTQ+ individuals in London, with no proprietary technology platform — service delivery is built around trained volunteer counsellors, peer-led support groups, and specialist drug and alcohol workers. Core offerings include a 12-week one-to-one Counselling Service, Antidote (the UK's first and largest LGBTQ+-specific drug and alcohol service, formed in 2002 via merger of Project LSD and the LGB Alcohol Project), demographic-specific Social Support Groups (e.g., Mattrix, Changes, T-Tuesday, over-50s groups), Sexual Health partnerships (SASH, Rise, Code, Axis, CliniQ), Helplines, and refugee/asylum seeker support.

The organisation is governed by a Board of Trustees chaired by Mubeen Ahmed (since February 2024) and led by Chief Executive Monty Moncrieff MBE, supported by over 100 trained volunteers and a small staff team. The business model is a hybrid of public donations (tiers from £5 to £500, one-off and monthly), institutional grants (including Heritage Lottery Fund and Hammersmith & Fulham local authority), local authority contracts (e.g., the London LGBT Domestic Abuse Partnership with Galop and Stonewall Housing, which ended March 2026), and earned income from a Professionals Training service covering LGBT competence, chemsex, and trans competence. Counselling operates on a low-cost, income-based contribution model.

Customer segments are distributed across LGBTQ+ individuals, LGBTQ+ people who use drugs (including chemsex participants), LGBTQ+ refugees and asylum seekers, trans and non-binary people, older LGBTQ+ people, and healthcare professionals requiring cultural competence training. Distribution is primarily direct-to-consumer via the London office, drop-in sessions, online workshops, and a referral network with NHS sexual health clinics and partner charities. Strategic positioning rests on domain specialisation (LGBTQ+-affirming services), community embeddedness (50+ years, 50+ weekly groups), and credibility demonstrated through the Queen's Award for Voluntary Service (2016) and GSK IMPACT Award (2016).

Name

London Friend

Legal name

London Friend

Website

https://londonfriend.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1972

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

London Friend is the UK's oldest LGBTQ+ charity (founded 1972), delivering volunteer-supported counselling, the Antidote drug and alcohol service, social support groups, and training to LGBTQ+ individuals and healthcare professionals across London.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

LGBTQ+ Community Support Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Social Assistance (624)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

LGBTQ+ Rights & Advocacy Organizations (BPAGAFAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Domestic Violence & Abuse Support Services (BPAGAEAD)

Keywords

• LGBTQ+ support services
• Mental health counselling
• Drug alcohol support
• Sexual health services
• Social support groups

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, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donations: Charity relies on public donations to fund operations. Multiple donation tiers available (£5-£500) with options for one-off or regular monthly donations.
2. Grants and Funding: Funded by various grant providers and institutional funders. The organisation mentions funders and supporters on its website. Specific grants include Heritage Lottery Fund for 50th anniversary heritage project. Hammersmith & Fulham local authority funding for specific counselling services.
3. Training Services: Provides training to professionals and organisations on LGBT competence, working with chemsex, and developing LGBT support strategies. This includes both direct training delivery and professional development services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

London Friend is a UK-based charity, founded in 1972, that provides counselling, drug and alcohol support (via its Antidote service), social and peer-support groups, sexual health services, helplines, domestic abuse support, and training for professionals working with LGBTQ+ communities. It is the UK's oldest LGBTQ+ charity and serves LGBTQ+ adults across London and beyond through in-person, telephone, and online channels.

Product overview

London Friend is a charity organization offering a portfolio of human-delivered support services for LGBTQ+ people, not a technology product. The main services include: Antidote (LGBTQ+-specific drug and alcohol support, the UK's largest of its kind), Counselling (12-week one-to-one sessions by volunteer counsellors), Social Support Groups (demographic-specific groups for gay/bisexual men, women, trans/non-binary people, over 50s, neurodivergent individuals, and creative groups), Sexual Health Services, Domestic Abuse Counselling, Helplines, and Refugees & Asylum Seekers Support. Services are delivered by trained volunteers and staff, with no technology platform or software product component.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Counselling Service
• Antidote (Drug and Alcohol Support)
• Social Support Groups
• LGBT Helpline
• Sexual Health Services
• Domestic Abuse Support
• LGBT Refugees and Asylum Seekers Support
• Professional Training and Consultancy

Quantifiable outcome

• 2.8x higher drug poisoning mortality risk for LGB+ people demonstrates critical need for specialist services
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles2 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.

• Galop (London LGBT Domestic Abuse Partnership lead)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016London Friend provided specialist domestic abuse counselling for LGBTQ+ people since 2016 as part of the London LGBT Domestic Abuse Partnership (DAP), led by Galop and working with Stonewall Housing. This partnership provided coordinated specialist support for domestic abuse survivors. Funding for this service ended March 2026.
• Stonewall HousingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of the London LGBT Domestic Abuse Partnership (DAP) working with Galop and Stonewall Housing to provide specialist LGBTQ+ domestic abuse support services.
• LGBT HEROcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint research partnership producing Chemsex Survey Report 2026. London Friend (running Antidote) and LGBT HERO jointly published research on chemsex experiences among LGBTQ+ people, including surveys of 334 respondents and engagement with healthcare professionals.
• Say It Loud ClubminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrom April 2017 to July 2018, London Friend worked in partnership with Say It Loud Club to provide social, emotional and educational support to LGBT asylum seekers and refugees. Funding for this work has ended and Say It Loud Club continues independently.
• Sexual Health Clinics (SASH, Rise, Code, Axis, CliniQ)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLondon Friend provides links to and works with multiple sexual health services including SASH, Rise, Code, Axis, and CliniQ (trans-led sexual health clinic). These partnerships provide comprehensive sexual health access for LGBTQ+ clients.
• Healthcare Professionals NetworkminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partnership with healthcare professionals in sexual health and drug treatment services. Focus groups and surveys explored chemsex-related needs and coordination between services. Part of work for London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham needs assessment.
• LGBT+ ConsortiumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLondon Friend participates in joint statements and advocacy alongside 80+ partner organisations through the LGBT+ Consortium umbrella body. Recent joint statements on EHRC Code of Practice and Meta policy updates.
• StonewallminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint advocacy partner. Supported Stonewall's decision to withdraw from Government's Safe to Be Me conference over trans exclusion. Part of Ban Conversion Therapy Alliance.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Stonewall Housing: UK LGBTQ+ housing charity and London LGBT Domestic Abuse Partnership partner with London Friend. Both specialize in tailored LGBTQ+ support services in London and frequently co-deliver domestic abuse and housing pathways.
• Galop: UK LGBTQ+ anti-abuse charity and lead of the London LGBT Domestic Abuse Partnership. Directly comparable as a London-based LGBTQ+ charity delivering specialist abuse support, advocacy and helpline services for the same population.
• PACE (Project for Advice, Counselling and Education): London-based LGBTQ+ mental health charity. Direct comparable to London Friend's counselling service, specializing in LGBTQ+-affirming psychotherapy, with a similar volunteer/pro-bono clinician model.
• Switchboard LGBT+ Helpline: UK LGBTQ+ helpline service. London Friend refers clients to Switchboard for out-of-area support; both deliver confidential, volunteer-staffed listening and information services to LGBTQ+ people.
• LGBT HERO: London-based LGBTQ+ health and research charity. Direct research partnership with London Friend on the Chemsex Survey Report 2026; comparable as an LGBTQ+ community resource, advocacy and research organization.

Regional players

• Naz Project London: London charity providing sexual health and wellbeing services to minority communities. Comparable scope on sexual health screening, drug/alcohol harm reduction and culturally-competent community-based support overlapping with Antidote's chemsex work.
• ELOP (East London Out Project): East London LGBTQ+ counselling and wellbeing charity. London Friend recommends ELOP as an alternative support option; comparable service model (low-cost LGBTQ+ affirming counselling and groups) serving an overlapping London catchment.

Broad incumbents

• Terrence Higgins Trust: UK's leading HIV and sexual health charity. Overlaps with London Friend's Antidote and sexual health partnerships (SASH, CliniQ), serving similar LGBTQ+ clients with a broader national footprint and HIV-specialist remit.
• METRO Charity: London-based charity delivering sexual health, mental health, youth and LGBTQ+ services. Overlaps with London Friend on LGBTQ+ youth, sexual health and mental health support with a broader portfolio and Greenwich/SE London base.
• LGBT Foundation: UK-wide LGBTQ+ charity headquartered in Manchester delivering counselling, sexual health, advocacy and community services. Comparable portfolio of services to London Friend at a larger national scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/lgbtfriend
• Facebookfacebook.com/londonfriend
• Instagraminstagram.com/londonfriendlgbt
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/londonfriend
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/london-friend

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 London Friend