Self Space Lands £2.25M for Mental Health Shops

Self Space is rewriting the playbook on mental health services.

What’s happening: The British pop-in therapy provider closed a £2.25M seed round led by Redrice Ventures. Building on its four current sites – three in London and one in Manchester – the funds fuel two further locations and expand its virtual therapy platform.

Scaling B2B, a psychoeducation platform will also be developed for its 150+ corporate clients, widening access to mental health support in the workplace.

Meeting needs. With an always-open approach, Self Space has delivered ~60K sessions since launching in 2019. As the concept caught on, the team grew from five to 100. Extending its reach, 75 new therapists, psychotherapists and counsellors will now be able to offer 34K more sessions this year.

Combating a crisis. Mental health services in England received 4.6M referrals in 2022, and the current waiting list is ~1.2M, including ~700K children. Jodie Cariss, founder and CEO of Self Space, says that this is “exactly the problem Self Space was set up to solve”.

“This investment will allow us to continue expanding and get closer to our mission – providing straightforward access to flexible therapy, offering a good conversation with a qualified person seven days a week, with no waitlist and same day bookings available.” 

Takeaway: The idea of an on-demand therapy shop on the high street has shifted from wariness to welcome amid widespread need. Self Space’s anti-pressure attitude urging mental health for maintenance breaks down taboos, making it easier for people to seek support before a crisis calls.