How did it all begin?
Now You’re Talking grew out of our charity, Talk Listen Change, or TLC as most people call us.
We’ve been around for over 40 years, based in the North but working all over the UK, helping people build safe, healthy, happy relationships.
We’ve always focused on that circle of support around people’s lives, whether that’s partners, friends, family, or children. Our work covers counselling, domestic abuse services, relationship education and mental health support.
For a long time, we delivered all of this through grants and commissioned work. Some people paid for counselling, others had funded sessions. But funders started saying, “You’ve got paid counselling, so you don’t need funding.” It put us in a tricky position. We could see the need for therapy growing, but the money to offer it safely was getting harder to find.
At the same time, new therapy platforms were popping up everywhere, and a lot of them weren’t checking who was on their books. It didn’t feel safe. We wanted to build something different.
That’s where Now You’re Talking came from.
It’s a place where people can get counselling from qualified, verified therapists. Every therapist is checked and supported. And because we’re part of a charity, the profits go back into TLC to help fund more life-changing services.
It’s simple really. You help yourself by getting therapy, and that ripple of good spreads out to help others too!
What does your business do (and why)?
Now You’re Talking is a safe and simple way for people to find a qualified therapist they can trust. We work with both individuals and businesses, offering counselling that’s accessible, ethical and properly supported.
Every therapist on the platform is self-employed. They keep their own identity and independence, but we handle all the marketing, bookings and payments. That way, they can focus on what they do best while still being fairly paid for their work.
Our checks are thorough. We look at qualifications, supervision, and professional accreditation, and our system flags anything that lapses. I still speak to every new therapist personally, which means I can also check that our values align. It’s not just about skill, it’s about care and motivation.
My drive to make therapy easier to access also comes from personal experience. My dad took his own life fifteen years ago, and he didn’t know where to turn for help. Even now, I don’t think most people do. You’re told to go to your GP, then you wait months or even years for support. I wanted to help build something that made it simple and safe for people to reach out when they need it most.
Because we’re part of a charity, our profits go straight back into Talk Listen Change. About two-thirds of what we earn supports their wider services. So when someone books a session through us, they’re not just looking after themselves, they’re helping others get the support they need too.
It’s therapy that does more than one good thing at once.
"Therapists deserve fair pay and community, not isolation.”
– Helen Stuart, Now You’re Talking Therapy
How did you build the business?
When we decided to set up Now You’re Talking, the first thing was to separate it clearly from the charity. We knew it needed its own identity, so we created a new name, website and brand that felt distinct from Talk Listen Change. The two sit side by side, but with different purposes. TLC focuses on funded counselling and community work, while Now You’re Talking offers paid therapy for individuals and businesses.
We also structured it properly as a trading subsidiary. That means we have our own board, governance and management, but the profits go straight back into TLC. It keeps everything transparent and makes sure that the business side directly supports the charity’s mission.
It was born partly out of frustration. Funding for mental health and relationship services is becoming harder to get, and often comes with lots of restrictions about who you can help and for how long. We wanted to build something more sustainable that could support itself and keep our mission alive long-term.
We spent a lot of time designing the model. Therapists are self-employed and keep their own practice, but we take care of the marketing, payments and admin so they can focus on their clients. That way, they’re paid fairly for vital work, and clients know they’re getting a properly qualified, verified therapist.
In the early days I spoke to every therapist personally. I still do, actually, though that won’t be possible forever. Those conversations matter because they’re about values as much as qualifications. It’s about creating a network of people who genuinely care and want to give back.
Looking back, it was a lot of work to get right, but we’ve built something that feels strong and sustainable. It connects the heart of the charity with a model that can actually fund its future.
What’s worked and what hasn’t?
On the business side, the B2B work has been the easiest to grow. Companies really connect with our profit-with-purpose model. Many are starting to recognise their role in supporting staff wellbeing, and they like knowing that by working with us they’re also helping fund free counselling through the charity.
That said, it’s a mixed bag. Some businesses come to us because they truly care about their people, others because they want to tick a box for corporate responsibility. You can tell the difference straight away. We prefer to work with those who genuinely want to make change.
On the consumer side, it’s been more challenging. At first, we thought individual clients would be drawn in by the social purpose — that they’d choose us because we give back. But that’s not really the case. Most people come to us because they need help and want a safe, easy way to get it. The fact that we’re ethical and connected to a charity is a nice bonus, but it’s not the main reason they reach out. That’s been a good lesson.
Marketing is another learning curve. We’ve had a lot of success with LinkedIn and some on Facebook, but Instagram feels like hard work for very little return. I do video content even though I hate it, because people respond to it best. Competing with the big platforms like BetterHelp, with their massive ad budgets, is tough. So we focus on what we can do well — being transparent, being real, and building trust through consistency.
What’s worked most is keeping it simple. No assessments, no matching algorithms, no waiting lists. Just people helping people.
What’s been your biggest challenge so far?
The hardest thing has been getting our name out there in such a crowded space. New therapy platforms appear every day, many of them with huge marketing budgets and little real oversight. We’re competing against that with limited resources, trying to show people why safety, ethics and proper qualifications matter.
Funding is another constant challenge. The charity sector has changed so much. Grants are harder to get, and they often come with restrictions about who you can help or how long the support lasts. You spend months setting up a project, see it make real progress, and then the funding ends just as it starts to work. It’s exhausting. That cycle is one of the reasons we built Now You’re Talking in the first place — to have a more stable way to keep delivering vital counselling.
On the individual side, the challenge is helping people see the value in therapy. We’ll happily spend money on haircuts or gym memberships, but hesitate to invest in something that could completely change our mental health. There’s still a mindset shift that needs to happen.
And then there’s the competition with EAPs — Employee Assistance Programmes. They’re cheap because they rely on people not using them. They cap the number of sessions, which often ends therapy right when someone is starting to open up. That’s the opposite of what people need. We’re trying to show there’s another way, but it takes time and education.
Every challenge comes back to one thing really: keeping the focus on people, not profit. That’s the balance we hold every day.
What does ‘good growth’ mean to you?
For us, good growth means creating something that works for everyone involved. It’s not just about expanding the business or reaching more clients. It’s about making sure that every part of what we do still feels ethical, supportive and true to our values.
In mental health, there’s a real risk of growth turning into scale for the sake of it. We’ve seen that happen with big platforms. They grow fast, but the quality and care get lost. For us, growth has to mean something deeper. It’s about supporting more people without compromising safety, and making sure our therapists feel valued too.
Good growth also means looking after the people who make it possible. Therapists are often underpaid and left to work in isolation. We wanted to change that by paying fairly, creating a sense of community, and taking the admin off their shoulders so they can focus on helping people.
It also means reducing dependency on unstable grant funding, so the charity can plan ahead instead of living year to year. If Now You’re Talking can fund TLC’s services in a way that’s steady and reliable, that’s good growth in action.
And on a personal level, I think it’s about changing the conversation around therapy. Making it normal, accessible and safe. Helping people see that looking after your mental health isn’t a luxury — it’s a foundation for everything else.
How do you measure your impact?
The biggest measure of impact for us is how much we can give back to the charity. At least two-thirds of our profits go straight into Talk Listen Change, helping to fund free or low-cost counselling and relationship support across the UK. That’s a very real and visible outcome.
Beyond that, we look at what kind of difference we’re making for people who come to us. We hear from clients who finally found a therapist they trust, and from therapists who say they feel valued for the first time in their careers. Those stories matter as much as the numbers.
We also look at how safe and simple the process feels. People come to us when they’re vulnerable, so everything we do is designed to give them more control — choosing their own therapist, knowing exactly who they’re talking to, and not being pushed through a long or clinical process.
In a world where mental health support can feel complicated and impersonal, we want to make it feel human again. If we’re doing that, we know we’re having an impact.
What’s next for you and the business?
Our big goal is to become the go-to place for people looking for ethical, high-quality therapy. We want Now You’re Talking to be known as the platform where you can find properly verified therapists and know your money is doing good beyond your own sessions.
For businesses, we want to grow our partnerships with organisations that genuinely care about their people. We’re not trying to become another Employee Assistance Programme. Those often rely on people not using them, which is the complete opposite of what we want. Our aim is to build lasting relationships with businesses that see mental health as part of their culture, not a box to tick.
Longer term, I’d love for the business to be able to fully sustain the charity’s work, so we don’t have to rely so much on short-term grants. That would free us up to plan ahead and support even more people.
I’m also hopeful about how younger generations are reshaping the conversation around mental health. They’re not willing to burn out like their parents did, and they expect workplaces to care about wellbeing. If businesses don’t take that seriously, they’ll lose good people. That gives me a lot of hope for the future — it shows the culture really is shifting.
Really, it all comes back to connection — connecting people to safe therapy, connecting therapists to fair work, and connecting the profits back into communities. If we can keep that cycle going and make it stronger, that’s the future we’re working towards.
"“You help yourself by getting therapy, and that ripple of good spreads out to help others too.”
– Helen Stuart, Now You’re Talking Therapy
Any advice for others on the same path?
I think the biggest thing is to stay close to your purpose. It’s easy to get swept up in growth, but if you forget why you started, you lose the heart of it. Keep checking in with your values and make decisions that line up with them.
Don’t be afraid to do things differently either. We could have just built another private therapy business, but instead we built something that supports a charity and gives back. It’s harder work, but it means every success has a ripple effect.
And finally, look after your own wellbeing while you build. I’ve seen too many people burn out trying to do good work. Growth that costs you your health or happiness isn’t good growth at all.
Good Growth Lessons
- Build from purpose, not pity.
Helen’s model doesn’t rely on charity as a safety net. It’s built on a belief that ethical business can fund social good. Start with purpose baked into your model, not added on later. - Make your impact measurable.
At least two-thirds of Now You’re Talking’s profits go back into the charity. Set a clear percentage, metric or outcome that shows where your impact really lands. - Keep quality at the heart of scale.
As demand grows, resist the urge to automate everything. Growth should make the service stronger, not cheaper. Scale systems, not humanity. - Pay people properly.
Fair pay is impact. Whether it’s therapists, freelancers or staff, treat wages as part of your mission, not just a cost. - Design circular models.
Helen’s model links income, service delivery and social reinvestment in one loop. Think about how money, resources and energy can circulate, not just flow one way. - Stay rooted in lived experience.
Her personal story about her father’s lack of access to therapy gives the business emotional truth. When your motivation is real, your message cuts through the noise. - Choose clients who care.
Working with businesses that align with your ethics saves energy and protects your integrity. Don’t chase every partnership; focus on fit. - Treat flexibility as strategy.
Whether in workplace culture or business design, flexibility builds resilience. Create systems that can adapt around people’s needs instead of forcing them to adapt around yours. - Lead with transparency.
Talk openly about how your model works: where profits go, how staff are treated, and what your values mean in practice. Clarity builds trust. - Redefine growth.
Growth isn’t only about revenue. It’s reach, wellbeing, stability and social change. Ask whether your next step strengthens the whole ecosystem, not just the bottom line.