OUR STORY
About Thrive Foundation
Helping people move from surviving to thriving through compassionate mental health support, recovery services and community connection.
WHO WE ARE
Thrive Foundation exists to ensure no one has to face mental health challenges or addiction alone.
Founded from lived experience, we provide compassionate, person-centred support for people experiencing anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, ADHD, PTSD, trauma, addiction and other mental health challenges.
We believe recovery begins when people feel understood, supported and connected. Our mission is simple:
To help people move from surviving to thriving.
FOUNDERS STORY
Why Thrive Foundation Exists
Thrive Foundation was born from lived experience.
Ed didn’t set out to create a charity. He created Thrive because he knows what it feels like to reach a point where life feels impossible and the support you need feels out of reach.
Ed didn’t set out to create a charity. He created Thrive because he knows what it feels like to reach a point where life feels impossible and the support you need feels out of reach.
After years of working in the corporate world, Ed experienced severe stress, burnout and deteriorating mental health. When he eventually reached out for help, he found a system that was difficult to navigate, with expensive counselling, long waiting lists and different organisations working in isolation. At a time when he needed someone to walk alongside him, he often felt completely alone.
As his mental health declined, alcohol became a way of coping. Over time, it cost him relationships, employment, confidence and his sense of who he was. He reached a point of profound despair and made two attempts to take his own life.
What changed his life wasn't a miracle. It was people who understood.
Through recovery, community and a determination to understand his own mental health, Ed began rebuilding his life. He is now proud to be sober through Alcoholics Anonymous and supports others on their own recovery journeys. His years of volunteering and fundraising have also given him a deep commitment to helping others and strengthening the communities around him.
After years of searching for answers, Ed was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. That experience reinforced something he had already learned through recovery: being understood can be the beginning of hope.
From Surviving to Thriving
Thrive exists because nobody should have to navigate their darkest moments alone.
We believe support should be accessible before someone reaches rock bottom, as well as when they are already there. We bring together people with different lived experiences so that those seeking support can connect with someone who genuinely understands what they may be going through.
Mental health and addiction can affect anyone, regardless of age, background, profession or circumstances. And when one person begins to recover, the impact can reach much further — families can reconnect, relationships can heal and communities can become stronger.
Ed knows recovery is possible because he has lived it.
Now, through Thrive Foundation, that experience is being turned into something bigger: a place where people can feel seen, heard and understood, and where the journey from surviving to thriving can begin.
OUR STORY
From Surviving to Thriving.
Thrive Foundation exists because no one should have to face mental health challenges alone. Our main goal is to reduce the high costs of lifesaving support and long waiting lists.
We work closely with housing associations, colleges, charities and other key organisations to create personalised recovery plans that remove barriers to support.
Today, Thrive Foundation helps people rebuild their lives before they reach crisis — or supports them through it if they already have. We believe lived experience, compassion and genuine understanding make all the difference.
Whether someone is living with anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, ADHD, PTSD, trauma, addiction or other mental health challenges, we are here to walk alongside them.
Our Impact
People Supported
Counselling Sessions
Community Projects
%
Recommend Our Support
Why We Exist
Reduce Waiting Times
Helping people access support sooner by reducing unnecessary delays.
Make Support Affordable
Removing financial barriers so lifesaving mental health support is accessible to everyone.
When one person invests in their healing, the positive impact extends far beyond them — creating calmer homes, stronger relationships, more secure children and healthier communities.
Crisis Support
Immediate support for people experiencing a mental health crisis.
Housing Support
Helping people secure safe accommodation and avoid homelessness.
Counselling
Working with qualified counsellors who also bring lived experience.
Recovery Pathways
Supporting education, volunteering and employment opportunities.
Community Projects
Creating opportunities for connection, wellbeing and lasting recovery.
Lived Experience
Our team brings a wide range of lived experiences, helping people feel understood, supported and hopeful.
Every day we see people reconnect with their families, return to work or education, volunteer, rebuild their confidence and rediscover joy in life.
Because recovery is possible — and, with the right support, it is possible to move from Surviving to Thriving.
Ready to take the next step?
Whether you're looking for support or want to help others on their recovery journey, we're here for you.
Get Help Now
If you or someone you know needs support, we're here to help.