DigitalHealth.London Launchpad company, Storiboard, announces the launch of its online peer support platform, which offers users regular peer support sessions and one-on-one emotional recovery sessions via video chat with certified experts by experience (EbE).
Every year, almost half of British adults fight against loneliness.
When life gets tough, it’s easy to feel isolated or alone. Whether you’ve just been diagnosed with cancer and are struggling to tell your family about it, or you’re struggling with your mental health, modern society can feel lonelier than ever. Sometimes friends, loved ones and even therapists are not enough; you want to talk to someone who understands how you feel on a personal level and who truly understands you like no one else can.
In these situations, peer support is vital; when people with similar experiences come together to support each other, individually or in groups. Connecting with others who understand our unique challenges helps us share lessons learned, feel supported, and ultimately heal.
Stori painting was founded with two things in mind: a strong belief in the transformative power of peer support and a simple mission: to make it easier to find others going through the same life experiences. Over the past 12 weeks, Digital Health.London Launchpad Program, we have received invaluable support from a team of experts with direct clinical and operational experience of the NHS. It’s been a truly incredible journey that has helped our solution to the loneliness epidemic thrive and grow.
StoriBoard is a free global app where users can join over 200 groups focused on bringing together people who share similar experiences. These experiences include loneliness, neurodiversity, mental and physical health, relationships, and other facets of identity. Within these groups, users chat on forums and participate in regular peer support sessions of up to 12 people, forging friendships based on mutual understanding.
Within the StoriBoard app, users can also pay for tailored one-on-one emotional recovery sessions via video chat with certified experts by experience (EbE). Experts by Experience are individuals trained to provide safe and effective peer support, based on their own lived experience. We are developing an innovative AI tool that acts alongside the EbE as a virtual link: listening to one-on-one sessions hosted on our app and providing the EbE with real-time recommendations on local resources and services for their customer. It’s the perfect combination of authentic, shared human experience and practical place-based help.
I can now confidently use my lived experience to help empower others. I am able to apply many of the skills I have learned throughout my life in general. This course is so enriching!
Ruben Sam
Expert by experience in mental health and vitiligo
All experts by experience on the StoriBoard application have been trained internally by the StoriBoard Academy. Our Level 3 Expert by Experience course is open to anyone looking to use their experiences to transform lives, regardless of their previous qualifications. Therapists and teachers, counselors and stay-at-home parents have all completed our Level 3 Expert by Experience course, certified by NCFE. StoriBoard ensures that all experienced experts who offer paid 1:1 sessions on the StoriBoard app have been vetted through a thorough security check, making the safety of our community a priority.
For the same reason, our course includes core modules on safeguarding, diversity and inclusion, and recovery-focused strategies. In this way, learners develop the knowledge and practical skills needed to inspire and uplift others with similar life experiences through peer support – while also empowering themselves and earning an income from the support sessions individual that they lead. By training our experts through experience, the StoriBoard app provides safe, instant and affordable access to highly personalized support.
The training to become an Expert by Experience is incredibly rewarding – I learned so much! I feel empowered to transform my lived experience into a valuable asset, thereby transforming lives.
Michelle Leigh
Expert by Experience in Bereavement by Suicide
Picture this: you’re dealing with grief, anxiety, moving to a new city, divorce, a child with behavioral issues…and you need support immediately. Instead of wading through the sea of online searches for help or relying on the well-meaning words of friends and family, StoriBoard gives you a direct line to those who have been in your shoes and have the answers.
It’s not just about quick fixes. These are meaningful relationships that can truly transform lives. It’s holistic, personalized help when you need it most, rooted in a belief in social prescribing: a revolutionary approach that recognizes that health and wellbeing is not just about medicine, but are also deeply tied to community ties and support networks.
At StoriBoard, we believe that the right support can be life-changing, instilling the confidence to make decisions. Experienced experts remind you that whatever you’re going through, you’re not alone – they’re here to tell you, “We can get through this, together.”
Great course, I highly recommend it! He provided me with practical advice and gave me the tools to support others professionally. I even put the training into practice informally with friends and family!
Keeley Hellyer
Expert by experience in heart disease
In this way, StoriBoard’s commitment goes beyond simple connection; our goal is empowerment. We equip everyday individuals with the tools and training to become experts through experience, while providing our app users with tailored, affordable peer support sessions that help them live their lives to the fullest. The StoriBoard app is more than just a social network: it is a unique ecosystem where support is both given and received. It is one of many multifaceted and interlocking solutions to the loneliness crisis that persists around the world.
Ultimately, we believe in the pioneering work of StoriBoard: bringing peer support into the mainstream and changing lives.
The DigitalHealth.London Launchpad program is funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF). It is delivered by the Health Innovation Network (HIN) South London in partnership with the Office of Life Sciences, CW+, Medicity, NHS England, the Mayor of London and the Leveling Up Fund.
For more information, please visit https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-
Shared Prosperity Fund prospectus.
