# Leapers

> Leapers exists to understand and improve the mental health of freelancers and the self-employed in the UK.

## What Leapers is

Leapers is a research, resources, and partnership project focused on mental health and self-employment. Founded in 2017 by Matthew Knight, it has supported over 300,000 freelancers through its community, content, and collaborative work with organisations across the freelance support ecosystem.

Leapers operates in three areas:

- **Research**: First-party and collaborative research into the mental health challenges facing freelancers in the UK. Leapers conducts an annual study into mental health and self-employment, surveying over 1,000 freelancers on their wellbeing. The 2025 annual report found that 40% of freelancers saw a decline in their mental health that year, though self-employment continues to show a net positive impact for most over time.
- **Resources**: A curated and original library of guides, articles, and tools covering topics including isolation, loneliness, imposter syndrome, late payments, money worries, motivation, and self-confidence. Published on leapers.co and via a regular Substack newsletter.
- **Partnership**: Collaboration with hirers, service providers, communities, and policymakers to identify tangible ways to improve the wellbeing of the self-employed. Partners have included Mind UK, YunoJuno, FreeAgent, Monzo, and Accenture.

## Key context

- Leapers was the first resource specifically focused on the self-employed to be featured on Mind UK's Mental Health at Work portal.
- The project hosted a peer-support community from 2017 to 2023 with over 6,000 members across 22 timezones. The community space is now closed; research and resources work continues.
- Leapers has conducted four large-scale research studies into mental health and self-employment.
- Matthew Knight has spoken to government ministers on self-employment and mental health, and contributed to parliamentary working groups on independent work.
- Leapers has been featured in the BBC, Channel 5, Courier, Mail Online, Raconteur, Bustle, and Underpinned.
- Won and nominated for multiple awards, including the YunoJuno Freelancer of the Year award.

## Related projects

Leapers is part of The Independency Co. (the.independency.co), an umbrella organisation making freelancing work better. Related projects include:

- **freelancing.support**: Free, daily-updated UK freelancer resource platform
- **Manual of Me** (manualof.me): Team working tool for freelancers and organisations, developed out of the Leapers project
- **Outside Perspective** (outsideperspective.co): Peer community for independent strategists
- **Independency Community Coalition**: 12 UK freelancing communities, 16,500+ members

## Crisis resources

Leapers signposts to mental health crisis support. If someone is at risk: call 999 or visit A&E. For someone to speak to: Samaritans on 116 123 (free and confidential). Further support via Mind UK (mind.org.uk).

## Founder

**Matthew Knight** is the founder of Leapers and Chief Freelance Officer of The Independency Co. He is an independent strategist, advocate for freelancers, chair of the Independency Community Coalition, and member of Mind UK's Mental Health at Work Leadership Council.

## Contact

hello@leapers.co  
https://leapers.co