51. Volunteero This startup created an app to help often tech-nervous charities manage their volunteers better and therefore get the most from their top resource – people. Written by Helena Young Sponsored by Sage Published on January 12, 2026 About the Startups 100 Now in its 18th year, the Startups 100 is the definitive list of the most promising new UK businesses. There's no fee for entry or for inclusion in our index. The Startups team of new business experts judge all our top 100 entrants in collaboration with specialist industry consultants. See our guide to this year’s hottest new businesses and most exceptional founders in the complete 2026 Startups 100 index. Founders: Ashley Staines and Kedar KasarekarYear founded: 2020Website: volunteero.orgThe charity sector lags desperately behind the private sector when it comes to technology. Digital rollouts continue at breakneck speed for most industries but financial pressures have meant that charities have held back.Ashley Staines and Kedar Kasarekar saw the impact firsthand. As lifelong volunteers, frustrations with the process of volunteering almost led them to quit. According to them, onboarding could take months, day-to-day communications were poor and volunteers couldn’t contribute fully. However, they decided that with the right technology, everything could be much simpler.They worked together to build a basic tool, which they then developed into Volunteero. Featuring for the second time in the Index, the platform manages every aspect of a charity’s relationship with its volunteers, from onboarding and training to oversight and reporting. VC investors just wouldn't be aligned on the mission of impact over money. Charities can customise what they want to include and create a dynamic experience for their volunteers, including messaging, badges to recognise contributions and practical tools, like expense and report filing. This also makes it easier for charities to compile data from their volunteers, which they can then use to set their strategy.Despite a successful pre-seed, funding has been tricky as the team quickly realised that “VC investors just wouldn’t be aligned on the mission of impact over money”. However, the firm’s exceptional UX and impressive client roster have helped it to secure investment from Antler, Octopus Ventures, some of the team behind JustGiving, as well as multiple social impact angels.The business is now profitable and the growth rate is faster than immediately after the funding. “And we have done it ‘seed strapping’ and profitably,” they say, proudly.The platform now has 250 clients, including top charities like the Royal Voluntary Service and Citizens Advice, as well as organisations including the RAF Museum, air ambulance charities and NHS Trusts. A large part of the job is educating charities on what tech can deliver for them and making it easier for volunteers to sign up to help them achieve that.View the full Startups 100 Index for 20261. Omnea2. HIVED3. MAGIC AI4. OXCCU5. Lightyear6. Neuranics 7. Hormona8. Burbank9. Better Dairy 10. Lenkie Technologies11. Userled12. Hoxton Farms13. Rensair14. PulpaTronics15. TradeKart16. 32Co17. Carmoola18. cheqd19. Sightline Analytics20. Adamo Foods21. Bold Bean Co22. Beams Renovation 23. Pan Galactic24. Capi Money25. Spotted Zebra26. ANTHROTEK 27. Unravel28. Perci Health29. Untap Health30. Hair Syrup31. Connect Earth 32. spacebands 33. Unfabled34. Lightning Reach35. STOCKED36. Embeddable37. XR Therapeutics38. Literal Labs39. Scooch40. Openr41. Fibe Limited42. Inicio AI43. Peachies44. Better Nature 45. Ctrl Alt46. Resting Reef47. Nila48. ROXFIT49. Finmile50. NavLive51. Volunteero52. Inntelo AI53. Zonova54. A&B Smart Materials55. Ethicronics56. Treeapp57. kennek58. Soil Benchmark59. Vox Aeris60. Asan Cup61. Nuuri62. Mindstone63. MYNDUP64. Enbiosis Biotechnology65. JUX Food66. Danu Robotics67. Wylde Market68. Air Aware Labs69. Mimicrete Ltd70. ALYVE71. Happl72. Living Things73. Grub Club Pets74. Mealia75. PetProov76. Lylo Products77. Chest78. ZIM Connections79. Uptime Labs80. Teal81. Zero Fintech82. Micro Thermal Energy 83. Kanjo 84. Merlin Cloud85. My Skin Feels86. Eleria87. Cashblack88. RevvedUp89. Cosysense90. SuperFi91. Loom92. Legacy Compass93. Meshed94. SWURF95. Main Squeeze96. Sampl Technologies97. Over the Moo98. Pioneering People99. Bikebook100. Recondition Share this post facebook twitter linkedin Tags 2026 Written by: Helena Young Deputy Editor Helena is Deputy Editor at Startups. She oversees all news and supporting content on Startups, and is also the author of the weekly Startups email newsletter, delivering must-know SME updates straight to their inbox. From interviewing Wetherspoon's boss Tim Martin to spotting data-led working from home trends, her insight has been featured by major trade publications including the ICAEW, and news outlets like the BBC, ITV News, Daily Express, and HuffPost UK. With a background in PR and marketing, Helena is particularly passionate about giving early-stage startups a platform to boost their brands. That's one reason she manages the Startups 100 Index, our annual ranking of new UK businesses. Sponsored by: Sage Startups 100 Index Sponsor 2026 Sage exists to knock down barriers so everyone can thrive, starting with the millions of Small and Mid-Sized Businesses served by us, our partners and accountants. Customers trust our finance, HR and payroll software to make work and money flow. By digitising business processes and relationships with customers, suppliers, employees, banks and governments, our digital network connects SMBs, removing friction and delivering insights. Knocking down barriers also means we use our time, technology and experience to tackle digital inequality, economic inequality and the climate crisis.