A new software platform launched by a Cornish entrepreneur has received a funding boost from SWIG Finance.
The software platform called Mappix is designed to help teachers, children and schools, providing accurate assessments and reducing paperwork. Charity Wilson decided to develop the platform when she realised there was a gap in the market and wanted to decrease teacher workload so they can focus on creating enjoyable lessons.
She said: “Having worked as a teacher for over ten years I know how stressful it is and the volume of work and administration that teachers have to keep up with.
“This platform is really easy to use and helps teachers by reducing workload. It also helps children by quickly highlighting where they might need extra support and where they’re doing really well. It then means that schools can instantly report on how their pupils are doing across the entire curriculum.
“Effectively the platform is like having all of your pupils’ exercise books open at the same time; you can quickly check how they’re doing in each core subject and easily update their smart marksheet to ensure they get extra support or extra challenge.”
Wilson developed the platform in 2015 and worked with a handful of schools when prototyping the platform which has now assessed more than 2,000 pupils.
She needed investment in order to take the platform out of test trading and launch it to a wider market and approached SWIG Finance for funding. She explained: “I needed finance in order to market the platform and continue to build and develop it.
“I worked with Aaron Hamshire at SWIG Finance who was really helpful. He talked me through the different funding options and evaluated the loan amount with me to make sure it was right for the company and what I was trying to achieve as well as supporting with ongoing forecasting.”
Hamshire added: “It was a pleasure to hear from Charity Wilson who had recently been on an Oxford Innovation, Access 2 Finance programme. I am lucky to work with some very interesting business concepts and Mappix falls in that category.
“Charity was clearly someone who identified a market need from working in the Educational sector. Working with Charity through the application was a pleasure as she was clear on her goals and what benefits her solution could bring to schools.
“I was confident that the right level of investment, Charity could fully launch her product and go on to much greater things.”
Currently Mappix is only available to primary schools but Wilson has the ambition to add the entire school curriculum and grow a national customer base.
