How Tessolari works

Tessolari (pronounced tess-oh-LAR-ee) is built on the Latin tessera — the small piece of a mosaic that fits with others to form a complete picture. Each member is a tessera; together they make the mosaic. The slogan “find the missing piece to your life” extends the metaphor: nobody is broken on their own, just part of a picture that finds its shape as the pieces come together.

Two groups, often the same people:

• People who need practical help. Adults who struggle with executive function — paperwork, online portals, time management, hygiene check-ins, medication reminders — but don't qualify for professional support.
• People who can provide it. Neurodiverse and neurotypical members offering form-filling, admin, tutoring, skill-sharing, friendly chat, or in-person check-ins for a fair fee.

Many members are both — neurodiverse people who need help with one kind of task and can offer expertise with another.

After signing up, you're walked through a wizard that builds your profile one step at a time. Each step has a "Save and continue" button that stores that section immediately, a "Skip this step" button, and an "Exit and finish later" link. You can revisit the wizard at any time to fill in missing parts.

The most important question is the first one — what brings you here? — because it shapes every later step. Picking offering or both reveals an extra question about whether you'll work in person. Picking a neurodivergent neurotype unlocks an optional traits step.

Two search surfaces, both with the same accordion-and-checkbox filters so you can combine multiple values per category:

• Find people — browse member profiles. Filter by intent, neurotype, traits, what they're looking for, or what they're offering. Cards show name, intent, and Ally score; click through to a public profile.
• Browse services — listings posted by members. Filter by type (offer or request), category, or whether DBS is required. Click a listing to read the full description and contact the poster.

On any profile or listing, you can click a pill to jump to a search filtered by that tag. Clicking someone's looking for help with form-filling pill takes you to people offering form-filling, and vice versa.

Most matches don't need formal verification — the platform leans on the Ally score and reviews to surface trustworthy members. For in-person, chaperone-style work, an extra layer applies:

• DBS checks (formerly CRB) — providers offering in-person services can submit a DBS certificate. A moderator reviews it and records the verification details (last 4 digits of the certificate number, issue date, expiry date). The uploaded file is deleted as soon as the moderator decides; only the verification record persists. We call this verify-then-discard.
• Audit log — every moderator view of a DBS document and every decision is recorded in an append-only log. The database itself rejects updates and deletes against this log, so the trail can't be quietly rewritten.

After working with someone you can leave a single rating (High, Medium, or Low) plus optional comments. Each review can only be left once per listing per reviewer.

Reviews feed into the Ally score, a number from 0 to 140 displayed on each profile. It's a rough measure of how complete and active a profile is and contributes to ordering on search results — higher scores surface higher. Components: profile fields filled, current DBS verification, listings posted, and reviews received (weighted toward high ratings).

Tessolari has three pricing tiers so members can pick what works for them. Browsing, listing, profile editing, reviews, and forum participation are always free regardless of tier.

The platform fee is only ever charged to the provider — taken from the money they receive for a service they have delivered, and only when a booking actually completes. If you are booking a service as a customer, you pay the listing price and nothing more: there is no booking fee, no service charge, and no surcharge added at checkout. The fee comes out of the provider’s payout, never added to your bill.

Free services have no fee. Members are welcome to offer help free of charge — set a listing price of £0 and no platform fee, payment processing or other charge applies. Volunteering your time is a first-class option here, not an afterthought.

• Free (£0/month): 20% platform fee per booking. No other charges. Best for occasional use.
• Paid (£12/month or £120/year — saves £24): 10% platform fee per booking, member badge on your profile, priority support. Best for members who book or list a few times a month.
• Power (£30/month or £300/year — saves £60): 5% platform fee per booking, priority placement in search, faster dispute handling, power-member badge. Designed for active providers running services as a meaningful income stream through Tessolari.

The platform fee and membership revenue both go to the same things: payment processing, infrastructure, moderator time on DBS reviews and disputes, insurance, customer support, and ongoing development. We’re open about where the money goes because trust matters more on this kind of platform than in most — you’re meeting in person, sharing personal details, and asking for help with sensitive admin.

Membership tiers will go live shortly after launch. Until then, all members are on the free tier.