Tech Mental Health Spaces: 404 Stress Not Found
While I’m in a very good place right now, I’ve been quite public and open about my own challenges with depression and mental health.
That’s why shortly after I’d begun my future life, I was honoured to join the board of 404 Stress Not Found.
404 Stress Not Found is a not-for-profit community interest company dedicated to supporting the mental health, wellbeing and resilience of people working in tech and cybersecurity.
The group is the brainchild of founder Paul Croker, and has grown as a UK-wide community to help tech workers with their wellbeing.
404 Stress Not Found in Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Paul has organised 404 events across the UK, and we’ve already held two meetups in my adopted hometown of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
The Toon meetups are held in the beautiful NatWest Accelerator, overlooking Newcastle and Gateshead, thanks to the kind support of Nicki Kilkenny and Jaemi Glancy of NatWest (and if you’re not aware of NatWest Accelerator, I recently shared my thoughts on The Business Growth Tool You Aren’t Using: A Guide to the NatWest Accelerator).
The 404 meetups are very casual, with open conversations around stress, mental health and wellness. It’s very laid back and relaxed.
And, of course, delicious food is a great draw too! At each event we’ve offered an amazing free buffet provided by The Indian Snack Lunch Box & Catering with costs covered by a sponsor (thanks to Terra Computers and Brigantia for being our first two sponsors. If your organisation would like to support tech mental health and sponsor our September gathering, or a future one, drop me a note).
Plus, we’ve benefited from hearing from brilliant guest speakers at each event.
- Our first meetup was held in November 2025, and featured the insightful Georgina Williams-Hodgson of Nousana sharing tips on quietening the noise of modern life.
- Our last meetup was held in June 2026, and featured the wonderful Polly Brennan of Adventurous Coaching giving her insights on building mental resilience.
And I’m pleased to say our third event is now scheduled for September 2026!
404 Stress Not Found – 17th September 2026
The next Newcastle-upon-Tyne 404 Stress Not Found meetup will be held on 17th September 2026 at the NatWest Accelerator.
In addition to the fabulous free food and refreshments, and great conversation, we’re honoured to be joined by local celebrity, Dave Algeo!
Dave, known as the “Sprout Guy” (trust me, you’ll find out why!) will be sharing his take on looking after our mental health, putting stress in its place and coping with the challenges of life, work and running a business.
For more details and to register to attend for free, check out the 404 Stress Not Found Events & Meetups page.
A Judgement-Free Room for Tech Minds
I speak from experience when I say that tech and IT can be solitary, high-pressure industries. It’s a sad reality that burnout is all too often treated as standard operating procedure.
The 404 Stress Not Found meetups exist to offer a welcoming, judgement-free room where we can drop the professional facade, talk honestly about how we’re really doing, and pick up practical tools to look after our minds.
Whether you run a Managed Service Provider (MSP), write code, work in support, or simply care about wellbeing in our sector, you are very welcome to pull up a chair and join us.
Grab your free ticket now (registration is essential), come along for the incredible food and conversation, and let’s make space to talk. I hope to see you there on the 17th!
