A startup inspiring kids to code with DIY computer kits has been backed by top VCs

Technology Will Save Us (TWSU), a technology startup focused on learning, has raised £1.2 million from high profile investors and several venture capital funds.

The London tech company has a range of learning resources that aim to help children understand technology. The resources include tech-based do-it-yourself gadget kits and online educational materials.

SaatchInvest, which has invested in fast-growing London startups like Citymapper and Evrythng, led the funding round, which also saw participation from European seed-stage VC fund Backed. Business Insider understands that a well-known British retail mogul also invested, as did the man who invented the Sainsbury's Nectar Card, Stuart Marks.

Based in Hackney, East London, TWSU was created in 2012 by the wife and husband team of Bethany Koby and Daniel Hirschmann. The pair believe that society has a flawed relationship with technology and they want to change this through education.

The tech-based DIY kits that TWSU produces are designed to encourage children to make, play, code, and invent with technology. They include a DIY speaker kit, a DIY synth kit and a DIY gamer kit.

Using everyday life as inspiration, the kits tap into hobbies and passions, such as music, gardening, cycling, and gaming. Kits are priced from £15 and targeted at children aged 5+. So far, over 50,000 kits have been sold.

"Having taught alongside our developing careers, we were both aware of the crisis in technology education," said Koby, cofounder and CEO at Technology Will Save Us. "While kids are very much consumers of technology, they typically find computing complex and scary. By authentically merging the physical world of making with digital programming tools, we are presenting complex skills in a unique and highly accessible way."

The company also designed the BBC micro:bit, a pocket sized tech tool that will be given to a million 11-year-olds in February 2016.

The company said it will use the fundraising to expand its product range and build on existing retail partnerships such as John Lewis, Urban Outfitters, The Conran Shop, and the MoMA Design Store in New York.

Leo Castellanos, investment director at SaatchInvest, said: "TWSU's long term proposition is compelling: to bridge the physical and virtual education worlds engaging children, students their families and teachers. Needless to say the market opportunity is absolutely huge."