A Parent's Guide to Private Tuition in the UK

Private tuition is one possible response to a defined learning need. A sound decision has seven stages: understand the problem, check alternatives, choose a format, evaluate the tutor and safety arrangements, agree a goal, review evidence and decide whether to continue, change or stop.

The seven-stage roadmap

Stage	Parent question	Useful output
1. Understand	What exactly is difficult, and where?	Examples from learner, work and school
2. Check options	Is private tuition the right kind of support?	School, self-study, ordinary tutor or specialist route
3. Choose format	Online, in person, one-to-one or group?	A reasoned fit decision, not a universal winner
4. Evaluate	Can this tutor safely teach this specific job?	Evidence, boundaries and clear terms
5. Agree	What should change and how will we check?	Baseline, target, plan, evidence and review date
6. Review	What can the learner now do?	Comparable evidence and learner voice
7. Decide	Continue, adjust, connect, change or stop?	A documented next step

1. Define the need before the tutor

“Improve maths” is not yet a brief. Gather:

the learner's view of the task and support they want;
two or three recent work samples or feedback points;
the teacher's view where possible;
subject, school stage, awarding organisation/tier if relevant;
what has already been tried;
whether the issue is subject knowledge, homework organisation, exam response or something wider.

Use Does my child need a tutor? to avoid counting generic “warning signs”. A subject tutor should not diagnose SEND/ALN, a learning difference or mental-health concern.

2. Check alternatives and boundaries

Ask what school support, teacher time, clubs, intervention, official resources or targeted self-study are actually available. Sometimes the smallest suitable step is clarification or a structured practice plan. Sometimes a specialist or school process is more appropriate than ordinary tuition.

EEF's one-to-one tuition summary concerns education settings and reports average evidence, not a promise for privately purchased lessons. Its useful implementation questions include targeting identified needs, linking with classroom learning and monitoring progress.

3. Choose the format from constraints

Compare travel/access, technology, learner attention, subject tools, privacy/safety setup, continuity and scheduling. The online-versus-in-person matrix supports a trial-and-review decision without claiming one format produces better results for every child.

4. Evaluate teaching and safety together

Ask candidates to explain:

relevant subject, stage and board experience;
how they will inspect current understanding;
how a session moves from explanation to independent attempt;
how feedback and progress will be recorded;
their boundaries, safeguarding policy and concern-reporting route;
identity, references and relevant qualifications/checks;
communication with the learner and parent/carer;
platform/recording/privacy arrangements;
fees, cancellation, materials, complaints and exit terms.

For England, the DfE parent guide for out-of-school settings includes tuition and lists safety arrangements parents should expect. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have different disclosure and policy systems; do not describe every UK check as DBS.

Use the full online tutor scorecard even if the eventual format is in person: teaching fit and evidence still matter.

5. Agree a reviewable goal

Record:

Baseline task and help used:
Specific capability to improve:
Tutor/learner actions:
Comparable evidence:
Review date:
Limits and referral triggers:

The tutoring-goal agreement makes responsibilities and evidence visible.

6. Review more than attendance

Look for early evidence such as clearer explanations, fewer repeated errors, better use of feedback and reduced prompting. Later evidence may include comparable school or assessment work. Ask the learner whether they feel able to try, question and say when confused.

The DfE tutoring review studied school programmes after the pandemic, not private consumer tuition. Its observation that stronger provision aligned with curriculum and prior knowledge supports useful questions, not a guaranteed effect.

7. Make an explicit decision

Continue: baseline, change and next step are clear.
Adjust: goal, rhythm or format needs a bounded change.
Connect: school or specialist input is needed.
Change tutor: teaching fit, reliability or communication remains poor.
Stop: goal is met, tuition is no longer the right support, or there is a safety/quality concern.

Use when to change or stop tuition rather than letting sessions renew without review.

Use a seven-stage tuition decision

1. Define the problem

Name the course, current task, evidence and earliest important break. “Improve maths” is not yet a tuition brief.

2. Check who owns the answer

Ask school about current teaching, board/tier, feedback, access and available support. Tuition should not guess school requirements.

3. Consider the smallest suitable support

Options may include:

clarified school instruction or teacher help;
a better home-study system;
short-term subject tutoring;
ongoing tutoring for a defined programme;
specialist assessment or support through the relevant route;
no external tuition yet, with a review point.

4. Choose a format

Compare online/in-person, individual/group, scheduling, tools, accessibility, continuity and learner preference.

5. Select safely and for teaching fit

Verify identity, experience relevant to the actual course, safeguarding arrangements, communication, data/recording, references/checks where applicable, practical terms and how the tutor teaches.

6. Agree a baseline and reviewable goal

Use a real learner attempt, define the support level and state what comparable evidence will count.

7. Review and exit

Decide in advance what would lead to continue, adapt, connect with school, change tutor or stop.

Worked family decision

A Year 10 learner's recent algebra work shows that class examples can be followed, but fresh questions stall at rearranging equations.

The family:

asks the maths teacher whether the prerequisite diagnosis fits current work;
collects two unaided examples and feedback;
defines the goal as selecting and applying the rearrangement step on fresh problems;
compares tutors who know the current board/tier and can demonstrate fading prompts;
agrees a short initial review period;
records baseline, fresh attempts and support used;
reviews whether school work shows increasing independence.

They do not buy an open-ended block based only on a broad grade target.

Understand safeguarding limits

For England, current DfE guidance for parents using out-of-school settings and current DBS guidance can inform questions. A DBS certificate is not a general guarantee of safety or teaching quality. Scotland uses the PVG scheme and Northern Ireland uses AccessNI in relevant contexts; arrangements and eligibility differ.

Ask:

who communicates with the child and through which account;
whether/how sessions are recorded and data stored;
how identity, references and claimed qualifications were checked;
what policy and reporting route applies;
what happens if an online session becomes private or technology fails;
how the child can stop or report discomfort.

Listen to the learner before and after sessions.

Copyable tuition brief

Learner/course/board/tier:
Current evidence and support used:
Specific problem to solve:
School input:
Alternative support considered:
Tutor/format requirements:
Safeguarding and communication checks:
Baseline task:
Independent evidence sought:
Review and exit date:

Sources

Department for Education — Using tuition and out-of-school settings (2026-07-23)
Education Endowment Foundation — One to one tuition (2026-07-23)
Department for Education — Independent review of tutoring, phase 2 (2026-07-23)

Sources

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