Choosing a tutor for a child with SEND comes down to five checks: how sessions are paced and structured, how the tutor works with the school's SEN support plan or EHC plan and the SENCO, what a tutor does and does not do, how progress is reviewed, and what safeguarding checks sit behind the sessions. Tuition runs alongside the support a school already provides and any specialist or health input, which makes the school's plan the reference point for most questions. A trial session then shows how the child responds to the tutor's pace.
What does a tutor do, and what can't they do?
A tutor gives a child more time with one adult on the skills that school support has identified, teaching one-to-one and pacing the work around how the child learns. Their part is regular, well-paced teaching that carries the strategies in an SEN support plan or EHC plan into weekly practice, so the same strategies are practised outside the classroom. The tuition sits beside the school's provision and any specialist or health input.
A tutor cannot diagnose a need, assess for access arrangements, request exam arrangements or set statutory provision. A parent can ask any prospective tutor to describe where the role ends, and a clear answer that names these four limits is a reasonable sign of a tutor who understands the work. Questions about those areas can be raised with the school.
How should sessions be paced and structured?
Sessions should be paced and structured around how the individual child learns, with skills taught in shorter steps and given more practice and review. SEN tuition concentrates on the skills a child's needs make harder in a busy classroom, so the tutor should be able to name which skills are being worked on and link them to the school's plan. These questions make the answer concrete.
- How does a session open, and how are the steps within it sequenced?
- Where do practice and review sit in each session?
- What does the tutor change when a step needs more time?
- Which skills are being worked on, and where do they appear in the school's plan?
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Master TutorI'm Head of Computer Science at a secondary school in Cornwall, where I lead staff CPD, after seven years in technology consulting. I teach GCSE and A-Level Computer Science, and I'm known for explaining the algorithms pupils find hardest in plain terms, little and often.
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Master TutorI have a First in Economics from York and an MSc from UCL, and have tutored for seven years, including SEN students. I teach maths, economics, physics, chemistry and biology to GCSE, A-Level, IB and AP. I build strong foundations so advanced questions feel intuitive.
Enquire about this tutorHow should a tutor, the school and a parent work together?
The tutor works from the school's SEN support plan or EHC plan, and the school's SENCO is the first contact for support, able to advise on classroom and homework support. A parent can ask the SENCO which skills the school has identified, then pass those to the tutor with the plan so that weekly sessions practise the same strategies.
Sharing is the parent's decision, and a tutor can only carry a strategy into practice once they know what the school and any specialists are using. A short written note from the tutor after a block of sessions, shared with the school where the parent agrees, keeps everyone working from the same picture. Useful information to share includes the following.
- The SEN support plan or EHC plan, or the parts of it the parent is happy to share
- The skills the school has identified and the strategies already in use
- The child's strengths and interests, since support rests on a full understanding of strengths as well as needs
- Any specialist or health input, and any equipment or software the child uses
- The child's own views on what helps
- Changes since the last review
How is progress reviewed?
Progress is reviewed through the same four-part cycle that SEN support in school follows: assess, plan, do and review. A tutor can assess how a skill is going, plan the next steps, deliver them in sessions and review the result with the parent before the cycle begins again. A parent can ask how often the tutor reviews, what the review looks at and how the findings will reach the family, then compare the answers with the school's own reviews of the plan.
Should sessions be online or in person in central London?
Sessions are online for families across the UK or in person in central London, and in-person tuition is available only in central London. A family within reach of central London can compare the two formats by asking how the tutor runs each, what the child needs at their end for online sessions, and how the travel fits around the school day for in-person ones. A trial session in the chosen format shows which suits the child.
What should a parent ask about safeguarding, DBS and references?
A parent can sensibly ask any provider which safeguarding checks it carries out, whether a DBS check is in place for the tutor, and how references are taken up. Asking for the answers in writing gives the family something to refer back to. The same questions apply to online and in-person sessions, and a parent can also ask who to contact with a concern and how the provider responds to one.
What should a trial session show, and how can a parent tell the match is working?
A trial session shows whether the child is comfortable with the tutor's pace and structure and whether the tutor works from the strategies in the school's plan. Afterwards a parent can ask the child what they worked on and how it felt, and ask the tutor what they noticed. Both accounts together give a first view of whether the match fits.
The signs of a working match show up across the first few sessions: the sessions follow the plan, the child can say what they practised, and the tutor's feedback names specific skills and next steps. A gap in any of these is worth raising with the tutor and the provider early, using the school's plan and the review notes as the reference.
Where can a parent read more about dyslexia, SEN and home education tuition?
The dyslexia, SEN and home education service pages each cover one-to-one tuition for that situation, and the SEN tutors page is the route to enquire for a child with special educational needs. A parent who enquires receives tutor recommendations for the child's age, subjects and needs, which gives a shortlist to take through the questions above. Bringing the school's plan and the answers to those questions into the conversation keeps the comparison specific.
Related guides
- Autism tutors
- ADHD tutors
- EOTAS tutors
- SEN tutors
- Dyslexia tutors
- Home education tutors
- Catch-up tutoring
- SEN support plans in England
- How to get an EHCP
- Dyslexia tutoring
- Study skills and executive function
- EHCP-funded tuition
- EOTAS tutoring
- DBS checks and safeguarding for private tutors
- How to brief a tutor before the first lesson
SEN tutoring with Taylor Tuition
Families who come to us alongside SEN support at school, an EHC plan or an access arrangements application usually want one-to-one tuition that fits around the support the school already gives. More than half of our tutors hold Qualified Teacher Status and around three in five hold a master's degree or doctorate, and the pool includes former heads of department, exam-board examiners and teachers from independent and boarding schools.
Sessions run online for families across the UK and internationally, and in person in central London. Fees start from £50 per 50-minute session and depend on tutor level and subject. There is no registration fee. Every tutor who works with children holds an enhanced DBS check and families receive progress reports after sessions.
Read more about our SEN tutoring, or send an enquiry and we will come back with tutor recommendations.
Frequently asked questions
- Which needs does the SEND Code of Practice describe?
- The Code names communication and interaction, cognition and learning, social, emotional and mental health, and sensory and/or physical needs as its four broad areas. Dyslexia, dyscalculia and dyspraxia sit within specific learning difficulties, and the social, emotional and mental health area names anxiety, depression, attention deficit disorder and ADHD. Children often have needs that cut across areas and change over time, so identification exists to work out what action the school needs to take, and a tutor's approach should follow the child's current strengths and needs.
- Does the school stay responsible if my child has one-to-one teaching?
- Yes, the class or subject teacher remains responsible for the pupil even where interventions involve group or one-to-one teaching away from the class. Parents should be fully aware of the planned support, and schools may involve specialists at any point. A parent who wants a tutor's input considered can ask the SENCO how outside input fits into the plan and who will review it.
- How can tuition be reinforced at home?
- Plans should, where appropriate, seek parental involvement to reinforce progress at home, and schools talk to parents regularly and include the pupil's views. A parent can ask the school and the tutor which strategies are worth practising between sessions, so that home practice matches the plan, and can ask the child what they would like included.
- What evidence should sit behind the support a child receives?
- The Code says school support should be selected to meet identified outcomes, based on reliable evidence of effectiveness and provided by staff with sufficient skills and knowledge. It also calls for well-evidenced interventions targeted at areas of difficulty and, where necessary, specialist equipment or software. A parent can put the same questions to a tutor: what approach is used, what outcome it targets and what equipment or software it involves.
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