Our impact since 2020
Education Fuelled by the Community
We are a charity, so we put what we raise back into tutoring.
That’s the idea behind every number on this page: a young person’s education should never be limited by what they can afford, who they know, or where they’re from, and it should be delivered safely, fairly, and transparently, because in this sector, none of that is guaranteed by price.
4,430+
Hours of tutoring and mentoring delivered since 2020, including our earlier community and library programmes
£25/hr
Our standard price an hour
£5/hr
Where our published rule starts, for families with a child in Year 7 or above
Most of our tutors are university students who sat the same exams recently. Our Community Education Fund is paid for by donations, grants and the extra some families choose to pay.
The problem
A Two-Tier Education System is Taking Hold
Research consistently shows that paying for private tutoring on top of a child’s standard schooling is growing increasingly popular (Cullinane & Montacute, 2023). But its use is creating a two-tier system, with wealthier families able to pay to secure their children advantages that poorer families simply cannot afford.
For almost two decades, research has highlighted the growth of private tutoring, access to which is heavily skewed towards the wealthy. New data reveals educational inequalities in England have reached their worst levels in over a decade. Disadvantaged pupils are now 19.2 months behind their peers by age 16 (Education Policy Institute, 2024).
30%
Pupils who ever had private tutoring
46%
London pupils who accessed private tutoring
13%
Lowest income pupils accessing tutoring
£36
Average GCSE private tutoring per hour (Tutorful, 2026)
While 32% of pupils in the top income quarter receive private tutoring, only 13% in the bottom quarter can access it (Cullinane & Montacute, 2023). This isn’t just about individual advantage. It’s about whether we accept a system where educational opportunity depends on family wealth.
Our solution
Our Community Model
Our founders saw friends priced out of tutoring. NSEMM charges £25 an hour and helps families who need it with the cost.
- A published rule: families with a child in Year 7 or above pay from £5 to £25 an hour. We always ask for evidence, and families in serious difficulty can appeal.
- Paid for by donations, grants and families who choose to pay more
- University student tutors who understand recent exam pressures firsthand
- Surplus income reinvested into community programmes and support
- Our accounts are filed with the Charity Commission each year
Where your money goes
See how costs add up for families seeking tutoring support
What a family paysPaid by the Community Education Fund, from donations and grants
Private GCSE tutoring is usually £25 to £50 an hour. NSEMM’s standard price is £25 an hour. With the Fund, a family with a child in Year 7 or above pays from £5 an hour.
How contribution works
One published rule
The rule sets the price from what a household can afford after housing. A member of our team checks the evidence and confirms every price.
Families in serious difficulty can appeal, and we decide each appeal case by case. Professionals outside schools can refer a young person in Year 7 or above for 15 funded hours a school year; a funded place is subject to the referral being accepted and to what the Fund can offer at the time.
A published rule uses your answers about your household to set the price, from £5 to £25 an hour, based on what your household can afford after housing. A member of our team checks your evidence and confirms the price.
How we actually decide this
Read the full page on how we decide this.
Fund lessons directly
A One-off or Regular Gift
About £15 pays for a one-hour lesson. That is what a lesson costs us in tutor pay, with holiday pay.
What families say
Voices from our community
Our tutor made an extraordinary difference to my son’s life at school, particularly in Business Studies. From the outset, they brought a warm, engaging, and highly professional approach to tutoring. They didn’t just help him understand the material, they reignited his confidence and interest in subjects he had previously struggled with.
She has been brilliant with my daughter’s maths revision for 11+ exam. She is very patient and always organised. She quickly picked up on the areas my daughter finds challenging and sorted everything out perfectly.
Our tutor is patient and kind and always manages to make lessons engaging. My son enjoys his lessons and looks forward to learning. I would highly recommend him as a tutor.
Our tutor makes learning Business Studies enjoyable and engaging. Her explanations are clear and easy to understand, and she was always patient with questions. My daughter feels much more confident now.
First lesson went really well. My son got a lot from the lesson and said he now feels confident with Chemistry questions. He’s a great tutor and lessons are easy to understand.
We’ve had several sessions and I’m really pleased. She is calm, methodical and curious. She builds confidence and checks understanding. I think she is going to really help my son.
Our tutor has been an excellent help. My son has really enjoyed his sessions and it’s made a marked improvement in his learning. He explains things very well and helped with exam techniques.
My daughter always feels confident about aspects of her lessons at school that she did not understand, before her tutoring sessions. She looks forward to her lessons and enjoys her learning here.
Having a tutor who actually gets what it’s like to be stressed about exams made such a difference. They didn’t just help with the work, they helped me believe I could actually do this.
My tutor is calm and methodical and always checks that I understand before moving on. The sessions have really built my confidence, and I finally feel like Maths is starting to make sense.
My tutor explains everything so clearly and always makes sure I understand before moving on, and never makes me feel embarrassed if I get something wrong. The lessons are genuinely enjoyable and I have gained so much confidence.
Our tutor has been working with my daughter for a few months and has done such a fantastic job that she has been moved up to the top set for Science. I cannot recommend the support enough.
Education should open doors, not close them
Research shows that while 32% of pupils from the wealthiest families access private tutoring, only 13% from the poorest families can afford it (Cullinane & Montacute, 2023). This isn’t inevitable. Education should open doors, not close them. We exist so that young people whose families cannot pay for extra help can still get one-to-one tutoring and mentoring, careers guidance and support alongside school, to reach the goals they set for themselves.
Sources
- Cullinane, C. & Montacute, R. (2023). Tutoring – The New Landscape: Recent trends in private and school-based tutoring. The Sutton Trust. Available at: https://www.suttontrust.com/our-research/tutoring-2023-the-new-landscape/
- Education Policy Institute. (2024). Annual Report 2024: Disadvantage. Available at: https://epi.org.uk/publications/annual-report-2024-disadvantage/
- National Audit Office. (2023). Education recovery in schools in England. Available at: https://www.nao.org.uk/reports/education-recovery-in-schools-in-england/
- NSEMM. (2024). Impact and Financial Report 2024. Available at: nsemm.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/docs/impact-report-2024.pdf
- Tutorful. (2026). Average GCSE tutoring rates listed on tutorful.co.uk, checked 22/10/2026.
- Department for Work and Pensions. (2024). Households Below Average Income: FYE 1995 to FYE 2023. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/households-below-average-income-for-financial-years-ending-1995-to-2023