Tutor Pages: “The John Lewis of the off-the-peg providers”

Good Schools Guide 2010

Published just last month, The Good Schools Guide has called The Tutor Pages “impressive” and  “a clear zealot for quality”. In fact, we are the only tutor directory recommended alongside tutoring agencies in their section on private tuition.

The Good Schools Guide also referred to us as “The John Lewis of the off-the-peg providers”. If you think about it, this is a pretty accurate assessment. The best private tuition agencies up and down the country will provide a “tailor-made” service for parents, matching the student’s needs carefully with what the agency perceives to be the best tutor for the job.

In contrast, The Tutor Pages provides a high quality “off-the-peg” service. Parents and students are able to contact tutors directly for free, thus avoiding the hefty commission and introductory fees which agencies usually charge. With The Tutor Pages, both parties benefit by entering into a payment arrangement without the middle-man.

The consequence of this way of working is that the onus is on parents and students to assess the suitability of the tutor, and we provide substantial advice on how to do this. Since we are a subscription-only tutor directory, we are able to make this task easier by maintaining high standards on the site. All tutors registered with us have up-to-date profiles. They are obliged to provide substantial information about themselves, and this includes at least one article related to a subject they teach.

If a tutor hasn’t responded to an enquiry, we also try to follow it up on behalf of the student, in case the message hasn’t got through, or in case the tutor is no longer able to take on students.

So, what is the consequence of our commitment to quality?

We’ve found that we’re able to cut through the often impersonal nature of the internet, and put real students in touch with real tutors. It’s very rare for unwanted requests to come through our site (we check every one), and both tutors and students report having had a good experience of the site. Here are some tutors reporting on their experience:

According to my experience, genuine students come on this site. (Nasira, Leeds)

The students are reliable and the reputation of the website ensures that there is an element of trust between student and tutor even prior to the first lesson. (Basit, Harrow)

So far since joining, all the students I have taught have been top high quality serious learners. 10/10 for The Tutor Pages. (Helen, West Drayton)

The students that I’ve helped through this contact have all been very pleasant, positive and grateful for any help they have received. (Jan, Colchester)