SEN & Dyslexia Tutor.

Dyslexia affects reading fluency, spelling, and often writing — but not intelligence or verbal reasoning. Children with dyslexia benefit from structured, cumulative phonics programmes (such as Orton-Gillingham, Toe by Toe, or Sound Discovery), multi-sensory methods that combine visual, auditory, and kinaesthetic learning, and plenty of repetition without shame. A specialist dyslexia tutor can make progress that classroom teaching often can't, because they work one-to-one at the child's pace with a systematic plan. Overlearning — practising material beyond the point where the child seems to 'have it' — is essential for retention.

ADHD affects attention, working memory, task initiation, and self-regulation — not comprehension or ability. A good ADHD tutor uses shorter, more varied session structures, frequent movement breaks, clear visual cues, and concrete goals for each session. They also teach executive function strategies: planning, breaking tasks into chunks, managing time, and checking work. For older students, this often matters as much as the actual subject content — a child with ADHD who can't plan an essay will underperform regardless of how much English they know.

Autistic children are hugely diverse, so blanket advice is unhelpful. That said, most autistic learners benefit from predictable session structures, clear and literal instructions, advance notice of changes, and tutors who understand sensory sensitivities and don't mistake autistic communication styles (limited eye contact, special interests, direct questions) for rudeness or disengagement. Many autistic children are strong at detail, pattern recognition, and areas of deep interest — a good tutor works with these strengths rather than trying to make the child neurotypical.

If your child has an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP), the provision specified in Section F is legally binding on the school. A tutor working alongside an EHCP can focus on the specific goals listed, coordinating with the school's SENCO where appropriate. Even without an EHCP, most schools have a SENCO who can share your child's learning profile, strategies that work in class, and targets from their support plan. A tutor who engages with this information — rather than starting from zero — will make faster progress.

Dyscalculia affects number sense — estimating quantities, remembering number facts, telling the time, handling money — in the same way dyslexia affects print. It's less widely recognised than dyslexia, so many children reach secondary school labelled 'just bad at maths' when the underlying difficulty was never identified. Specialist maths tutoring for dyscalculia uses concrete-pictorial-abstract progression: physical objects first (counters, Cuisenaire rods, number lines), then pictures, then symbols, never rushing the jump to abstract notation. Short daily retrieval practice beats long weekly grinds, and games-based number work rebuilds the willingness to engage that repeated classroom failure destroys. Children with dyscalculia can absolutely pass GCSE maths — but the route there is different, and pushing the standard route harder tends to make things worse.

Students with learning differences are often entitled to access arrangements in GCSEs and A-Levels: 25% extra time, a reader or computer reader, a scribe, rest breaks, a word processor, or a smaller exam room. These are granted under JCQ rules and must reflect the student's 'normal way of working' — which means the school applies for them, based on assessment evidence and what the student already uses day-to-day in class. A tutor can't grant access arrangements, but an experienced SEN tutor will flag when a child looks eligible, help you have the right conversation with the school's SENCO, and — crucially — train the child to actually use their arrangements well. Many students with extra time never learn how to use it, and a reader is wasted if the student has never practised dictating their thinking. Raise this with school well before the exam year starts: applications take time and need evidence behind them.

Subject knowledge is the entry ticket, not the qualification. What separates a genuine SEN specialist: experience with your child's specific profile (dyslexia experience doesn't automatically transfer to autism or ADHD); training in structured, evidence-informed approaches — for dyslexia, look for specialist SpLD qualifications such as a Level 5 or Level 7 diploma, or AMBDA accreditation through the British Dyslexia Association; patience with non-linear progress, because regression weeks happen and a good tutor plans for them; willingness to talk to your child's school or SENCO so everyone pulls in the same direction; and honest reporting — sessions that are 'going great' for months without evidence of progress are a warning sign, not a comfort. When we match SEN families, we match on the specific need first, subject second. Every tutor is DBS-checked before they reach you.

Online sessions suit many SEN learners surprisingly well: home is a controlled sensory environment, there's no transition to manage, shared on-screen whiteboards suit visual learners, and sessions are easier to keep short and frequent — which beats one long weekly session for most ADHD and younger learners. Recordings also let parents see the methods being used. But it isn't right for every child. Some younger children, and some learners who need physical manipulatives or struggle with screen-based attention, do better face-to-face. Be honest about your child's screen tolerance, and expect a good tutor to suggest a trial session and adjust. There is no virtue in forcing a format that fights the child's profile — the format is there to serve the learning, not the other way round.

Key focus areas