HOW TO HIRE · HEALTH & WELLBEING

How to hire a career coach in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

Nothing in UK law puts career coaches on a register. Here are the checks, what to ask and what a package should include.

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THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a career coach in five steps

  1. Know that no register appliesAsk about background and accreditation, and check it.
  2. Bring your CVAnd a short list of roles you are considering.
  3. Ask what the package includesSessions, CV work, interview practice.
  4. Get the terms in writingTotal price and cancellation.
  5. For a teenager, ask for the vetting checkDBS, PVG or AccessNI.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

No licence or statutory register applies to career coaches in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, and the title is not protected — anyone may use it. Accreditation by a coaching body is voluntary.

Ask the career coach which training and accreditation they hold and check it with the body that awarded it.

Criminal record check for under-18s

A career coach working with under-18s on more than three days out of any thirty, or overnight, is in regulated activity with children: enhanced DBS with the children's barred list in England and Wales, PVG membership in Scotland, enhanced AccessNI in Northern Ireland.

For a teenager's sessions, ask to see the certificate or PVG proof and its date. gov.uk →

Insurance

No register sets an insurance rule for a career coach; professional indemnity insurance is the cover that pays if their advice causes you a loss.

Ask the career coach whether they carry professional indemnity insurance and with whom.

Trader status and the 14-day cancellation right

A career coach in business is a trader under the Consumer Rights Act 2015. A coaching programme agreed online or by phone can be cancelled within 14 days under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013; if you asked for sessions to start in that time, you pay for what you had.

Get the career coach's programme, total price and cancellation terms in writing before paying.

VAT

Career coaching is standard-rated at 20%; the private-tuition exemption is for subjects taught in schools and universities, which coaching is not. A coach whose VAT taxable turnover is over £90,000 must charge VAT and show it as a separate line; one below the threshold charges none.

Ask for the VAT number if the invoice adds VAT, and whether the package price already includes it. gov.uk →

“What is your background in careers or recruitment?”

A good answer: Real experience of hiring or careers guidance in a career coach's field.

“Which accreditation do you hold as a career coach?”

A good answer: A named body you can check.

“What does the career coaching package include?”

A good answer: Sessions, CV, LinkedIn and interview practice — each priced.

“Do you know my sector?”

A good answer: Honest about where their knowledge stops.

“How will we measure progress with a career coach?”

A good answer: Applications, interviews, a decision made.

“For my teenager: which check does a career coach like you hold?”

A good answer: DBS, PVG or AccessNI, dated.

“What is your cancellation rule?”

A good answer: Written down.

Getting the quote right

  • Who actually attends the sessions — the career coach you met or an associate, employed or subcontracted
  • Session or package price
  • CV writing and LinkedIn work priced
  • Psychometric reports priced
  • The VAT number, and VAT at 20% as its own line — coaching is outside the private-tuition exemption, and a coach under £90,000 charges none
  • Cancellation and refund terms
  • Online or in person

Walk away if

  • Guarantees a job
  • Charges for 'access' to vacancies
  • No written terms
  • Pushes expensive add-ons
  • No vetting for work with a teenager
  • Cannot show any careers background
LOW
£50
TYPICAL
£100
HIGH
£200

What a career coach costs: £50–£200 per session

Career coaches charge per session or for a package that may include CV and interview work. Career Coach price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

Career coaches near you, with the badges that matter shown

ID checked, trader status and one score from every review — on the card, before you message anyone. Nearest first. No account needed to look.

Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. Career reviewExperience, strengths and goals.
  2. Coaching sessionsPlan the search or change.
  3. Practical toolsValues, skills and target roles.
  4. ApplicationsCV and interview preparation.
  5. Action planNext steps and follow-up.

Psychometric test
A questionnaire about strengths or preferences, often extra.
Transferable skills
Skills that carry across roles.
Mock interview
Interview practice.
Accreditation
Voluntary recognition by a coaching body.
Regulated activity
Frequent work with children needing a check.
Action plan
Agreed next steps.

AFTER

When the job is done

Keep the documentsCV, cover letters and the action plan.
Track applicationsWhat worked.
Ask about a follow-upBefore interviews or offers.
Review the bookingTell the next family or client how the career coach did. Something to fix first? The make-it-right step gives them the chance before your review goes live.

STEP 1Start with a message to the career coachSet out the facts and the outcome you want, and keep a copy. Reasonable care and skill is implied into every service contract by section 49 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015; if the coaching fell short, the career coach must redo it or reduce the bill under section 54.
STEP 2Ask Locufy to help put it rightWhen a booked career coach gets under four stars, you choose whether they see the problem first, and we follow it up with them. Then you review.
STEP 3Trading Standards, through the helplineNo regulator oversees a career coach, so a career coach who will not engage can be referred to Trading Standards through Citizens Advice on 0808 223 1133 in England and Wales (0808 223 1144 in Welsh), Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 800 9060, or Consumerline on 0300 123 6262 in Northern Ireland.
STEP 4Take it to small claimsA claim against a career coach for money back can go to court without a solicitor — £10,000 is the limit in England and Wales, £5,000 in Scotland (simple procedure) and £5,000 in Northern Ireland.

Hiring a career coach: questions people ask

No. No licence or register applies in any UK nation.

For regular sessions: enhanced DBS in England and Wales, PVG in Scotland, enhanced AccessNI in Northern Ireland.

No. Be wary of any guarantee, or of a fee for 'access' to vacancies; a coach sells guidance and practice, not outcomes.

£50 to £200 a session, typically around £100. CV and interview work added to a package raises the price. Our career coach price guide explains the range; searching your town above shows career coaches who cover it.

At 20% if the coach is VAT-registered.

Tell the coach in writing; one in business owes reasonable care and skill under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in health & wellbeing

How to hire: Executive CoachHow to hire: Life CoachHow to hire: Mindfulness CoachHow to hire: Wellness CoachHow to hire: CounsellorHow to hire: Personal TrainerHow to hire: CBT TherapistHow to hire: PsychotherapistAll 701 hiring guides →

Career coaches near you

Career coaches in LondonCareer coaches in ManchesterCareer coaches in BirminghamCareer coaches in GlasgowCareer coaches in BelfastAll career coaches on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. gov.uk (DBS) — regulated activity with children
  2. gov.uk — change to the definition of regulated activity with children from 1 September 2026
  3. mygov.scot — who needs PVG scheme membership (personal employers)
  4. nidirect — AccessNI checks for the self-employed and personal employees
  5. gov.uk — Education and vocational training (VAT Notice 701/30)
  6. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 30 — cancellation period
  7. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 36 — services started in the cancellation period
  8. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 54 — consumer's rights for services
  9. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  10. VAT rates — VAT rates for goods and services: standard rate 20% on most goods and services
  11. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register