HOW TO HIRE · LESSONS & TUTORING

How to hire a GCSE tutor in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

No register lists GCSE tutors. Here is the vetting to ask for, how to check they know your child's board, and the terms to agree.

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THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a GCSE tutor in five steps

  1. Name the subjects, boards and tiersWhich GCSEs, which exam board for each, foundation or higher where it applies, and the exam dates. A GCSE tutor teaches to a specification.
  2. Ask for the vetting for your nationDBS in England and Wales, PVG in Scotland, AccessNI in Northern Ireland — a GCSE tutor teaching a child every week through Years 10 and 11 should show you theirs.
  3. Check the teaching, not just the knowledgeA GCSE tutor should describe how a typical GCSE lesson runs and how they find out what a student is missing.
  4. Book a single lesson firstJudge a GCSE tutor on one GCSE lesson before paying for a block of lessons for each subject.
  5. Get the terms in a messageBefore you pay for a block of lessons for each subject: which subjects each block covers, the notice to stop, and the Easter-holiday arrangement. A message on Locufy is enough.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

None of the four UK nations licenses or registers GCSE tutors; no qualification is needed to tutor GCSE at home or online, subject by subject. Subject knowledge, teaching record and vetting are things you ask to see, not entries you can search.

Ask how long they have taught GCSE, what training they had, and for someone who can vouch for them.

Criminal record check for under-18s

For a GCSE tutor teaching your child every week through Years 10 and 11, the England and Wales rule is simple: more than three days of teaching in any 30, or one overnight, makes it regulated activity, and the right check is an enhanced DBS with the children's barred list. From 1 September 2026, supervision no longer removes a role from regulated activity, so a GCSE tutor working under another teacher still counts. Living in Scotland, ask for PVG scheme membership: mygov.scot includes tutors and instructors a parent engages for their child. In Northern Ireland, ask for an enhanced AccessNI check, which a GCSE tutor working alone obtains via an Umbrella Body.

Before the first GCSE lesson, see the certificate itself (a parent cannot apply for one on a self-employed GCSE tutor's behalf) and check the date; in Scotland, PVG proof; in Northern Ireland, the AccessNI certificate shared online. gov.uk →

Qualified teacher status and recent teaching

QTS appears on the Teaching Regulation Agency's record in England; that service is open to schools and other employers, not to families. A degree in the subject, QTS or experience marking GCSE papers all count; what counts most is recent teaching of your child's specification.

If a GCSE tutor says they are a teacher, ask where, and which specifications they have taught since last September. gov.uk →

Your rights when paying for a block of lessons for each subject

Like any trader, a GCSE tutor owes you reasonable care and skill under the Consumer Rights Act 2015. If the booking with a GCSE tutor is made online or at your home, the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 allow 14 days to cancel; teaching you asked to begin in that time is paid for. The usual dispute is a spring-term block that never reached the timed papers.

Get which subjects each block covers, the notice to stop, and the Easter-holiday arrangement in writing — a Locufy message counts — before you pay for a block of lessons for each subject. legislation.gov.uk →

VAT

GCSE tuition is exempt when a GCSE tutor teaches personally as a sole trader or partner, since GCSE subjects are ordinarily taught in schools; tuition sold by a company or an agency's employed tutors is standard-rated. Below the £90,000 registration threshold an individual tutor charges no VAT in any case, and has no VAT number to give.

Ask whether you pay the GCSE tutor directly or a tuition company; a self-employed tutor under £90,000 adds no VAT. gov.uk →

“Is your criminal record check the enhanced one, with the children's barred list?”

A good answer: Yes, and dated. For GCSE lessons with a child that is the level to see — PVG membership in Scotland, AccessNI in Northern Ireland.

“Which boards and specifications have you taught for in the last two years?”

A good answer: Named boards per subject. In Wales and Northern Ireland the GCSEs differ from England's in most subjects, and a GCSE tutor should know which version your child sits.

“How do you split time between content and exam technique?”

A good answer: Content first while there are gaps; exam technique and timed papers once topics are secure — more of it from the spring before the exams.

“How will you report to me?”

A good answer: A short written note every few weeks: what was covered, what is secure, what to practise.

“Can you help with a resit?”

A good answer: A plan built from the previous result and the paper that lost the most marks, with the resit date in view.

“Do you teach small groups as well as one-to-one?”

A good answer: If so, how many in the group and how lessons are pitched when students are at different grades.

“What happens if you cancel a GCSE lesson, or we do?”

A good answer: Notice periods that fit a block of lessons for each subject, written down, with the GCSE tutor's own cancellations made up.

Booking by the hour

  • The rate per hour, and any higher rate for evenings in the run-up to the summer exams
  • The minimum booking — one hour a week is usual — and what happens if the lesson ends early
  • What the student brings (the specification, mock results, class books) and what the GCSE tutor brings
  • The subjects, tiers and boards agreed before the first hour, with the topics to start on
  • ID checked and the rating, and the vetting certificate for your nation

Walk away if

  • No criminal record certificate for regular GCSE lessons with your child, or "it isn't needed for GCSE"
  • Promised grades: no honest GCSE tutor guarantees a pass in every subject
  • They teach from one board's papers whatever board your child sits
  • A large upfront payment beyond a block of lessons for each subject, with nothing in writing
LOW
£25
TYPICAL
£30
HIGH
£50

What a GCSE tutor costs: £25–£50 per hour

GCSE tutors charge by the hour, usually weekly through Years 10 and 11; maths and the sciences often cost a little more. GCSE Tutor 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

GCSE tutors 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, or book by the hour.

  1. Start from the evidenceThe last report, mock papers and the specification — the GCSE tutor reads them before planning.
  2. Gaps firstThe topics that cost the most marks are taught first, not the ones the tutor likes most.
  3. Exam questions earlyEach topic ends with real exam questions from the right board, marked to the mark scheme.
  4. Mocks and timed papersFrom the spring term, full papers under time, then the marks lost are worked through.
  5. Final weeksShort revision sessions, the formula and quotation lists, and a plan for each paper's timing.

Specification
The board's syllabus for a GCSE; England, Wales and Northern Ireland versions differ in most subjects.
Tier
Foundation or higher entry in subjects such as maths and the sciences; it caps the grade available.
Grades 9 to 1
The GCSE grading scale in England; Northern Ireland and Wales use their own scales.
Mark scheme
The examiner's guide to how marks are awarded on a paper.
Non-examined assessment
Coursework or practical work marked during the course rather than in the exam hall.
Resit
Retaking a GCSE, common for English and maths after Year 11.

AFTER

When the job is done

Keep the paperworkHold on to the invoices per subject and the notes on each specification; together with the agreed terms they settle most disagreements.
Test the progressCompare a timed paper at half term with your child's mock result. The marks lost on each question type should be shrinking.
Know what is promisedNobody honest promises a pass in every subject. Hold the GCSE tutor to the GCSE lessons agreed, taught with care.
Leave the reviewOnly booked GCSE lessons can be reviewed on Locufy; if something went wrong, the make-it-right step sends it to the GCSE tutor first.

STEP 1Write to the GCSE tutor firstSay what went wrong — for example a spring-term block that never reached the timed papers — and what you want: GCSE lessons made up, repeated or refunded. If the GCSE lessons were not given with reasonable care and skill, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 lets you ask for them again or for a price reduction.
STEP 2Use the make-it-right step on LocufyLeave under four stars and you are asked whether to send it to the GCSE tutor first; we follow it through, then the review is published.
STEP 3Get help from Trading StandardsNo regulator covers GCSE tutors, so a consumer complaint goes to Trading Standards through your nation's helpline: Citizens Advice on 0808 223 1133 in England and Wales, Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 800 9060, or Consumerline on 0300 123 6262 in Northern Ireland.
STEP 4Money still in disputeSmall claims handle a dispute with a GCSE tutor without a solicitor: up to £10,000 in England and Wales (small claims track), £5,000 in Scotland (simple procedure) and £5,000 in Northern Ireland. The invoices per subject and the notes on each specification will be your evidence.

Hiring a GCSE tutor: questions people ask

Not automatically. Teaching your child every week through Years 10 and 11 counts as regulated activity in England and Wales once it passes three days in 30, which a barred person may not do, so the check worth seeing is an enhanced DBS with the children's barred list — or PVG in Scotland, AccessNI in Northern Ireland.

Not one of the four UK nations keeps a register of people who teach GCSE. Ask which GCSE specifications they have taught recently, and for references from families they teach now.

£25–£50 an hour, with £30 typical; examiners and in-person tutoring in the South East sit at the top. The GCSE tutor price guide explains the spread, and the search at the top finds GCSE tutors near you.

Usually not. GCSE subjects are taught in schools, so a GCSE tutor working as a sole trader or partner is exempt; an agency or tuition company using employed tutors is standard-rated and adds VAT once over £90,000.

No. Ofqual regulates GCSEs in England, Qualifications Wales in Wales and CCEA in Northern Ireland, and in most subjects the qualifications now differ. Scotland does not use GCSEs: pupils sit National 5 courses.

For a grade gap, at the start of Year 10 or Year 11. For technique alone, the spring before the exams is often enough.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in lessons & tutoring

How to hire: A-Level TutorHow to hire: Maths TutorHow to hire: English TutorHow to hire: Science TutorHow to hire: Physics TutorHow to hire: Chemistry TutorHow to hire: Biology TutorHow to hire: Primary School TutorAll 701 hiring guides →

GCSE tutors near you

GCSE tutors in LondonGCSE tutors in ManchesterGCSE tutors in BirminghamGCSE tutors in GlasgowGCSE tutors in BelfastAll gcse tutors 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 — check a teacher's record (England)
  6. gov.uk — Education and vocational training (VAT Notice 701/30)
  7. gov.uk — statement from the qualification regulators on GCSEs, AS and A levels in England, Wales and Northern Ireland
  8. gov.scot — school leaver attainment in National Qualifications (SQA)
  9. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  10. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 30 — cancellation period
  11. Citizens Advice — deciding whether to make a small claim (England and Wales)
  12. Scottish Courts and Tribunals — guide to simple procedure
  13. nidirect — small claims process (Northern Ireland)
  14. Education and vocational training (VAT Notice 701/30) — 6.1 The treatment of private tuition
  15. GOV.UK — VAT rates
  16. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register