HOW TO HIRE · LESSONS & TUTORING

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

No register lists Spanish tutors. Here is the vetting to ask for, how to check they fit your goal, and the terms to agree.

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  • One score from Google, Trustpilot and Locufy reviews

THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a Spanish tutor in five steps

  1. Say what the Spanish is forAn exam and its board, a long trip, work with Spanish-speaking clients, or conversation. A Spanish tutor plans each differently.
  2. See the criminal record checkFor Spanish lessons with a child, ask for an enhanced DBS check in England and Wales, PVG membership in Scotland or AccessNI in Northern Ireland. A Spanish tutor applies and shows you.
  3. Ask what they have taught, and to whomWhich levels, how many Spanish students now, and what those students went on to do. Knowing Spanish is not the same as teaching it.
  4. Book a single lesson firstJudge a Spanish tutor on one Spanish lesson before paying for a block or an intensive course.
  5. Agree the terms in writingThe course dates, the notice to stop, and books on top — in writing before the first payment. A message on Locufy counts.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

None of the four UK nations licenses or registers Spanish tutors; Spanish can be taught by anyone who chooses to, online or at home. Being a native speaker is not a teaching qualification; training and results are what you ask to see.

Ask for the qualification and where it was gained, plus a reference from a current learner.

Vetting for lessons with a child

Regulated activity in England and Wales starts when someone teaches or instructs a child on more than three days in a 30-day spell, or overnight; a Spanish tutor teaching every week, or intensively before a trip passes that easily, so the enhanced DBS check with the children's barred list is the one to ask for. Since 1 September 2026, being supervised by someone else no longer takes a Spanish tutor out of that rule. Scotland's system is the PVG scheme — mygov.scot lists tutors and instructors engaged by a parent among the roles to check — and Northern Ireland's is an enhanced AccessNI check with the children's barred list, which a self-employed Spanish tutor gets through an Umbrella Body.

Ask a Spanish tutor to show you the certificate before the first Spanish lesson, and write down its date — there is no official expiry. PVG proof in Scotland; the AccessNI certificate from their nidirect account in Northern Ireland. gov.uk →

Teaching qualification and level

No licence or register applies to teaching Spanish, and being a native speaker is not a teaching qualification. Look for a degree in the language, QTS if they teach school pupils, or a recognised language-teaching certificate — and students at your level now.

Ask a Spanish tutor how they trained and which exams or goals their current students have.

Your rights when paying for a block or an intensive course

Paying for a block or an intensive course makes it a consumer contract: the Consumer Rights Act 2015 says a Spanish tutor must use reasonable care and skill. Agree Spanish lessons online, by phone or in your home and you have 14 days to change your mind under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 — less whatever teaching you asked to have before then. Agree in advance what happens about an intensive course that started late and ended early.

Ask for the course dates, the notice to stop, and books on top in writing, and keep the message, before a block or an intensive course changes hands. legislation.gov.uk →

VAT

Spanish lessons are exempt from VAT when a Spanish tutor teaches personally as a sole trader or partner, Spanish being ordinarily taught in schools and universities; a language school company or its employees charge the standard rate. A tutor working alone under the £90,000 registration threshold does not charge VAT and has no VAT number to give.

Ask whether you pay the Spanish tutor directly or a language school; an individual 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 Spanish lessons with a child that is the level to see — PVG membership in Scotland, AccessNI in Northern Ireland.

“Have you taught Spanish for my exam or goal recently?”

A good answer: A specific answer — GCSE or A level and the board, National 5 or Higher in Scotland, or the work or travel situation you need. A Spanish tutor who prepares exam pupils knows the speaking and writing tasks.

“Which Spanish do you teach — Spain or Latin America?”

A good answer: An honest answer; exams accept both, but business learners may need one.

“How much of each lesson is speaking?”

A good answer: Most of it, with the exam's speaking tasks practised in format for GCSE pupils.

“How do you teach grammar?”

A good answer: In context and in small steps, with written practice marked between lessons.

“Can you help with the A level research project?”

A good answer: Guidance on sources and structure, with the work staying the student's.

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

A good answer: Something specific — for example 24 or 48 hours' notice — and the same rule applied to the Spanish tutor's own cancellations.

Booking by the hour

  • The rate per hour, and whether evenings or weekends cost more
  • The minimum booking — one hour is usual — and what happens if a lesson finishes early
  • What each side brings: the course book, a headset for online lessons, the tutor's audio and reading
  • The aim agreed before the first hour: a GCSE oral, a DELE certificate, travel or business Spanish
  • ID checked and the rating, and vetting for a learner under 18

Walk away if

  • No vetting shown, though the Spanish tutor would see your child every week, or intensively before a trip
  • A Spanish tutor who promises fluency by the holiday
  • They teach every learner from the same Spanish course book, whatever the goal
  • No refund rule for a block or an intensive course, or one that changes after you pay
LOW
£30
TYPICAL
£39
HIGH
£70

What a Spanish tutor costs: £30–£70 per hour

Spanish tutors charge by the hour; exam preparation and business Spanish cost more than conversation practice. Spanish Lessons 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

Spanish 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. Level checkA short conversation and written task to place the learner.
  2. PlanExam, holiday, work or conversation sets the topics.
  3. Each lessonSpeaking first, then grammar and vocabulary used straight away.
  4. Between lessonsVocabulary and a short task, checked at the next Spanish lesson.
  5. ReviewA recorded conversation or timed task compared with the first.

Role-play
A GCSE speaking task acting out a situation in Spanish.
Independent research project
The A level Spanish task presented and discussed in the speaking exam.
Subjunctive
A verb mood used for wishes and doubts; a common stumbling block.
National 5 and Higher Spanish
Scotland's SQA courses.
CEFR level
The A1 to C2 scale used to describe language ability.
Latin American Spanish
The varieties spoken across the Americas, with some vocabulary and pronunciation differences.

AFTER

When the job is done

File what you were givenHold on to the course plan and the invoices; together with the agreed terms they settle most disagreements.
Test the progressEvery half term, have a short conversation in Spanish on a topic from your lessons, or sit a timed past-paper task — fluency and accuracy should both show movement.
The guarantee, honestlyNo Spanish tutor can promise fluency by the holiday. What you are owed is the Spanish lessons agreed, prepared and on time.
Leave the reviewReview the Spanish tutor once the block ends; if it went wrong, the make-it-right step gives them the chance to fix it first.

STEP 1Tell the Spanish tutor, in writingName the Spanish lessons that fell short and the remedy you want; with Spanish tutors, it is often an intensive course that started late and ended early. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 you can ask a Spanish tutor to repeat what fell short, or for part of the money back if that cannot be done.
STEP 2Use the make-it-right step on LocufyLeave under four stars and you are asked whether to send it to the Spanish tutor first; we follow it through, then the review is published.
STEP 3Get help from Trading StandardsNo regulator covers Spanish 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 Spanish 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 course plan and the invoices will be your evidence.

Hiring a Spanish tutor: questions people ask

Not by default. Regular teaching of a child is regulated activity in England and Wales, though, so the enhanced DBS check with the barred list is the one to see; Scotland uses PVG membership and Northern Ireland an enhanced AccessNI check.

None is required by law in any part of the UK; anyone can teach Spanish. A language degree or teaching certificate shows training; ask for students they teach Spanish to now.

£30–£70 an hour, with £39 typical; business Spanish costs most. For what moves the figure, see the Spanish lessons price guide; your town in the search box above shows Spanish tutors near you.

Usually not. Spanish is taught in schools, so a Spanish tutor working as a sole trader or partner is exempt; a language school company or its employed teachers are standard-rated and add VAT once over £90,000.

To get by on holiday, a few months of weekly lessons; to work in Spanish, years of steady practice.

Online works well for most adults and older pupils; younger children often concentrate better in person.

MORE GUIDES

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Spanish tutors near you

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