Are you patient, empathetic and adaptable?
Why not become a SEND, SEN or SEMH Children’s Tutor and support children who genuinely need you?
Are you someone who measures success one smile at a time?
Do you have the fizz, the fun and the belief that therapeutic support can change a young person’s life?
Can you build positive, trusting relationships with children who have been let down, written off or left waiting for too long?
If that sounds like you, keep reading.
1:1 Tutors Needed Across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire
We’re not looking for worksheet warriors.
We’re looking for 1:1 Tutors who actually like children.
We have opportunities across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, including Beeston, Bulwell, Mansfield, East Leake, Arnold, Worksop, Hucknall, West Bridgford, Carlton, Kirkby-in-Ashfield and surrounding areas.
Some of these children have been out of education for months. Not because they can’t learn, but because the system hasn’t worked for them.
They’ve been waiting for the right support, the right relationship and the right adult who doesn’t disappear after a term.
That’s where you come in.
We have immediate starts and September starts, with both part-time and full-time opportunities available. Typical working hours are 09:00–15:00, Monday to Friday, giving you school-friendly hours without being stuck in a traditional classroom.
What Makes This Role Different
If your idea of tutoring is turning up with a stack of worksheets and a target grade, this probably isn’t for you.
You will not be delivering endless worksheets or constantly pushing a child to achieve grades they don’t currently care about.
Your role is about building a relationship first and helping the child engage with learning in a way that works for them.
You’ll plan fun and engaging sessions, engage with the child as a human being rather than a data point, inspire rather than intimidate and meet them where they are rather than where a spreadsheet says they should be.
This could mean taking them to a local park, farm or forest, going for a walk and having the conversations that actually matter, or using games, humour, movement and creativity to open the door to learning.
You could be planning meaningful activities such as baking, sewing, crafts, projects and life skills, or taking part in fully risk-assessed trips to approved venues such as Planet Bounce where young people can move, laugh and feel like a kid again.
You’ll also work alongside other support workers and professionals around the child, helping to create a joined-up approach to their support.
You’re not there to squeeze them into a system that already failed them.
You’re there to adapt to the child.
This is genuinely child-focused work. Their interests. Their pace. Their needs. Their voice.
You build the relationship first. The learning comes after.
Progress isn’t always dramatic.
Sometimes progress is a day with no meltdown.
Sometimes it’s a young person actually getting in the car.
Sometimes it’s simply a small, reluctant smile that wasn’t there last week.
That’s the stuff that matters here.
What This Role Involves Day-to-Day
This is a community-based role, not a static classroom position.
You will provide consistent 1:1 support to young people who are currently disengaged from education and their community.
You’ll work with children who have special educational needs or who experience SEMH difficulties and may struggle to regulate their emotions.
Some children may require 2:1 or 3:1 support.
You’ll support learning in flexible, creative and practical ways tailored to each young person, helping them re-engage with their local community through structured and planned activities.
You’ll act as a positive, stable role model and trusted adult who doesn’t disappear at the first sign of challenge.
You’ll also promote emotional wellbeing, resilience, confidence and social development.
Transport and routine are a big part of the role.
You must feel confident picking a child or young person up from their home, supporting them throughout the day and taking them back home safely afterwards.
For many of these young people, that simple and predictable routine is where trust starts to rebuild. The same adult at the door, at the same time, in the same car can make a huge difference.
You will need a full UK driving licence, access to a reliable vehicle and business car insurance suitable for transporting children and young people.
You’ll also need a positive, can-do attitude and confidence working independently.
How the Timetable Works
Full-time and part-time opportunities are available.
Most tutors will initially start on a part-time timetable for a range of reasons. This isn’t because there aren’t enough hours. It’s because we take the time to carefully match you with the right children, in the right areas and at the right times.
To begin with, you’ll start on a part-time timetable while we safely build up your caseload.
Some children only manage half days, while others may prefer just a couple of days a week.
Because of this, your rota will change over time as new children are added and existing children increase their hours.
The key point is that everything is built around the needs of the child, not the convenience of a spreadsheet.
If you’re looking for full-time hours, you will work with at least two children, and usually more, once your timetable is fully built.
Your hours grow as we gradually and safely put the right matches in place, both for you and for the young people you support.
You Don’t Have to Come From One Path
If you’re waiting for permission because your CV doesn’t look “education enough”, this is it.
You might have a Psychology degree, experience as a Social Worker, experience working as a Children’s Residential Support Worker, or a Nursery Nurse or Early Years background.
You might come from youth work or mentoring, classroom support such as TA, LSA, AP or PRU settings, sports coaching, behaviour support, pastoral roles, social care or wider support work.
You could even have experience as a Swim Teacher.
Or perhaps none of the above applies, but you’ve spent time working with children, young people or vulnerable people and you know how to talk to them like they’re human.
We don’t care what your last job title was.
We care whether you turn up with a smile, don’t scare easily when a child doesn’t warm to you straight away and can keep showing up when things get loud, messy or emotionally heavy.
If you’ve ever thought, “I just want a job where I can actually help someone,” this could be that job.
What We’re Looking For
We’re looking for people with a genuine passion for supporting children and young people, strong communication and relationship-building skills, patience, empathy and proper emotional resilience.
You’ll need to be confident working independently and using your own initiative, as well as being able to adapt your approach for different personalities, moods and needs.
Experience with challenging behaviour, SEND or additional needs is very useful, but it isn’t essential if you have the right attitude and approach.
A full UK driving licence and access to a reliable vehicle are essential for this role.
You will also need business car insurance suitable for transporting children and young people.
Why This Role Matters
These young people are not “hard to reach”.
They’re just tired of adults who give up on them.
Across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, every area has its own story. Some good, some messy.
The constant in all of it is that one adult who decides to stick around and be the difference.
If you see potential where other people see “problems”, believe in therapeutic, relationship-led support rather than punishment and detention, and are happy to measure success in small steps, soft smiles and slow but real change, then this could be some of the most meaningful work you’ll ever do.
You won’t fix the whole world.
But you might just change it for one child.
And that’s a good day’s work.
If you’re ready to make a genuine difference to the life of a child or young person, we’d love to hear from you
Salary description
£20.00 - £22.50 per hour