Plus, a warm welcome to our new interim CEO and trustees in our latest Spring newsletter.
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Words from Jen,
CEO of Action Tutoring
Welcome to our spring newsletter.
I am incredibly proud of the momentum Action Tutoring has built this season. From welcoming our brilliant new trustees, Nick Brook and Richard Mann, to celebrating our Year 6 pupils closing the attainment gap in reading, the hard work of our community continues to yield vital results.
However, the need for our work remains as urgent as ever. Recent research from The Sutton Trust highlights a widening gap in access to tutoring. It reinforces why our mission to provide high-quality small-group tuition must be accessible to all, not just those who can afford it.
A personal note and a warm welcome to our Interim CEO
I'm preparing to step away shortly for my maternity leave, but am reassured to be handing over to Sarah Pearson as our interim CEO. Sarah brings 15 years of senior leadership experience from across education and social justice charities, and I am excited about the fresh perspective she will bring as we continue to drive our mission forward.
Within this newsletter, you can read more about our recent successes, including a wonderful school visit from our ambassador, Maro Itoje, our plans to evolve, and how you can get involved.
Thank you for the care and energy you give to our mission. I look forward to re-connecting with you all on my return.
With warmest thanks,
Jen Fox
CEO, Action Tutoring
Introducing our interim CEO
We are pleased that Sarah Pearson is leading the team as our Interim CEO while Jen Fox is on maternity leave.
With 15 years of senior leadership experience across education and social justice charities, Sarah is dedicated to helping drive our mission forward.
Welcoming our new trustees
We are delighted to welcome two new Trustees to our Board.
Nick Brook, CEO of Futures for All and former Headteacher, joins us with extensive school leadership experience. He is joined by serial tech entrepreneur Richard Mann (the creator of the popular maths game Nerdle) who joins as our AI Trustee to help us explore how technology can further support our mission.
Powering potential: Out and about with Maro Itoje
We are delighted to share news of an inspiring visit from England and Saracens rugby captain, Maro Itoje. Maro recently visited St Paul’s Way Trust Primary School and The Clara Grant Primary School in Tower Hamlets to see, first-hand, tutoring sessions delivered through a partnership between Action Tutoring and The Pearl Fund.
Through this partnership, The Pearl Fund is supporting targeted tutoring programmes that enable over 30 pupils to receive small-group support in maths and English. This work is helping to ensure that young people facing disadvantage have access to the academic tools and confidence they need to succeed.
During the visit, Maro heard directly from pupils about the impact of weekly sessions and met with volunteer tutors delivering the programme. The collaboration reflects a shared commitment to widening access to educational opportunity and supporting young people to fulfil their potential.
We look forward to continuing to build this partnership and reaching more pupils in the months ahead.
We published our 2024-25 impact report
We’re proud to share our 2024–25 impact report. Headlines include:
Our Year 6 pupils not only narrowed but closed the attainment gap in reading, reaching national standards at the same rate as their non-disadvantaged peers nationally.
Defying the odds at GCSE: our pupils were 13% more likely to pass GCSE maths and 10% more likely to pass English than disadvantaged peers nationally.
We were recognised as the “School Partnership Provider of the Year” at the National Tutoring Awards 2025.
Tutoring is a proven solution to close the attainment gap and impacts more than just grades; with 8.9/10 teachers confirming that Action Tutoring has an overall positive impact on their pupils.
An update on our gold-standard evaluation
We are officially in the home stretch! Our Year 10 and 11 tutoring, part of our flagship Randomised Controlled Trial with the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF), is entering its final stages. What’s coming up:
Year 7 launch: our Year 7 maths programmes that are part of the study kicked off on 9th March, with the rest following shortly after the Easter break.
Capturing feedback: Our partners at the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) are currently gathering insights from teachers and schools to help us understand our impact. They're turning their attention to Year 11s to hear about their experiences.
Measuring success: After Easter, Year 10 pupils will complete assessments to track their progress. For our Year 11s, they'll be gearing up to take their maths GCSE which is one of the indicators that is used to measure the impact of our programme in the study.
At the beginning of February, we celebrated Student Volunteering Week! This tutor spotlight focuses on two brilliant tutors who balance tutoring alongside their university studies. To read more volunteer stories, click here.
The positive impact of tutoring on wellbeing
Natasha, an Open University student, started tutoring to share her love for English literature and creative writing.
For Natasha, tutoring became an unexpected part of her recovery journey after long periods of illness. She found that the routine and sense of purpose helped build her confidence and reduced feelings of isolation. "It reminds me that having a disability doesn't limit me," Natasha shared.
Balancing 12 programmes alongside university
Ionela is an Economics student completing a placement year with us. Ionela’s dedication is truly inspiring, as she signed up to tutor on 12 different maths programmes each week!
Driven by a desire to narrow the attainment gap, she has found that tutoring is valuable opportunity to develop her own communication, organisational, and leadership skills. Ionela proves that anyone can make a meaningful difference while gaining transferable skills for their own future: "You don’t need to be an expert to help; just one hour a week provides a truly rewarding sense of purpose."
The AI revolution: why equity must drive the future of tutoring
This autumn, we're launching an ambitious AI tutoring pilot to help bridge the attainment gap. While our existing model has a proven, life-changing impact, the scale of the attainment gap requires us to think bigger to achieve our mission.
There are currently 2.2 million pupils in receipt of Free School Meals in the UK today, their futures are limited simply due to the circumstances they were born into.
We have seen sparks of opportunity in AI tutoring that we want to discover. That's why we're launching an AI tutoring pilot in a small number of secondary schools to explore how this technology could help us support thousands more young people. This pilot is an addition to our work, not a replacement; our commitment to our volunteer community remains steadfast, as AI can never replicate the unique inspiration and mentorship our tutors provide.
Our commitment to sustainability at Action Tutoring
As an education charity dedicated to the future of young people, we are committed to sustainability. Our cross-departmental Sustainability Working Group meets regularly throughout the academic year to discuss Action Tutoring’s contribution.
The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have provided a bedrock for these discussions. We are proud to say Action Tutoring directly contributes to four of the UN SDGs: quality education, decent work and economic growth, reduced inequalities, and sustainable cities and communities.
To help us move forward, we recently completed our first carbon baseline assessment with the support of Heart of the City. This insight is helping us develop a carbon action plan, which includes being mindful of the digital landscape. By understanding our impact today, we can better protect the world our pupils will inherit tomorrow.
We attended the National Pupil Premium Conference
At the end of February, Emma and Alice from our Programme team attended the National Pupil Premium Conference in Birmingham. It was a fantastic opportunity to speak with school leaders from across the country, including several of our existing partner schools.
Emma and Alice delivered a workshop on selecting the right external interventions to support pupils facing disadvantage, focusing on aligning support with the revised Ofsted framework. Alongside sharing successful case studies, they were joined by a long-standing partner school who acted as a brilliant advocate for our approach.
Our thoughts on the National Year of Reading
While we welcome the 'National Year of Reading' campaign, we are calling for an explicit focus on those who stand to gain the most. Reading enjoyment is a stronger predictor of a child’s success than family income, yet over 1 in 10 pupils facing disadvantage do not own a single book. To truly close the attainment gap, we must place those facing the greatest barriers at the heart of this national initiative.
Our response to the Schools White Paper
We recently shared our response to the government’s ‘Every Child Achieving and Thriving’ white paper. We support the commitment to halving the attainment gap. However, we're calling for sustainable, ring-fenced investment to ensure tutoring becomes a permanent engine of social mobility.
!["[My tutor] helps me when I'm stuck, listens fully to what I'm stuck on and makes sure I understand what he means." - Year 11 pupil](https://i10.createsend1.com/ei/t/43/178/AD7/213657/csfinal/Newsletter37-6b4038512fd9dc3c.png)
Put a spring in your step with a fundraising race
With longer and brighter days upon us, there has never been a better time to lace up your trainers and challenge yourself for a great cause. Why not sign up to a fundraising race with Action Tutoring!
We currently have exclusive spots available in sold-out, iconic races including the Hackney Half.
Each race offers accessible participation for wheelchair users, disabled participants and those requiring assisted runners.
Keen to support in another way? Talk to us about your own fundraising ideas, explore other options in our fundraising pack, or how about donating today, or setting up a monthly gift as an easy way to give.
We’re looking for Local Champions
We’re excited to announce the launch of our Local Champions scheme: a dedicated funding initiative for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) who want to make a tangible impact where they live and work.
By becoming a Local Champion, an SME supports children and young people within their local community, fostering a deep sense of connection and corporate social responsibility. This is more than a donation alone; it’s about local leaders investing in the future talent pipeline within their community.
How you can help: Do you know an SME - perhaps a supplier, a local storefront, or a partner - that prides itself on its local roots? Or have someone within your personal network who works for an SME and wants to make a real difference to young lives? Connect them with our Corporate Partnerships Manager, Mollie, at mollie.vessey@actiontutoring.org.uk for more information on how they can get involved.
Help us spread the word to more schools and tutors
We're always looking for more people to join our mission. By recommending Action Tutoring to your friends, family, or colleagues, you help us reach more pupils who need support.
If you know someone who would make a great tutor, please encourage them to apply.
We want to support more of the 2.2 million pupils facing disadvantage across the country. If you have a contact at a state school, please recommend Action Tutoring. Your introduction enables us to partner with schools to help more pupils unlock their potential.
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Thank you for your ongoing support of our mission and the pupils we work with.
Best wishes,
The Action Tutoring team
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