Two Years, Eighteen Students, One Hundred Percent%

Reflections on My Second Year of Tutoring

Looking back on this academic year, I'm genuinely astounded by how much Achieve English has grown. Across the year, I worked with 18 students on my books, and, excitingly, not just Year 11s this time. Year 8s, 9s and 10s joined me too, which says a lot about how far things have come.

Of those, 8 students stayed with me right through to their AQA English Language exam, and the results speak for themselves: 3 achieved Level 4, 1 a Level 5, 1 a Level 6, 1 a Level 7, and 2 achieved Level 8 — both just two marks off a Level 9. Every single student improved and progressed. A 100% success rate.

I couldn't be prouder. These grades open doors , the next steps in my students' education are now within reach. The word is already spreading, too: I've had a new student get in touch today, keen to work towards his Level 4 ahead of the November resit, having been recommended to me by someone I've worked with.

This year also brought an unexpected but valuable addition: marking AQA English GCSE Language papers. With sweeping changes to the exam board's specification, I wanted to understand them inside and out, and there's no better way to do that than marking 300 scripts firsthand. It's given me insight I couldn't have got any other way, and it's already shaping how I teach.

So, what does 2026–2027 hold? I'm not entirely sure yet ... but I already have five students on board, plus a few I've been tutoring over the summer. If this year is anything to go by, I can't wait to see where it goes 🚀😀⭐