Find the right 13 Plus Maths tutor

Live profiles let families compare current rates, qualifications, relevant levels, profile information and whether a tutor is accepting enquiries. The free introductory meeting is a conversation about goals, assessment, availability, lesson format and fit; it is not normally a full teaching lesson.

Share the destination school, year group, assessment, CE level if known, assessment date, main difficulties, learning needs, timetable and budget. A first paid lesson can then establish a baseline and priorities. Latimer’s current guidance also says tutors submit lesson reports covering the session, progress and next steps, although the exact format may vary.

“13 Plus” is an admissions umbrella rather than one official paper. Schools can use an earlier adaptive Pre-Test, ISEB Common Entrance in Year 8, CASE, their own written or computerised tests, scholarship assessments, interviews and school reports in different combinations.

The destination school’s current admissions page controls its stages, dates and required papers. ISEB information controls ISEB assessments only. There is also no single ISEB-wide or UK-wide pass mark: each receiving school decides how results are used and may publish its own expectations.

For the current ISEB Common Entrance specification, candidates take Foundation or Core. The specification treats Core as the usual expectation, while Foundation may be used where appropriate and agreed with the receiving senior school. Some Core candidates also take Additional Mathematics, and candidates sit mental arithmetic.

A simple scientific calculator is permitted on the calculator paper and Additional paper under the current regulations. Advanced functions such as graph plotting, automated algebra and stored formulae or notes are restricted. Mental arithmetic and CASE Mathematics are non-calculator. These rules do not automatically apply to school-written papers.

The dates below were current when this page was reviewed on 11 August 2026. They are ISEB sessions, not universal admissions dates. A destination school may set earlier registration, assessment, interview or scholarship deadlines.

ISEB’s current public registration pages do not yet show a future guardian-registration deadline for the Autumn 2026 or Spring 2027 CE sessions, so no deadline is stated here. For the Common Pre-Tests, the testing window is broad but each senior school sets its own deadline.

Current ISEB Mathematics aims cover far more than topic recall. They include fluency, investigative thinking, problem solving, reasoning, selecting appropriate methods, logical working, making connections and learning from mistakes. England’s Key Stage 3 programme provides similar supporting context through fluency, reasoning and problem solving, although individual UK schools and assessment types differ.

A useful diagnostic separates missing knowledge from weak fluency, poor method choice, calculator judgement, timing, accuracy or confidence. It should follow the actual paper rather than assume every KS3 topic is relevant. For example, the current ISEB table allows Pythagoras at Additional but not Core, while trigonometry is not examined at either level.

This is an example starting cycle to tailor after diagnosis, not a guaranteed programme. The right pace depends on the assessment type, deadline, baseline, independent practice, school workload and the pupil’s concentration.

With many months available, secure fundamentals and reasoning before heavy timed practice. With a few months remaining, combine targeted repair with mixed exam-style work and timed sections. In the final several weeks, prioritise recurring errors and assessment-specific technique rather than introducing large amounts of new content. There is no universal number of lessons required.

ISEB provides specimen materials and controls access to recent past papers. Parents and tutors cannot purchase a live paper until a year after the examination, and papers from Autumn 2022 onward follow the updated specification. Use authorised material only—never live, leaked or unofficial papers.

The most useful paper work is diagnostic. A tutor can use a suitable timed extract, classify the errors, reteach the underlying need, set manageable independent practice and then re-test. Constant full papers may consume material without fixing the reason marks are being lost.

Good school support and free resources may be enough when a pupil can identify and correct errors independently. Tutoring adds value where diagnosis, explanation, accountability or assessment-specific feedback is missing. Support should gradually build self-checking and independent method choice rather than dependence.

The right support depends on the stage and the pupil. A Year 5 or Year 6 learner facing an adaptive Pre-Test needs a different plan from a Year 8 pupil preparing for CE Core, a school-written paper or scholarship Mathematics. Some pupils need foundation repair; others need confidence, timing, assessment-specific challenge or greater independence.

Tutoring should not manufacture pressure. Some schools explicitly say particular stages do not need special preparation. Where support is useful, it should address a defined gap and increase the pupil’s ownership over time.

Strong 13+ Mathematics preparation can also support the transition into senior-school Maths. The current ISEB aims emphasise reasoning, choosing appropriate methods, logical working, connections between ideas, accuracy and learning from mistakes.

For pupils who grasp ideas quickly, Department for Education / GOV.UK guidance for England’s Key Stage 3 programme supports stretch through “rich and sophisticated problems” rather than simple acceleration into later content. The most useful long-term outcome is a learner who can select a method, explain the working, check the result and respond constructively to an error.