Online one-to-one English language tuition

Find an ESL tutor for the learner's real goal

Find one-to-one help with the English you need for school, daily life, work or a named qualification. Start with a real task, then choose a tutor with relevant language-teaching experience.

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A useful English lesson connects a language point to something the learner wants to understand or say. The examples below show how a grammar correction can lead to a new question, and how to practise checking information in a conversation.

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How one-to-one tuition can help

Distinguishing school EAL, adult ESOL, communication and qualification goals
Comparing tutor expertise against the learner's age, setting and language profile
Turning speaking, listening, reading or writing priorities into a workable lesson plan

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6 tutor profiles selected

Read each profile for evidence that the tutor’s language-teaching background, learner experience and approach fit the brief. Use the current profile details when comparing practical arrangements.

Valentina Proycheva

English and TEFL Specialist

Maidstone

£20.00 per hourDBS checkediAccepting enquiries

English LanguageEnglish LiteratureTEFL: Teaching English as a Foreign Language

Over 5 years' of experience teaching English.
Currently studying Psychology at Arden University.
Qualified to teach English as a Foreign Language with her TEFL certificate.

Valentina Proycheva is a GCSE English tutor with TEFL certification, offering personalised, interactive lessons for learners at KS2, KS3 and GCSE level.

Send a quick enquiry from here and the Latimer Tuition team will pass it on to Valentina.

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Afshan Khanani

English Specialist

Milton Keynes, United Kingdom

£25.00 per hourDBS checkediAccepting enquiries

English LanguageEnglish LiteratureMathematicsTEFL: Teaching English as a Foreign Language

She holds over 6 years' of school teaching and tutoring experience.
Currently a Learning Advisor, and an SEN support worker for a UK secondary school.
Holds a Master of Business Administration in Marketing and Business Management.
Certified TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) tutor from Trinity College.
To progress towards her DipTESOL (Diploma in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages).
Currently teaching Mathematics, English language, and English Literature to KS2, and English as a Second Language to foreign students of all ages and all levels.

Afshan Khanani is an English tutor and TESOL-certified Learning Advisor with 6+ years’ experience, supporting SEN/EHCP learners. She offers online tutoring in KS2 English and Maths, KS3 English Literature, and EFL for all ages.

Send a quick enquiry from here and the Latimer Tuition team will pass it on to Afshan.

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Sophie Clark

Art, and English as a Foreign Language Specialist

London

£25.00 per hourDBS checkediAccepting enquiries

ArtArt and DesignFine ArtHistory of Art+1 more

Currently teaches Art, and English Language to students of all ages through personalised online lessons.
Holds a Bachelor of Arts in Fine Art, and a Diploma in Professional Art Studies from Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London.
Over 8 years' of experience working in the world of Art, including roles at major museums and galleries in London.
Holds a TEFL certificate in teaching English as a foreign language from the World TEFL Institute.
Has experience teaching at a language school in Spain and online.
Skilled in practical Art techniques including painting, collage, printmaking, and ceramics.

Sophie Clark is an Art tutor for GCSE, AS Level, A-Level and KS3 students, combining a Fine Art background with practical experience in painting, collage, printmaking and ceramics.

Send a quick enquiry from here and the Latimer Tuition team will pass it on to Sophie.

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Ana Ramirez Centeno

Qualified Spanish & TEFL Teacher

London, United Kingdom

£28.00 per hourDBS checkediAccepting enquiriesQualified teacher

SpanishTEFL: Teaching English as a Foreign Language

Currently teaching Spanish to KS3, GCSE, and A-Level students in UK Secondary Schools.
Experience with SEN students, providing both 1-1, and in-class Spanish teaching.
Works with private students on a One-2-One basis at all Spanish levels.
Ana nurtured students struggling to learn a foreign language and tailored teaching to enhance competency.

Ana is a qualified Spanish teacher with a PGCE in Modern Foreign Languages, supporting learners from KS1 to KS5 and adults through tailored, creative teaching.

Send a quick enquiry from here and the Latimer Tuition team will pass it on to Ana.

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Gayle Watson

English and TEFL Specialist

Stevenage

£28.00 per hourDBS checkediAccepting enquiries

English LanguageEnglish LiteratureEnglish skillsTEFL: Teaching English as a Foreign Language

Gayle has over 10 years' of tutoring experience.
Holds a Bachelor of Arts in English and Journalism.
In addition to English (as part of the UK curriculum), Gayle also assists with TEFL.

Gayle Watson is an English tutor and TEFL specialist with 10+ years’ experience, supporting 11+, 13+, KS2 and KS3. She offers online tutoring or face-to-face lessons with personalised plans, session reports and optional homework.

Send a quick enquiry from here and the Latimer Tuition team will pass it on to Gayle.

View Gayle’s profile

Darcy Ind

French and Spanish Specialist

Bucknell, United Kingdom

£30.00 per hourDBS checkediAccepting enquiries

FrenchSpanishTEFL: Teaching English as a Foreign Language

Holds a Bachelor of Arts in Modern Languages (French, Spanish and German) from the University of Sheffield.
Holds over 4 years' of online tutoring experience both online, and in the classroom.
Darcy designs all her lesson plans from scratch to suit the individual's needs and learning goals.
Offers tutoring to KS2/3, GCSE, and AS/A-Level cohorts.

Darcy Ind is a French tutor and Spanish tutor with a BA in Modern Languages (University of Sheffield) and 4 years’ experience; she offers online tutoring for KS2–3, GCSE and AS/A-Level with tailored lesson plans and session reports.

Send a quick enquiry from here and the Latimer Tuition team will pass it on to Darcy.

View Darcy’s profile

View more ESL tutor profiles Start my tutor search

Start with the learner, not the label

ESL is a broad label, not one course. In England, schools often use English as an additional language (EAL), while post-16 provision commonly uses English for speakers of other languages (ESOL). English as a foreign language (EFL) is another teaching term.

Tell the tutor where English is needed. Following a school explanation, writing a work update and preparing for an ESOL assessment involve different tasks. Include languages already used and previous learning; conversational confidence and written accuracy may develop at different rates.

Choose the English-learning context first

Choose the setting first so practice has a purpose. A formal word may be useful in a science lesson, a work email or an assessed ESOL task, but the surrounding language and expected response will differ.

School EAL: Connect English development to the pupil's age, classroom subjects, previous education and current school targets. Check whether the main barrier appears in spoken classroom language, reading, writing or a combination.
Adult or post-16 ESOL: Define the immediate setting and purpose, such as further study, daily communication, community participation or a named ESOL course, rather than treating adult English as a single level.
General communication: Choose situations the learner genuinely encounters. Speaking practice may include turn-taking and clarification, while listening work may focus on extracting the information needed to respond.
Workplace or academic English: Bring representative tasks and identify the audience, conventions and decisions involved. The tutor can then teach language through the emails, discussions, presentations or study skills that matter.
Named qualification: Confirm the awarding organisation, qualification title, component and current provider information before the tutor plans assessment-specific work. Do not substitute a different English route because its name sounds familiar.

Compare tutor fit through practical evidence

Look for language-teaching knowledge and experience with the learner’s age, setting and goal. CELTA, Trinity CertTESOL and a Level 5 TEFL Diploma are among common EFL credentials; ask what the tutor’s training covered and how it relates to this learner. A certificate alone does not establish school EAL or exam-specific expertise.

Relevant teaching experience
Ask about learners with a similar age, language background and goal. For a qualification, name the exact course and component.
A clear language explanation
Bring a short example of the difficulty. Ask how the tutor would explain the vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation or reading demand behind it.
Practice and feedback
Discuss what the learner would attempt independently after teaching and how the tutor would use that attempt to choose the next priority.

National Careers Service: EFL teaching and qualifications

A grammar example: ask about a daily routine

In this constructed beginner example, the learner writes “She work in a café.” For a regular activity, the present simple changes work to works with she: “She works in a café.”

Now ask a question about the same person. “Does she works in a café?” keeps the extra ending in the wrong place. With does, use the base form work: “Does she work in a café?” The short answer can be “Yes, she does.”

For a new task, change the verb and place: “He lives near the station.” Ask the learner to make the question before showing “Does he live near the station?” Then ask about their own routine using “Where do you work?” or another suitable question. The change checks whether they can use the pattern, not only repeat the corrected sentence.

Next step

University of Victoria: present simple questions and practice

A communication example: check the detail you heard

For a learner practising everyday interaction, try this invented message: “Your meeting is on Thursday at half past ten, in room fourteen.” Ask them to note the day, time and room. The information is Thursday, 10:30, room 14.

If the learner is unsure about the room, practise a focused check: “Did you say room fourteen?” Asking “Can you say everything again?” may also work, but checking the uncertain detail makes the problem clearer to the speaker.

Change the room or time for the next exchange and let the learner choose what to ask. Review whether they obtained the right information and used a clarification question when needed. This is a separate interaction goal from getting every grammar exercise right; select tasks that resemble the learner’s actual use of English.

Compare price and value without a package

Each tutor sets the hourly rate shown on their profile. Compare relevant experience and the proposed teaching alongside that rate, then agree lesson length, frequency and practical terms.

Latimer invoices standard lessons after they take place on a pay-as-you-go basis, without requiring a long-term lesson package. Leave time for practice and agree when to review whether further lessons are useful.

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Keep CEFR and qualifications in their proper roles

The CEFR uses levels and descriptors to discuss language ability, including understanding, expression and interaction. It is a framework, not one English course or exam. A learner may need different support across those activities.

For ESOL Skills for Life in England, bring the exact awarding organisation, qualification, level and component. Assessment arrangements can differ. Functional Skills English and GCSE English are different qualification routes, not interchangeable names for ESOL.

Next step

Ofqual: ESOL Skills for Life and CEFR alignment

For a child, ask about safeguarding arrangements

For tuition involving a child in England, ask about child protection, recruitment and DBS checks, online contact, complaints and support for additional needs. Consider the information together: one check does not establish overall suitability. Clarify who to contact with a concern before lessons begin.

Next step

DfE guidance for parents choosing tuition

Build on the learner's full language background

For a school learner using EAL, consider English proficiency alongside previous education and literacy or spoken language in other languages. A pupil may understand a scientific idea but need help expressing it in English; that calls for different teaching from learning the science itself.

Share current school support and helpful adjustments. Ask the tutor to keep the subject goal clear while adapting language, examples and pace. Request relevant specialist experience where the learning need requires it.

Next step

Bell Foundation: EAL assessment framework

Set up online lessons for active language practice

Latimer provides online-first one-to-one tuition. Microsoft Teams is the default platform; another option can be agreed with the tutor. In-person tuition needs a separate practical arrangement.

Check audio and decide how to share texts, written work and corrections. For speaking, allow time without a full written answer on screen; for writing, agree whether to compose live or bring an unassessed sample. Keep passwords and private information out of shared material.

Check the service details that matter

Use Latimer’s service pages for the matching process, common practical questions and safeguarding information. For any regulated ESOL goal, keep the tutor brief tied to the learner’s current awarding and provider materials.

Next step

Tell us what you want to use English for

Include the learner’s age group, setting, current difficulty and goal, plus relevant course details, preferred times and budget. Latimer’s matching request is free. Use the free introductory meeting to discuss teaching approach and arrangements; it is not normally a full teaching lesson.

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Support and clarity

Frequently asked questions

Straight answers to the questions people ask most often.

Should a school learner ask for EAL rather than ESL?

EAL is the usual school-context term in England, while ESL remains a familiar broad search label. Either can begin an enquiry, but the brief should explain the pupil’s age, subjects, previous education, home-language literacy or oracy, present English profile and current school targets.

How can a tutor establish a learner's starting point?

Use a short task that resembles the goal: a conversation, listening message, text or writing sample. Note what the learner can do alone and where help is needed. A broad level can orient the discussion, but it does not replace those specific observations.

Do CELTA, CertTESOL or TEFL qualifications matter?

They are among common EFL teaching qualifications and can provide useful evidence of training. Their relevance still depends on the learner’s age, setting and goal, so ask what a credential covered and how the tutor applies that learning to the actual work rather than treating one certificate as a universal requirement.

How often should ESL lessons happen?

There is no universal lesson timetable or fixed fluency deadline. Agree a rhythm around the learner’s personal objective, timescale, opportunities to use English, capacity for independent practice and evidence from recent work. Review the arrangement when progress, workload or the practical goal changes.

Are Latimer ESL lessons online or in person?

Latimer’s service is online-first and one-to-one. An in-person arrangement may be agreed when it is practical for the tutor and learner, but it is not guaranteed. Build the initial plan for effective online work unless both sides have confirmed a different arrangement.

Can a tutor help with an ESOL qualification?

A tutor can plan relevant preparation when the brief identifies the exact awarding organisation, qualification, level, component and current provider materials. Those details matter because assessment mode, task design, grading and resit arrangements can vary; ESOL Skills for Life should not be replaced silently with Functional Skills English or GCSE English.

Further information

Useful links and resources

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