Tutor Trust Post-16 Tutoring Pilot

Tutor Trust recently participated in a pilot study funded by the Education Endowment Foundation, which explored the impact of tutoring on post-16 learners resitting their GCSEs. The study produced encouraging results, demonstrating that tutoring can significantly enhance both academic attainment and learners’ attitudes towards education. It also highlighted key lessons around effective implementation, particularly the importance of strong partnerships with colleges to boost engagement and maximise impact.

Published: 24/06/2026

Time to read: 5 minutes

We are delighted to share the findings from our pilot assessing our post-16 tutoring programme for learners resitting their GCSE exams. While there is still more to learn as we continue to develop the programme and implement it into college environments, we are encouraged by the positive results achieved so far. The pilot was commissioned by the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) and independently evaluated by the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER).

The national picture

Achieving at least a Grade 4 in a young person’s maths and English GCSE is a critical gateway to employment, further education, and apprenticeships. Without this qualification, young people face significantly reduced opportunities and long-term disadvantage.

Each year, thousands of learners who do not achieve a Grade 4 at age 16 are required to resit these subjects in further education settings. However, outcomes remain poor. In 2023/24, only 20.9% of students passed their English GCSE resit and 17.1% passed maths, highlighting a systemic gap in effective support. The need to support these learners is only growing. Last year saw an all-time high number of pupils resitting their GCSEs, with 23% of all GCSEs sat last year being post-16 pupils.

The pilot

We know that tutoring has a meaningful impact on a young person’s attainment, confidence and enjoyment in learning. Tutor Trust has taken part in two randomised control trials (RCT’s) with the EEF, which demonstrate the positive impact tutoring can make. This forms part of a large body of evidence demonstrating the benefits of 1:1 and small group tutoring on those under the age of 16. However, evidence remains limited on the best approach and interventions to supporting learners in post-16 settings.

To address this, we have developed a GCSE Resit Tutoring Programme, designed to provide high-quality 1:1 tutoring to post-16 learners. We piloted this in the 2024/25 academic with 165 learners across 20 colleges across Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and Merseyside. Whilst this evaluation was not an RCT, it allowed us to test the concept and develop our offer in response to the findings.

Learners received tutoring in English or Maths for a minimum of 12 hours to help them prepare for their GCSE resit exam. Tutors were trained to not only provide academic support, but also use coaching strategies that focus on relationships, confidence, and motivation building.

Findings

Although there were some challenges implementing the programme across colleges, we were pleased to find that for those that took part in the pilot, the GCSE pass rate was higher than national average. Overall, over a quarter (26%) of the 117 learners for whom GCSE grades were received achieved a grade 4 or higher.

One subject leader at a partner college spoke about the tutoring saying,

It helped, particularly with some of the lads, because I think [the tutor] was almost relatable [the tutor] was at uni, [the tutor] wasn’t much older. It’s different from the normal teacher, the old person in the room."

The study also showed that the confidence, motivation and enjoyment of learning for students improved over the course of the programme and almost all reported that their skills and knowledge had improved.

All GCSE English learners who responded to the endpoint survey indicated that the tutoring had helped them to feel more confident that they would achieve a grade 4 or higher when they resat GCSE English. Most maths learners also agreed that they felt more confident that they would achieve a grade 4 or higher in their GCSE maths resit.

Particularly, the attitudes of learners studying English towards the subject improved over the course of the programme, especially in relation to their enjoyment of learning English. At baseline, just less than two-thirds of English learners who responded to the survey agreed that they enjoyed learning English (19 of 31, 61%); however, by endpoint, this proportion increased to around three-quarters (12 of 16, 75%).

More broadly, almost all learners agreed that the tutoring had motivated them to try their best in all their studies.

Some learners credited tutoring with having supported improved results, particularly the 1:1 format, which they felt better met their individual needs.

One pupil reflected on their experience saying,

I liked how friendly they [the tutors] were. You felt comfortable around them; you felt you could be open and say whatever, and they wouldn’t judge. It just felt right. And I think that plays a crucial part in the tutoring because if they’re not nice or you don’t get on with them, that can just deconstruct the whole programme entirely."

One of the participants also spoke to Tutor Trust separate to the evaluation about the transformative effect the programme had on their future. The learner has initially achieved a Grade 0 in GCSE maths, however, after tutoring they went on to secure a Grade 4, which represents a pass. This achievement enabled him to access interviews for apprenticeships as an Autocare technician and lift engineer, which without his maths GCSE would not have been possible.

Watch the full video here

“It gave me the motivation to keep revising…I finally felt like I was getting somewhere”

Putting our learnings into practice

We are committed to ensuring impact across all of our programmes, and we are grateful for the lessons we can take from this pilot.

We recognise that some learners found it challenging to engage with the programme, which resulted in low attendance from some learners. We are working closely with post-16 settings to understand how we can alleviate some of these concerns. This includes exploring different group sizes and how post-16 settings select learners to take part and schedule sessions.

With positive results we want to continue offering and refining our tutoring model to these learners, but we also recognise financial challenges for post-16 settings to engage. A key issue and barrier to support is the lack of funding for additional academic interventions in post-16 education. While disadvantaged pupils in secondary schools benefit from Pupil Premium funding, this support ends abruptly when students leave Year 11. As a result, approximately 180,000 young people each year lose access to targeted support at a point when they still urgently need it.

Colleges are not funded sufficiently to provide intensive support such as tutoring, leaving many learners without the help required to improve their outcomes. This gap contributes directly to persistent low attainment and limits young people’s progression into employment or training.

We have therefore joined a coalition of 18 leading social mobility and education organisations calling for Pupil Premium funding to be extended to disadvantaged young people at age 16. We hope that a commitment from government to implement a ‘Student Premium’ would allow learners in post-16 settings to engage with our tutoring, supporting them to access further education and employment opportunities.

This pilot marks an important milestone for Tutor Trust as our first substantial programme supporting post-16 learners resitting GCSE English and maths. These young people are often at a critical point in their educational journey, and achieving these qualifications can open doors to further study, training and employment.

I am delighted by the outcomes achieved through this programme and by the determination and commitment shown by the learners involved. While the pilot has highlighted areas where we can further strengthen delivery alongside our college partners, it also demonstrates the real potential of high-quality tutoring to support post-16 attainment.

We remain committed to this work and to building on these findings, because every young person deserves the opportunity to achieve the qualifications they need to fulfil their potential.”

Ed Marsh, CEO, Tutor Trust