Tutoring at Home, Online or Travelling to Students’ Homes

Tutors usually offer their services directly from their own homes, online or they travel to student’s houses. In some cases, you might teach from a student's workplace or from a public place like a coffee shop or library. Working as a travelling tutor opens up your options in terms of the areas you can cover and it often pays to have the flexibility of working this way.

However, you should also consider your travel costs if you decide to be a travelling tutor. Make sure that you’re prepared for those extra overheads such as petrol or public transport costs and consider whether they'll be reflected in how much you charge for your services.

Have a think about where lessons will take place. Is there enough space in your home to provide a stimulating learning environment? Do you have the right broadband/internet service to provide the service if doing it online? You should also consider your utility bills and whether the cost of your utilities will increase as a result of your business. If you're a private tenant, you should check if you're permitted to run a small business from your home. Some tenancy agreements have clauses in place that restrict the type of business you can operate.

Consider what you'll do about students who cancel at the last minute. Will you decide to use a cancellation policy?

Action – Decide whether your business will be mobile or fixed

Consider the following questions to help you decide whether you’ll travel to students’ homes or whether they’ll come to you:

• Do you have immediate access to transport?

• Is there enough demand for tutoring in your local area or will you need to travel further afield?

• Is your home accessible for students to travel to using public transport?

• Does your tenancy/mortgage agreement have any restrictions on running a business from the property?

• How much extra will you need to charge per hour to cover the cost of travel?

Take a look at our free cancellation policy template included with this book and modify it to suit your needs.