Accolades
Action Tutoring is incredibly proud of the impact it has on young lives and in working to tackle education inequality. We really value the external recognition we receive and the relationships we have built with peer organisations to help raise awareness of the academic attainment gap and work towards our shared goal.
The Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Volunteering Award
In December 2022, Action Tutoring was thrilled to be announced as one of the 20 winners of the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Volunteering Award. We received this award in recognition of the work of our inspirational volunteer tutors and the impact they have on the young people they support.
This one-off award was created to mark Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee and 20 years of The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service (QAVS). The Jubilee Award aimed to recognise 20 national charities whose work empowers young people aged 16-25, with volunteers playing a key role in delivering this.
The award submissions were judged over the summer by an expert panel chaired by Sir Martyn Lewis CBE (Chair of QAVS). Following the panel’s selection, His Majesty The King personally approved the 20 awardees. You can read more about the award here.
Charity Governance Awards shortlist
In 2023 we were delighted to be shortlisted to the final three in the ‘Transforming with Digital’ category of The Clothworkers’ Company’s Charity Governance Awards. Our brilliant Trustee Board was recognised for their stellar support during our journey to incorporating online delivery in 2020, through which they championed our ambitious venture, sharing their wealth of insights and experience to help us pilot, test and scale this new delivery model.
Fair Education Alliance Scaling Award
In July 2020, Action Tutoring was thrilled to be announced as one of seven winners of the Fair Education Alliance Scaling Award a two year accelerator programme designed to provide bespoke support for deepening charities’ impact.
Action Tutoring is a proud member of the Fair Education Alliance; working towards a world where our education system is fair – where children’s educational success is not limited by their socio-economic background. This is a world where disadvantage no longer determines literacy and numeracy rates at primary school, GCSE attainment at secondary school, the emotional wellbeing and resilience of young people, participation in further education or employment based training and university graduation.
Charity Awards
In May 2022 Action Tutoring was delighted to have been shortlisted to the final three for the Civil Society Charity Awards (education and training category). We were recognised for our response to the Covid pandemic and our impact on the education of young people facing disadvantage.
Awards judge Yvonne Field said Action Tutoring’s application was “very lucid and expansive on their internal pivoting as an organisation and what they had to do to redesign materials, attend to their organisation, furlough staff, and then deal with the implications of that. Also, they were working from the hyper-local level through to the national level, in that they were influencing government policies and plans around online learning. That was really impressive.”
Judge Martin Edwards commended the speed with which Action Tutoring pivoted and scaled up. “They delivered 61,000 sessions and 86% of these took place online over 2020 and 2021. And they recorded the same amount of academic progress shown by children in 2020 to 21, as in 2018, which is amazing.
Best Companies Awards 2022
In 2022, Action Tutoring was proud to make the list of 100 Best Small Companies to work for. We are grateful to see our commitment to our employees and fantastic work culture recognised. Workplace engagement is a vital part of our organisation’s success, and our team are proud to work for Action Tutoring.
The Centre for Social Justice
In March 2018, Action Tutoring was proud to be awarded ‘Highly Commended’ in the Employment, Education and Skills category at the Centre for Social Justice Awards. Following over 300 applications in this particular category.
Cyber Essential certification
Action Tutoring holds Cyber Essentials certification; a Government-backed, industry supported scheme to help organisations protect themselves against common online threats.
The significant attainment gap that exists between disadvantaged pupils and their wealthier peers has only been exacerbated by Covid-19. Having been an engaged member of the Alliance for years, we’re delighted to see Action Tutoring selected as a Scaling Award Winner for 2020-22. Having grown their reach consistently to work with over 3,000 pupils, we’ve been impressed by the way they have rapidly adapted to take their provision online whilst retaining a laser focus on growth with impact. We will be supporting them to plan and manage the next phase of scaling their provision as they prepare for rapid scale due to the increased demand for their programmes, and to develop their internal capacity and organisation structures so that they can reach more disadvantaged pupils in the areas where support is needed the most.
Siwan Davies, Head of Scaling Award, Fair Education Alliance
Charity supporters
Rt Hon Nick Gibb MP, (Former Minister of State for School Standards), shared his support for the charity at an event in 2019:
“[Action Tutoring’s] Impact Report shows that it is possible to close the attainment gap and Action Tutoring has had huge success raising attainment. The pupils are proof that regardless of your circumstances it is possible to get crucial English and maths qualifications. Action Tutoring offers a practical, structured solution. The charity’s vision is one that I fully endorse.”
He also remarked on the “huge potential for more volunteers to use their knowledge and experience in this way to support young people”.
Helen Hayes, MP for Dulwich and West Norwood, who hosted the event and visited an Action Tutoring programme in 2018, remarked, “the motivation of pupils, particularly from disadvantaged backgrounds to engage in education has never been more important”.
Reflecting on the recent rise in knife crime affecting young people around the country, Ms Hayes said that “the work [of Action Tutoring] plays a significant role in helping pupils to remain engaged in education for longer”, ultimately improving the life outcomes of the young people involved and bringing benefits to the wider economy and society.
Birmingham Yardley MP Jess Phillips, following a visit to an Action Tutoring programme at Ark Victoria Academy, Small Heath, Birmingham in July 2021, said:
“The pandemic has meant that pupils, particularly those that are disadvantaged have fallen further behind their peers, and programmes like this one are providing invaluable support to young people in Birmingham and across the country.”
Nottingham North MP, Alex Norris, visited a programme at Heathfield Primary School in Bulwell, Nottingham, in July 2021:
“Volunteer tutors can have a powerful influence on pupils’ grades – it’s important to raise the profile of their outstanding work at Heathfield Primary and the nine other schools with which they partner in Nottingham.”
Rt Hon Keir Starmer MP, visited an Action Tutoring programme in north London in November 2017: “It’s been a real privilege to spend time with Action Tutoring and the Year 11 pupils at William Ellis School. One to one support makes a real difference to pupils and helps ensure they have the opportunity to reach their full potential. However, it’s a service that isn’t available to everyone, so it’s great to see voluntary initiatives such as this giving pupils that extra helping hand.”
Karin Smyth, MP for Bristol South, visited an Action Tutoring primary school programme in her constituency in April 2018: “I was delighted to see first-hand the work which Action Tutoring are doing in South Bristol and the enthusiasm of local young people. We know that this is an area of high deprivation and it’s why I’ve campaigned so hard for more opportunities here. It’s great to see that Action Tutoring shares my commitment to improving outcomes for local young people.”
