Our Reach: Nottingham and Derby

Why volunteer as a tutor in Nottingham and Derby

Nottingham. Birthplace of Torvill and Dean. Home to Raleigh Bikes. And since autumn 2019, where Action Tutoring has been supporting disadvantaged pupils to reach their potential.

Over the past three years, we have been working with schools in Nottingham to support the city’s disadvantaged pupils. Sadly, Nottingham has high levels of deprivation. It ranks eleventh out of the 317 districts in England – we wanted to help tackle this issue.

Studies have shown that Government efforts to “level up” funding for education have resulted in Nottingham schools missing out. The report found almost 60% of the most deprived fifth of schools had seen a real terms reduction in Government funding since 2017-18.

In 2021, we expanded this reach to include schools in Derby. 22 out of 491 small areas in Derbyshire fall within the most 10% deprived areas across England.

Evidence shows that pupils from low income families are less likely to perform well in school, since there are more obstacles in the way of their academic progress (such as lack of access to technology or extra resources). This limits their opportunities later in life, whether they’re applying for apprenticeships, studying A-Levels or seeking employment. Action Tutoring is committed to improving the academic outcomes of young people from disadvantaged backgrounds, demonstrated through our impact data.

Local support

Our work has even drawn the interest of local Nottingham MPs. Year 6 pupils at a local primary school were awash with excitement when Alex Norris, MP for Nottingham North, visited their programme last year. Being able to demonstrate the progress they had made in subject knowledge, study skills and confidence was a fantastic opportunity.

Action Tutoring in Nottingham and Derby

Working with multiple schools across England has helped us recognise the needs of schools and better understand the demands and pressures that schools are under, especially after the pandemic. Since launching in Nottingham and Derby in 2019 and 2021, we have been working with volunteers to deliver tutoring programmes in a number of schools across the cities. 

We do more than just tutor. Our volunteers also serve as role models, motivating pupils to overcome learning barriers and achieve their potential in life. We are working hard to grow our volunteer tutor community in both Nottingham and Derby and are keen to engage more volunteers locally to support our face-to-face programmes.

By tutoring in Nottingham or Derby for just one hour a week, you will directly support disadvantaged pupils to build their confidence and help ensure they leave school with the grades needed to build a bright future, as well as developing your own skills. 

My volunteering experience has been amazing. Prior to joining, I thought that working with secondary school pupils would be hard work and that pupils would be rebellious but it has been the complete opposite. Every week I look forward to tutoring as I know I am bringing a student one step closer to achieving their desired grades and giving them support they may have not had otherwise. Also, the support from Action Tutoring makes things very easy since they provide material to work with.

Calton, volunteer tutor in Nottingham

Some of our current volunteering opportunities in Nottingham and Derby take place with pupils from the following partner schools:

Find out more information about becoming a volunteer or partnering as a school in Nottingham and Derby.

Nottingham and Derby Programme Team

• Grace Nott (Programme Manager for the Midlands)
• Robin Shields (Programme Coordinator for Nottingham)
• Cat Simons (Programme Coordinator for Nottingham)
• Niamh Wilson (Programme Coordinator for Nottingham)