Online Learning Policy

How lessons are delivered

All tuition with The Tutoring Hub happens live online, one-to-one or in small groups. Students join from home using a computer or tablet with a camera, microphone and stable internet connection. Each lesson uses a secure video link, with a shared digital whiteboard for working through material together. There is no travelling, no visitor to the house, and no lesson takes place without a confirmed booking.

Account and link security

Lesson links are shared with the parent or carer who made the booking, not directly with the student. We ask families to treat each link as private to their household and not to forward or post it elsewhere. If a link is ever shared accidentally, tell us and we will issue a fresh one. Tutors join only the lessons booked for their students, and only at the agreed time.

What we expect of tutors

• prepare properly, arrive on time and teach from a quiet, private, professional space
• dress and speak as they would in any professional teaching setting
• keep the lesson focused on the agreed learning, and adapt it kindly to how the student is that day
• keep their background and surroundings neutral, with nothing personal or distracting visible
• follow our Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy and code of conduct at all times

What we expect of students

We keep expectations simple and fair. Students are asked to join on time, be ready with what they need, treat their tutor and any fellow students with respect, and let their tutor know if something is unclear or uncomfortable. Cameras help tutors teach well, and we encourage students to keep theirs on where they feel comfortable doing so.

Parental awareness

Parents and carers stay in the loop by design. Lessons are arranged with you, links come to you, and you are welcome to ask how things are going at any point. For younger students especially, we ask that an adult is at home and contactable during lessons. You know your child best, so please tell us anything that would help their tutor support them.

A suitable learning environment

Students learn best from a quiet, shared or family space at home rather than behind a closed bedroom door, with a steady connection and what they need close by. We ask that students join dressed as they would be for a study session, and that household life carries on normally around them.

Professional conduct online

The standards of a good classroom apply on screen. Tutors keep relationships with students warm but professional: no personal topics that stray from tuition, no gifts, no personal contact details, and no connecting with students on social media. Anything that would not be appropriate in person is not appropriate online.

Communication boundaries

Messages about tuition run through The Tutoring Hub's business channels only, so there is always a clear record and a clear route to us. Tutors never use personal phone numbers, email addresses or social accounts to contact students, and we ask families to use the business channels too. You can always reach us on info@thetutoringhub.co.uk or 020 4586 9139.

Joining and leaving lessons

Tutors open the lesson space shortly before the start time and close it for everyone at the end. Lessons begin and end promptly, and a tutor will not remain alone in a lesson space with a student after the scheduled end. If a student does not join, the tutor lets us know and we contact the parent or carer rather than waiting indefinitely.

Chat, screen sharing, files and the whiteboard

Lesson tools are for learning. The chat is used for teaching points, links and resources; the tutor controls screen sharing; files and exercises are shared through the lesson or the family's shared folder; and the digital whiteboard is reset between lessons so one student's work never appears in another's session. Chat within lessons is not a private channel between a tutor and a student, and anything inappropriate is followed up.

Screenshots and photography

We do not take screenshots, photographs or images of students during lessons without the explicit agreement of the parent or carer, and then only for a purpose we have explained and you have accepted. We ask students and families to extend the same courtesy to tutors.

Recording: our position, plainly

Lessons are not recorded, monitored or stored. Not by us, and we ask not by families either. If recording a lesson were ever proposed in the future, for any reason, it would only happen with the prior written agreement of the parent or carer and of everyone involved, after we had explained exactly what would be captured, why, and how it would be kept. Without that agreement, it would not take place.

Lesson resources

Materials used or set in lessons are kept in the family's shared folder, so parents and carers can see what their child is working on and revisit it together. Tutors share resources that are appropriate and properly sourced, and students are not asked to sign up to third-party services on our behalf.

Technical interruptions and rescheduling

Technology occasionally lets everyone down. If a connection fails, the tutor waits and tries to re-establish the lesson, and we contact the parent or carer if it cannot be recovered. Where a lesson is cut short on our side, we rearrange the lost time at no charge and at a time that suits the family.

Inappropriate behaviour

Rudeness, harassment, discriminatory language or misuse of the lesson tools, from anyone, is addressed promptly. Depending on what happened, that may mean a conversation, a note to the family, or, for repeated or serious cases, ending the tutoring arrangement. Behaviour by a tutor that causes concern is handled under our Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy, which also covers allegations and referrals to external agencies.

Online safeguarding concerns

If anything in an online lesson worries a student, a parent or a tutor, please tell us. Concerns about a child's safety are handled under our Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy, and our Designated Safeguarding Lead can be reached via info@thetutoringhub.co.uk or 020 4586 9139. If a child is in immediate danger, call 999.

Privacy

We collect only the information needed to arrange and deliver tuition, and we handle it carefully. Our Privacy Notice explains what we collect, why, and the rights you have over it.

Accessibility and reasonable support

Every student deserves to take part fully. If your child has additional needs, uses assistive technology, or would benefit from adjustments such as larger text, more breaks or materials shared in advance, tell us and we will work with you to put reasonable support in place. We would rather adapt a lesson than have a student struggle quietly.

Related policies

• Safeguarding & child protection
• Privacy notice
• Cookie policy