About LEAH Tutors

LEAH volunteer tutors come from diverse backgrounds and have very different types of experience.

No teaching experience or qualifications are required!

All you need is the ability to commit to a minimum of six months volunteering, a good understanding of English and the desire to help other people. LEAH positively encourages people with English as their Second Language to apply as volunteers.

Through providing one-to-one lessons to a student on a weekly basis, LEAH volunteer tutors find their own horizons broadened.

Many LEAH tutors have gone on to qualify as ESOL or EFL teachers, inspired by the experiences they have had as a LEAH home tutor. A wide range of useful and transferable skills can be gained through volunteering with LEAH as a home tutor.

LEAH volunteers make a real difference to someone else’s life.

Training for Volunteer Tutors

Volunteers do not need to have teaching experience or qualifications as all volunteers attend the compulsory LEAH Tutor Training course.

The training course is specifically designed to meet the needs of volunteers who will be working on a one-to-one basis with student in their homes. It consists of two sessions twice a week for four weeks. 

LEAH runs several training courses a year, so for further information about the dates of the next available course please contact the LEAH office.

Pairing with a Student

All volunteers must successfully complete the training course before they can be paired with a student. LEAH also requires all of its volunteers to have a current CRB check before they can begin teaching a student.

LEAH will try to pair a volunteer with an appropriate student as quickly as possible. Volunteer preferences (for example, a student who lives locally) will be taken into account wherever possible.

The volunteer will be accompanied by a LEAH Coordinator for their initial visit to the student's house. This will allow them to meet their new student and see the environment they will be teaching within. Following this, the days and times of lessons will be agreed between the volunteer tutor and the student, althought LEAH asks that all volunteers provide at least one hour of tuition a week.

All volunteers can access teaching support by contacting their relevant LEAH Coordinator by telephone or email. Additional materials, such as tapes, books and a cassette player, are available in the LEAH office. Many books from the LEAH library can be signed out by volunteers, while others can be photocopied in the office. 

Apply to become a Volunteer Tutor

If you are interested in becoming a volunteer tutor with LEAH, please download and complete the application form below.

Volunteer Tutor Application Form

Completed application forms can be returned to: LEAH, Siddeley House, 50 Canbury Park Road, Kingston-upon-Thames, KT2 6LX.

Alternatively, completed forms can be emailed to: info@leah.org.uk.

For further details about becoming a LEAH Volunteer, please get in touch and a member of LEAH staff will be happy to help you.

Quotes from some of LEAH's existing volunteers

Here are a few things some of LEAH's existing volunteers have said...

"The training course is amazing. I wish I'd done it earlier"

JS, LEAH Volunteer Tutor

"This is one of the most exciting things I've ever done"

BB, LEAH Volunteer Tutor