Tutor Doctor helps bridge the gap in lost learning with a new office in Crewe

Selina Idiens and Simon Broady launched their business at the end of September and are already building a team of tutors to help them deliver a fantastic in-home and online service in their area

As students seek to cope with the threat of learning losses wreaked by COVID-19 and months-long school closure, the demand for extra-curricular support has never been greater. Tutoring franchise, Tutor Doctor, has welcomed a new couple to its ever-growing UK network after exploring opportunities to build a business together, whilst providing a much-needed service to their local communities across Cheshire.

Partners, Selina Idiens and Simon Broady, launched their new Crewe-based Tutor Doctor business at the end of September and are already building a team of tutors to help them deliver a fantastic in-home and online service in their area. Prior to investing in the franchise, Selina has worked in the education sector over the last 10 years, with her most recent role as a 1:1 Teaching Assistant at a local primary school in Crewe. And Simon, a qualified quantity surveyor, has worked in the construction industry for global engineering companies both overseas and in the UK. Together their skillsets put them in the best position to thrive with their in-home tutoring franchise. 

“The past 18 months have placed an unprecedented strain on the education sector with schools now turning their efforts to getting children back up to speed with their learning. The need for additional academic support has increased significantly since the pandemic and tutoring is one of the most effective tools to support learning and accelerate pupil progress,” said Simon. “We recognised this opportunity and are now really looking forward to helping bridge the gap for those children who have felt the brunt of the impact through school closures.

“Growing up in a family of teachers – my parents and aunt and uncle – I understand the importance of education and how it can shape your life. Both Selina and I were tutored when we were younger so understand and appreciate the benefits of having extra support to help boost confidence and build important learning skills. Every child matters and can be successful so we’re really excited to start working with families across Crewe and Nantwich to help them achieve their goals.”

Friends since the age of 12 and attending the same secondary school in Nantwich, Cheshire Simon and Selina have always had a passion for developing people and championing them to be the best version of themselves.  Now a couple, the duo are realising their ambitions to build and grow a business together in their local area. Selina will be running the franchise full time and Simon will be doing it part-time alongside his freelance quantity surveyor job, taking care of the accounts and finances for the business.

“After attending a franchise expo in Birmingham in 2019 and speaking to family friends with a franchise, we were inspired to start our own business. We were looking for something in the education sector to complement my background of working with children, and while there were many good franchise opportunities, it was Tutor Doctor that grabbed our attention,” said Selina. “Sadly, my father passed away in 2019 so we put everything on hold and revisited again when we were in a better place. We then paid a further visit to another franchise expo at the NEC to look at all the options, but it was Tutor Doctor again that interested us.

“Before we made the investment, we did lots of research into the brand and spoke to existing franchisees, parents and tutors to validate our decision. We liked the idea of a global franchise over starting a new business from scratch because it’s a proven business model with ongoing support and an existing network of successful franchisees you can tap into for advice and support. Combining the knowledge we learnt from training with our past experience and the expertise of the rest of the franchisee network, we know that we’re in a good place to create a successful business.”

There are now 78 Tutor Doctor franchisees in the UK who operate 156 territories between them.