Giving AQA GCSE English Students a Forensic Understanding of the Course

When your child needs clarity and excellent exam technique: Welcome to The English Lab

At The English Lab, I specialise in giving AQA students absolute confidence in how to target the AQA GCSE English (and English Literature) exam papers. Led by a highly experienced tutor and UK award-winning teacher, Claire Davidson, the programmes blend proven teaching strategies, expert resources, and a student-first approach to make progress inevitable.

The English Lab Way: Our Teaching Philosophy

We believe great GCSE English tuition starts with clarity. That’s why our approach combines:

Deep knowledge of the AQA English Language and Literature papers
Strategies proven to help students attain Grades 4–9
Flexible learning formats: live, self-paced, intensive, and highly supported
A focus on mindset, confidence, and long-term learnin

Who We Help

Students in Year 10 or 11 or Resit Post 16 preparing for AQA GCSE English exams
Parents looking for highly structured support for their child
Students who want a very clear approach to all the exam papers
Teens who have lost confidence and need a fresh, forensic, exam-focused method

Hi, I'm Claire Davidson...

I am a UK Teaching Award winner and National Judge with thirty years experience teaching students aged 11-18. I am also an experienced examiner, having worked for many years as a Team Leader for a variety of exam boards. Whilst I have taught all abilities, my most recent position in a boys grammar school has given me a particular insight into the need for high end intensive intervention to raise exam performance in the run up to the GCSE English examinations.

I am considered an approachable and friendly tutor who creates an excellent working environment where all students feel confident to participate freely and share their ideas. I work hard to engender an atmosphere of mutual respect and support, where everyone contributes and feels safe and comfortable to do so.

What people say...

Absolutely Incredible Tutor! (N.B.)

“Claire has been absolutely incredible and I can’t recommend The English Lab strongly enough. She tutored my daughter for her GCSE English this year as she was struggling and she has just received 7s in both her English language and literature results. This would not have been possible without Claire’s help. She not only has an incredible knowledge for her subject but makes it enjoyable, so much so that my daughter actually looked forward to her lessons every week. Thank you Claire- you’ve been amazing.”

CR – Home Educated Student Taught by Claire (2025)

‘I highly recommend Claire. She has been absolutely fantastic with my daughter, getting her through her GCSE in just a year. We had taken our daughter out of school and really struggled to find an English tutor until we found Claire. She immediately built a great rapport and her supportive tutoring was just what M needed to build her confidence and self-belief. Our daughter took her GCSE in 2025 and passed with a Grade 5! This would not have happened without Claire’s enthusiasm, knowledge and skill and we cannot recommend her highly enough.’

J.M-P.

“Claire tutored both my children through KS4 resulting in them achieving their English GCSE. Both my sons struggled with English, however without the relevant grade would be unable to proceed to A levels. Claire lifted both of their abilities and ensured they both exceeded the required grade to further their education. I will always be extremely grateful for the time, skill and patience she gave my sons and would highly recommend Claire”

Parental Review August 2025

Thank you so much Claire. E found your sessions enjoyable and was able to put it all into practice and get the grades he was hoping for. I highly recommend Claire for both English Language and Literature!

J.J.

“Claire tutored both my children through Years 10 and 11, resulting in them achieving decent English GCSEs. As a parent I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Claire – not only as a tutor but as a person who actually takes an invested interest in her students. My children are adults now and still to this day are grateful and have fond memories of ‘Mrs Davidson’.”

Parental Review – Sept 25 (LF)

Highly recommend Claire! She helped my son break down the AQA GCSE English Language into something logical that he could navigate. Claire has a calm and clear approach to her sessions, which helped George cut through all the noise and notes from school! He achieved a grade 8, which says it all!

Parental Review Following Excellent GCSE Results 2025 (CC)

Claire really got to know my son and understood his strengths and weaknesses. She treated him like an adult and gave him a real confidence to go above and beyond what he thought himself capable of, especially given his dyslexia. Not only did he get two 7s in English, but the skills and critical thinking that Claire helped him develop enabled him to do well in all his other subjects too. We would absolutely recommend Claire. If you are looking for someone to truly support your young person then she is it !

C.H.

“I couldn’t recommend Claire Davidson enough. Claire taught me for my GCSEs back in 2000 & 2001. With Claire’s enthusiasm and great teaching style, I went from getting Cs & Bs at the beginning to finally ending up with an A/A* for English language & English literature. Claire made English lessons become interesting, rather than a boring compulsory subject that I thought of it as before entering her class. Claire taught me so many skills for essay writing and analysis that prepared me for not just the rest of my education up to post-graduate Masters level, but life in general. With the company “World Challenge”, Claire took my brother in a team of students to Morocco for a week and a few years later, Claire & I went to Malawi & Zambia for a month with another team. She encouraged and helped motivate us into such life skills and experiences that we would never have achieved through school alone. These skills helped with university and job applications and life in general. I will never forget the time and effort Claire put into us as children and the opportunities she gave us. Claire is the perfect candidate, if you are considering her tutoring services of your child.”

A.H.

“Claire was without a doubt the best teacher I had throughout my secondary schooling. Her lessons were creative, engaging and thought provoking, instilling in me a passion for literature and creative writing which remains to this day. Claire also mentored me throughout the university application process, going above and beyond to help me write a personal statement which captured my personality as well as my academic profile. It was through this guidance that I was accepted into my first choice university, for which I will be forever grateful. We all have that one teacher at school that we remember for broadening our horizons and supporting us to be the best we can be. For me, Claire was that teacher. She’s nothing short of a total rock star!”

F.S.

I can’t praise our experience with The English Lab highly enough! My daughter struggled with English, and after she received a grade 4 in her mocks we decided to turn to Claire for help, with just months to go before the GCSE exams. Claire quickly identified my daughter’s strengths and areas for improvement, and tailored the tutoring sessions to her specific needs, focusing on strategies that would make the biggest impact on grades. Claire’s expertise, combined with her fun and informal teaching style kept my daughter motivated, improved her confidence, and made a world of difference in her GCSE results. Thanks to Claire’s guidance and encouragement, my daughter was able to achieve a grade 6 in her final exams – a significant improvement from her previous results. I wholeheartedly recommend The English Lab to any student seeking to improve or excel in English

O.R.

“I really can’t recommend Claire enough! She taught me through KS4 and inspired me to continue with English Literature and take it at A-Level. She is so strikingly kind and cares deeply for all of her students, and that has stuck with me all these years later! If you are looking for a passionate and experienced tutor that will motivate, engage and inspire, I can’t think of anyone better than Claire for the job. 5 stars does this service an injustice!”

D.T. Review of the AQA GCSE English Programme

Claire has been absolutely wonderful tutoring our daughter and helping her understand what is required for her GCSE English exams. K always looked forward to her lessons with Claire as she was so approachable, and she was always on a high after her lesson as she just understood it so much better than in the classroom environment at school. K particularly liked her lessons at home and not having to leave the house to go for tutoring. Furthermore, Claire always marked her work and gave feedback straight away. She also kept in touch with us on our daughter’s progress and also let us know when she was getting a bit lazy!! We highly recommend Claire, and we are so grateful she was recommended to us. K went from disliking English to enjoying it, which is all down to Claire. Thank you Claire.