Reviews

“I cannot recommend Claire (Mrs Davidson/Ms Smith) highly enough. I was fortunate enough to be taught by Claire for my GCSE English (years 10 & 11). I really struggled at school, English in particular (later diagnosed with Dyslexia) and struggled even more with authority. Far from the perfect student. Claire completely transformed my English learning experience. I enjoyed the books we read and even enjoyed writing about them afterwards. I was given an understanding of that which had previously alluded me. Claire’s passion, patience and strong personality make for an exceptional teacher. I am extremely grateful for her influence in my schooling as I was able to attain a Grade C in GCSE’s – which I appreciate isn’t the pinnacle of educational accolades, but for someone who was previously predicted E/F this was a great achievement and meant I was able to enter into my chosen career as an Aircraft Engineer in the RAF. Again, for this I am extremely grateful and would not hesitate to recommend her as a tutor”

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

I already knew of Claire professionally and was aware of her outstanding teaching and commitment to students. After a disastrous mock result and losing all confidence, we signed up our son to the programme on the understanding he would be committed, (I had no doubt the programme would be tailored and meet the needs of the GCSE.) It has been brilliant. He has been engaged of his own accord, the resources are downloadable for further revision and recap, and he has received beneficial feedback. I was a bit worried he would struggle with his sporting commitments, work and homework, but he has been able to attend sessions, work through the programme, and this has been vital to his GCSE preparations. Thoroughly recommend.

“Claire tutored both my children through KS4 resulting in them achieving their English GCSE. As a parent I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Claire – not only as a tutor but as 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’.”

“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.”

“I wasn’t an amazingly academic student. Frequently, I was the class clown and the one to make a cheeky comment. This was of course all bravado and in reality, a cover up for a 16 year old with little confidence and belief in herself. I had a passion for English and occasionally some good ideas which were reflected in my work. Claire, Miss Davidson, Davy-Wavy (personal favourite!) saw through to the real me and pleaded with me to just put some effort in and see how I did. So I softened my stubbornness and did what she advised. She was there every step of the way, constantly marking my work, to give me an idea on how I was getting on. She was on hand for everything and no idea was bad in her eyes. She truly believes in her students and does everything she can, professionally and personally to get results, but also support you in the process. I was terrified to do my speaking and listening exam and was sure I was going to fail. Claire listened to my endless moans and whinging (give the woman a medal- patience of a saint!!) and she just urged me to give it my all and to believe in what I was saying. You best believe it, I nearly fell off of my chair when she delivered the news that little old me had the highest speaking and listening grade out of our top set class! I went from an E Grade in my mocks, to getting 2 As in English Language & English Literature. If you are looking for anyone to help you with your English, Claire is the lady for you.”

“I highly recommend Claire Davidson as an exceptional English tutor for GCSE exam preparation. With her expert guidance and personalised approach, my daughter not only improved her understanding of the subject but also gained confidence in her abilities. Claire possesses a deep understanding of the curriculum and tailored her lessons to address my daughter’s specific needs, ensuring that she grasped challenging concepts with ease. Her patience, dedication, and passion for teaching shone through in every session, creating a supportive learning environment. I am immensely grateful for the invaluable impact Claire has had on my daughter’s academic journey. No doubt we’ll see Claire again in a few years when my son needs some help with his GCSEs.”  

“Having had the honour of being taught by Claire and to have then later known her as a colleague I can absolutely vouch for her dedication to excellence and passion for the success of students in her care.”

“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!”

“Professional, experienced, friendly, knowledgeable, supportive, brilliant/ English has always been a struggle for my son, who got a low level 3 in the summer so started tutoring with Claire ahead of November resits.  Her knowledge of the exam process, student learning and the English syllabus is amazing.  She was able to encourage and support my son, who is now able to say that he knows he has made good progress in a short time.  He came out of the summer exam shrugged his shoulders and made a grunt, he came out of the November exam saying he has never written so much in an English exam (and knew how to approach each question correctly) and was smiling, actually smiling after an English exam! Claire and my son worked together to find the areas he needed to focus on and then worked together through the process. He regularly submitted work, which Claire thoroughly and accurately marked, using her many years of experience.  This bespoke approach motivated him and gave him confidence. I cannot speak highly enough of Claire, her knowledge and approach has given my son the best chance possible.” UPDATE: THIS STUDENT HAS JUST RECEIVED HIS RESIT RESULTS: HE DID IT, ACHIEVED THE GRADE HE NEEDED, AND CAN NOW PURSUE THE COURSE HE WANTS TO DO. CONGRATULATIONS TO HIM!

“Claire was an amazing teacher and is an inspiration to this day. The passion she has for teaching and learning is evident by the awe that children and young people have for her and the lessons she teaches. I will always value the time she gave me, the listening ear and the friendly smile. She believed in me, she saw abilities and strengths I hadn’t even identified or found in myself yet. Not only this she inspired me to take challenges and succeed at things I probably wouldn’t have done without her guidance and support. I will always recommend Claire to anyone looking for that person to guide, support, inspire and encourage someone to be a better person and along the way she will also help you to understand English! What more could you want?”

“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”

“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!”

“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.”

“I would thoroughly recommend Claire as a tutor. My daughter had Claire tutor her for her GCSE English after she had had to change schools in year 10. At the time she was really struggling with her English but Claire enthused, encouraged, supported and gave her confidence. My daughter went from a grade 1 in English lit and a grade 2 in English lang, in her mock exams in March, to passing both exams, of which the results came out yesterday. My daughter would come home after the exams and tell me how she had applied the strategies Claire had taught her. I am getting emotional thinking about it. This passionate teacher has enabled my daughter to achieve the results needed in her English to start as an engineering apprentice in Sept and I am completely certain she would not have achieved these marks without Claire’s terrific tutoring. Thank you Claire. You are a wonderful human being and have given her the confidence with her English that will help so much with her future career and helped her achieve far more than just the exam results xx”

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.

“I could not recommend Claire enough for anyone looking for English tutoring. She tutored me through A-Level English Literature and Creative Writing. Each session Claire tailors it to what you want or need to work on. From learning Othello quotes to comparing novels Claire was able to help my writing and understanding develop. Her enthusiasm and motivation enabled me to continue my passion for English and achieve the grades that I needed for university. She always believed in me, saw the strengths I had and motivated me. If you are looking for a tutor to help with your English, Claire 100% is the person you need.”

“Claire was my A Level English Teacher after I relocated to Plymouth from Liverpool with family. English and reading in general had always been a huge passion of mine, but the move and leaving best friends behind had been somewhat of a distraction and my heart was no longer in it. Claire not only reignited my passion for English which got me the A needed for Birmingham University, but also the highest exam mark that year in our local district. Her love for the subject is contagious. The way she presented each module was dynamic and thought provoking. Othello is still my favourite Shakesperean Play solely down to Claire’s presentation of it. In fact, it inspired me to write an essay on the play whilst at University for which I received a “First” class mark from a tutor notorious for never giving out “Firsts”. I couldn’t recommend Claire as a personal tutor more. My husband (who was also taught by Claire) and I still refer to her as “Superwoman” due to her outstanding level of talent, patience and professionalism. If you need assistance, inspiration or help getting back on track with English, Claire is 100% your lady!”