Functional Skills English
Functional Skills is about far more than passing an exam or handing in a portfolio. It builds the everyday reading, writing and communication skills needed for work, further education and independent life.
Personalised online tuition · UK
1:1 online • Functional Skills English • Science tuition
Every child deserves to be understood before they are expected to succeed.
Steor Learning Services is one-to-one online tuition from a qualified specialist teacher, built around the learner rather than the lesson plan.
Enquiries are open. Sessions are currently available, with limited availability.
Founder & Lead Tutor
5+ yrsTeaching in specialist education
MAIntellectual & Developmental Disabilities, Distinction
BScPsychology with Development & Developmental Disorders
Level 5Diploma in Education & Training
Meet the tutor
Hello, I’m Monique
I’m a qualified Functional Skills teacher with a BSc in Developmental Psychology and an MA in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (Distinction).
I grew up as a young carer for my brother, who has Autism and severe learning disabilities. That shaped the way I understand, support and advocate for others, and it taught me the importance of patience, empathy, clear communication and looking beyond what you see on the surface.
While completing my Master’s, I enquired about volunteering at a specialist school supporting learners with SEMH, mental health difficulties, attachment and trauma-related needs. What began as a chance to gain experience quickly became so much more. I was offered the job as English Teacher, completed my teaching qualification, and was mentored by an exceptional team whose expertise laid the foundations for the teacher I am today. I stayed for over five years.
In that time I worked with children and young people with a wide range of additional needs, including Autism, ADHD, speech and language needs, learning disabilities, anxiety, dyslexia and trauma-related experiences. Every learner taught me something new, and those experiences continue to shape the way I teach today.
What does Steor mean?
Steor comes from the Old English for “to guide”
Pronounced Stee-or: the name encompasses the whole ethos of the learning service. Teaching has never been about simply delivering a lesson. It is about guiding learners through challenges, celebrating every achievement, building confidence and empowering them to believe in themselves.
Every learner deserves someone to help guide them towards their potential and discover what they are truly capable of.
What I offer
Tuition shaped around the child, not the other way round
Sessions are delivered online, one to one, in a calm and predictable space where learners feel safe enough to take academic risks.
Science
Curriculum-linked Science tuition that meets learners at the point they are actually at, rebuilding the foundations that may have been missed before moving forward.
Pitched, paced and resourced for the individual, with plenty of room to ask questions.
Specialist SEND support
Support for learners working towards a qualification, returning to education, or needing help alongside a different learning provider.
Experience across a wide range of additional needs, including:
- Autism and ADHD
- SEMH and anxiety
- Attachment and trauma-related needs
- Dyslexia and learning disabilities
- Speech and language needs
The Steor learning journey
Understanding the learner comes first
Rather than jumping straight into tutoring, I take the time to get to know your learner first, building a shared understanding of their strengths, challenges, interests and goals before personalised learning begins.
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Get in touch
If you have noticed your learner struggling at school, losing confidence, or the support available isn’t fully meeting their needs, you are not alone. Reaching out is often the best first step.
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Initial Learning Profile
A structured chance to share what matters: your learner’s strengths, their challenges, what they enjoy, how they communicate, and what you are hoping tuition will help with. It takes around 20 minutes and saves as you go, so you can come back to it.
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Profile review
I review everything carefully, alongside any reports or plans you would like to share, so that nothing important gets missed before we meet.
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Initial learning conversation
A relaxed, low-pressure first conversation with your learner. No formal assessment, no testing. Just a chance to meet, build trust and start on the front foot.
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Personalised learning begins
Sessions shaped around your learner, with progress reviewed regularly and shared openly with you along the way.
Research and experience
Academically informed. Grounded in real classrooms.
My Master’s research explored the experiences of students with autism in special education, and I was invited to present it at the International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Europe Congress in 2021. That research and academic understanding continue to inform the way I approach teaching, individual needs and the support I provide through Steor.
Why choose Steor
Steor is more than ‘just tutoring’
Steor has been shaped by so much more than my experience as a teacher. It brings together years of teaching, volunteering, academic study, research, personal experience, and most importantly everything I have learned from the children and young people I have had the privilege of supporting along the way.
It is about understanding the individual behind the learning, building confidence, and guiding every learner towards what they are truly capable of.
“That is what it means to Steor.”
Questions families ask
Before you get in touch
How is Steor different from other tutoring?
Meaningful learning begins with understanding the learner, not just planning the lesson. Before any tutoring begins, I take the time to build a picture of your learner as an individual through the Initial Learning Profile. Sessions are then shaped around them, and progress is measured in confidence and willingness to try, as well as in academic outcomes.
What ages and levels do you work with?
Steor Learning Services supports learners of all ages including children, young people or adult learners. This includes learners working towards Functional Skills English qualifications, learners returning to education, and those needing support alongside a school or other learning provider. If you are not sure whether Steor is the right fit, please just ask.
My child finds new people difficult. How do you start?
Slowly, and on their terms. The first conversation is deliberately low pressure, interests-led and free of formal assessment. Building trust comes before anything academic, because a learner who feels safe is a learner who will feel confident to ask questions, try again if at first they don’t succeed and celebrate their achievements no matter how small.
Are sessions online or in person?
All sessions are delivered online, one to one, which means predictable surroundings for your learner and no travel for you. If specific resources are needed, this is shared in advance so each session can start calmly.
How will I know how my child is progressing?
After each session, parents and carers have the option to receive a ‘Session Feedback’ email. Parents and carers can also opt in for additional progress reports. Open and clear communication between Steor and parents and carers is paramount to your learner’s success and progress.
Do you work with EHCP funding or personal budgets?
Please get in touch to discuss your circumstances. Families using personal budgets or direct payments are welcome to enquire, and I can provide the session records and progress evidence needed for reviews.
How do I know if there is availability?
Availability is limited and sessions are offered in blocks so that learners get the consistency they need. Send an enquiry with a little about your learner and I will let you know what is currently possible.
Get in touch
Tell me a little about your learner
If you’d like to know more about Steor or ask any questions with no obligations, please don’t hesitate to send an initial enquiry. Should Steor not be the right fit for your learner, I will let you know and try to point you somewhere that might be.
Already know you would like to go ahead? You can go straight to the Initial Learning Profile instead.
Or reach me directly
- Emailmonique@steorlearningservices.co.uk
- FacebookSteor Learning Services
- Instagram@steor_learning_services_uk
- AvailabilityEnquiries open. Sessions are currently available, with limited availability.
I aim to reply to every enquiry within two working days.