Registration
Clients are required to provide adequate contact details. This will enable us to communicate with you effectively.
Prior to the first session, we will ask you to provide us with your postal address, e-mail, landline and mobile numbers. We will only use these to contact you regarding tuition and will never pass them on to anyone else unless you request for us to do so. However, in the event we decide to employ a company to perform secretarial or administrative duties on our behalf, it may be necessary to provide that company with your personal details, but this will be purely for the purposes of our business and will not be shared with anyone else.
Please ensure that you inform us if any contact details change during the academic year.
Payment
Term time lessons – Students’ lessons are booked and paid for in advance at the beginning of the term or half term. Students are expected to attend each week during their allocated session during term time unless we have informed you that there will be no tuition that week. In the case of Saturday lessons, the term usually runs from the first day of the school term to the Saturday after the schools break up. However, please do check the calendar for specific dates.
Please note we will endeavour to inform you of Discovery Tutor’s term dates, but these can be found on our website https://discoverytutors.co.uk/calendar-timetable.
Invoices – Invoices should be paid in full by BACS or cheque within 7 days of receipt of the invoice (which will be sent by e-mail). The account details, for BACS purposes, are provided on the invoice. If paying by cheque, please ensure that we receive this at least 3 days prior to the first lesson on the invoice in order to allow time for the cheque to clear prior to tuition starting.
Non-payment of fees – Discovery Tutors reserves the right to refuse to allow the student to attend tuition while fees remain unpaid or if there is a persistent failure by you to pay the fees on time. This is solely at the discretion of Discovery Tutors.
Lessons during school holidays – These can be arranged, subject to availability, and should be booked and paid for at the time of booking. We do not offer refunds or change of dates for missed lessons during the holidays, unless we have cancelled the session due to a sickness or an emergency. Please only book holiday sessions that you intend to attend.
Cancellation Policy (One-to-one/classes/online sessions) – see also Termination Policy
As regular lessons require a level of commitment, we expect full attendance during term time and do not offer refunds or make up sessions for missed lessons. If we cancel for ANY reason, then we will deduct the cost of the missed lesson from your next bill (or try to rearrange if possible).
Termination Policy
Tuition requires a termly commitment. If you wish to terminate your regular tuition sessions, then we require notice 2 weeks prior to the end of the Autumn, Spring or Summer term (or earlier if possible) in which you intend to finish. This must be given in person face-to-face, by telephone conversation or by e-mail. Failure to give this notice will result in you being charged for a complete half-term of tuition – even if you do not plan to attend.
Students taking GCSE. A level or entrance exams will only be expected to attend up to the date of their exam. However, it is essential that you provide us with the relevant date before the invoices are sent out for the term.
Time Keeping
Unless otherwise arranged, all one-to-one, face-to-face and online lessons are 50 minutes in duration. Clients are responsible for arriving for tuition on time, and lessons will end at the designated time to enable the next student to have their full lesson. If you wish to speak to the tutor, in detail, about your child’s progress then please do this during the first few minutes or the last few minutes of their lesson.
Behaviour
Parents are responsible for ensuring that their children know how to behave well. Discovery Tutors reserve the right to cancel any bookings for students whose behaviour is unacceptable. You will, of course, receive a refund for outstanding sessions if we need to enforce this.
Student progress feedback
If your child has face-to-face tuition, we regularly give feedback, to the parent collecting the student, at the end of each lesson upon collection. If your child has online lessons, then please join the video call at the beginning or end of the session for your verbal feedback. We do not provide written progress reports.
Special requests
We reserve the right to charge for special requests. Examples include, but are not limited to: