Child Safety & Safeguarding for Private Tutors
Safeguarding guidance for private tutors and one-to-one coaches working with children, covering online lessons, boundaries, and reporting concerns.
Private tutors and one-to-one coaches hold a position of trust with children, often working alone with them in person or online without the oversight a school provides. That one-to-one context — frequently in a family home or over video call — brings real safeguarding responsibilities. This guide covers the boundaries, online-lesson safety, and reporting routes every tutor should have in place before their first session.
Why this matters
Unlike school staff, private tutors usually work without a safeguarding team down the corridor, DBS checks are not always required by law, and lessons happen in private settings. This makes clear professional boundaries and a known reporting route essential — both to protect the child and to protect you as a professional from misunderstanding or allegation. A child may also disclose something to a trusted tutor precisely because you are outside their school and family.
Quick wins
Agree a simple safeguarding and communication policy with parents before the first lesson
Time: 20 minutes
Get an enhanced DBS check and keep your own record of it
Time: 30 minutes
Set up a professional account for online lessons, separate from personal social media
Time: 15 minutes
Common challenges
Working one-to-one with a child, often in a home or online, with no colleague present
Keep sessions observable: tutor in a shared or visible part of the home with a parent nearby, or in online lessons keep a parent informed and the door open. Avoid closed-door isolation and never move contact to private social apps.
Online lessons over video call blur professional boundaries
Use a professional platform and account, not personal social media. Keep communications with the child copied to a parent, dress and set up as you would in person, and avoid private one-to-one messaging channels with the child.
Not knowing what to do if a child discloses harm or you become worried
Know your route in advance. You are not there to investigate — listen, reassure, do not promise secrecy, write down what was said, and pass it on. Contact the child's school Designated Safeguarding Lead or your local authority; call the NSPCC helpline (0808 800 5000) if unsure, and 999 in an emergency.