Expect roughly £20 to £50 an hour in Birmingham, or about £150 to £300 a calendar month depending on whether it is a group or one to one. The spread is wide because it tracks experience and track record rather than anything standardised.
Here is what the money actually buys, and where it is worth paying more.
What the rates look like
| Format | Typical hourly | Typical monthly | What you are paying for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group class, tuition centre | Lower end of £20 to £50 | From around £150 | Structure, pace, other children |
| One to one, online | Middle of the range | £200 and up | Attention, no travel |
| One to one, in person | Upper end, £50 and above | £300 and up | Full attention, experience |
Across a full preparation year that is roughly £1,800 to £3,600 or more, which is worth pricing as a year rather than as a monthly figure before you commit.
What actually justifies a higher rate
Price tracks expertise and experience, and specifically a tutor's record with this test. The West Midlands partnership test is not the national 11+, and a tutor who has taught it for years knows where the marks actually go.
Ask directly:
- How many years have you prepared children for this test?
- What happened to your students last year?
- How do you cover non-verbal and spatial reasoning specifically?
- What do I get between sessions, and how will I know if it is working?
A tutor who cannot answer the last one is selling you hours rather than progress.
Why online has grown
Two practical reasons, and neither is about teaching quality.
Parents work later than they used to, and a physical centre means a block commitment plus getting a child there once or twice a week. Online removes the travel entirely, which for a family with two working parents is often the difference between tutoring happening and not happening.
There is also a teaching argument for it in one subject. Non-verbal reasoning is easier to teach online than in a classroom, because the drawing tools let you mark up the question itself, which is hard to do in a room unless you are working through a projector.
Group or one to one
Group classes are popular in Birmingham, Manchester and London, and not only because they are cheaper.
The honest case against is focus: a child who drifts in a group gets less from it. The case for is the atmosphere. A competitive edge between children of similar ability does something a one to one session cannot easily reproduce, and it is why we run groups at Bright Mentors.
The clear exception is attention. A child with real difficulty sustaining concentration, and that includes many children with ADHD, usually needs one to one to build the focus the test demands. For them the extra cost is buying something specific.
Before you spend anything
- Diagnose first. Sit a timed mock and find the actual gaps. Our free mock test will do it.
- Price the year, not the month.
- Start with a group unless attention is the problem.
- Ask what happens between sessions. An hour a week alone is not enough.
- Review at half term. If nothing has moved, change something.
And remember our honest answer on whether you need a tutor at all, which is no.
See where your child stands today
Timed sections in the GL Assessment format, marked instantly, with a topic-by-topic breakdown. No sign-up to start.
What you are really paying for is the track record
Live tutoring can be very expensive, and it depends a lot on preference. Busy parents are now opting for online, while some parents do not consider online as effective because lessons happen at home in a child's comfort. It comes down to your own belief about how learning works.
What has definitely changed is time. Both parents are often working until late in the evening, so it is about finding a way for their child to get the right learning. That is why online tutoring is on the rise. A physical centre requires a block commitment and taking your child there once or twice a week, and that is a lot of commitment on top of everything else.
On price, it varies, and it depends on the expertise and experience of the tutor and what has happened to their past students. Anywhere between £20 and £50 an hour is the range. Group tutoring is very popular in the major cities, Birmingham, Manchester, London. The downside for some parents is the element of focus. But at Bright Mentors we have had a huge success rate with groups over the years, and we think group is better than one to one, because it creates an atmosphere with a competitive edge.
Mushtaque Ahmed, Founder of GrammarPath and Bright Mentors
Frequently asked questions
How much does 11+ tutoring cost in Birmingham?
Roughly £20 to £50 an hour, or about £150 to £300 a calendar month depending on whether it is a group class or one to one. Across a full preparation year that is approximately £1,800 to £3,600 or more, which is worth pricing as a year before committing.
Why do 11+ tutor rates vary so much?
Because price tracks expertise, experience and track record with this particular test rather than anything standardised. The West Midlands partnership test is not the national 11+, so a tutor who has taught it for years knows where the marks actually go.
Is online 11+ tutoring as good as in person?
For most children yes, and for non-verbal reasoning it can be better, because drawing tools let a tutor mark up the question itself in a way that is hard to do in a classroom. Online has grown mainly because it removes travel for families where both parents work late.
Is group tutoring or one to one better for the 11+?
Group classes suit most children and are not only cheaper: a competitive atmosphere between children of similar ability does something one to one cannot easily reproduce. The clear exception is attention, where a child who struggles to sustain focus usually needs one to one.
What should I ask a tutor before paying?
How many years they have prepared children for this specific test, what happened to their students last year, how they cover non-verbal and spatial reasoning, and what the child gets between sessions. A tutor who cannot answer the last one is selling hours rather than progress.