Testimonials

We are absolutely delighted to share our glowing experience with Marion, tutor to our children Lola (Y8) and Lawrence (Y6). Marion has been an exceptional guide in their academic preparation, and her support has made a profound difference to their learning journey.

What truly sets Marion apart is her professionalism, high academic standards, and her genuine care and compassion for her students. She doesn’t just teach—she inspires. Our children always looked forward to her classes, and their confidence (as well as their academic results) has grown significantly under her guidance.

Despite the challenge of online tuition due to distance, Marion’s ability to engage and connect with the children was exceptional. The quality of her teaching remained outstanding, and she ensured every session was both effective and enjoyable.

We wholeheartedly recommend Marion to any family seeking a passionate, results-driven tutor who genuinely cares about her students’ success. Her impact extends far beyond academics—she helps students grow as learners and individuals.

Xin Luo - April 2025

Marion has massively helped and improved my son and daughter’s English skills to the next level, while keeping the learning interesting and fun. I highly recommend Marion for 11+ and independent school exams.

Wendan Wang - May 2025

Marion tutored our daughter during Year 5 and 6, in preparation for her sitting entrance exams for Kings High and Kingsley. Our daughter enjoyed her sessions with Marion. Marion is very patient and calm. Marion boosted our daughter’s confidence and motivation. Marion was a key factor in our daughter being offered a place at both schools and being awarded a scholarship. We can highly recommend Marion.

Mark and Jen Turner - April 2025

Marion took our son and gave him the confidence and skills to excel in his Independent public-school exams and interviews. Not only did he achieve his goal in gaining entrance to Radley College but he now has a confidence and skill set to help him going forward. We cannot recommend her enough.

Matt Ball - April 2025

Our daughter enjoyed her sessions with Marion immensely. Marion has a comprehensive command of school and 11+ syllabus content, and teaches it with insight and empathy, drawing on her deep experience in teaching. Our daughter was offered places at both Stratford Girls’ Grammar School and King’s High School. We are hugely grateful for Marion's help and support, and she has our highest recommendation.

Amy R and Chris Hackley -May 2025

Marion tutored our daughter Atia for her 11+Exam. We were looking into both options; Grammar Schools & Independent Schools in the Warwickshire & Oxfordshire area. Marion helped Atia immensely with her confidence and determination to achieve her full potential. Our daughter was actually looking forward to her weekly lessons with Marion and was very excited to do her homework activities. Marion immediately picked up on her weaker subjects and gently helped Atia to improve and grow her abilities.

Marion manages to disguise the rather tedious studying process and exam preparation into an intriguing and enjoyable partnership and builds a bond of trust with her student. Marion also has an extensive knowledge regarding the schools in the area, the exam process & criteria and was so kind to help Atia to pass all her exams, and received Academic scholarship and awards.

Choosing the right secondary school for your child is such an overwhelming process for any parent, thanks to Marion we had few to choose from and made the best choice for Atia. We cannot recommend Marion highly enough.

Thank you very much!

Ilka & Nick Dinev - May 2025

Marion tutored our daughter Anna for her 11+ entrance exam for Grammar School. Marion really helped Anna tap into and achieve her full potential, which resulted in an 11+ score that was within the top 5% for the Warwickshire Schools area and several offers of places at Independent Schools including Oxford High School. She also has a wealth of knowledge about the State and independent Schools system and her advice was invaluable to us. We have no hesitation in recommending Marion, she is an excellent Tutor.

Barbara Horth - June 2023

Marion tutored my daughter for her 11 plus exam. My daughter took to Marion’s gentle and encouraging style straight away. Whilst my daughter is very confident in Maths, she was not so sure about the other elements of the exam. Marion worked with her to ground her Maths skills and build her confidence in verbal reasoning and comprehension. There was always a real eagerness from my daughter to attend the tuition sessions. I think she really enjoyed that one-to-one time. Marion also was able to talk to my daughter about her worries about attending grammar school, and over the time that Marion tutored her, my daughter came to believe in her abilities and showed pride in what she was learning. She has a place at Stratford Girls Grammar School. Working with Marion has made that whole process of applying and preparing for grammar school much easier for all of us.  

Chandima Dutton - March 2023

Marion tutored my son, Isaac, for the 11+ and I am very happy to recommend her to others. Marion quickly built a good relationship with Isaac - she challenged him and identified areas for him to work on but she also gave lots of positive feedback and encouragement and this gave him the confidence that he could achieve. She made sessions fun and Isaac always enjoyed going. Marion helped Isaac to score highly in the 11+ and secure a place at KES where he is now thriving.

Angharad - June 2023

Marion has worked wonders for our two children. Our daughter started tutoring to get her ready for the 11+ Grammar/ Independent School exams. Not only did she receive an offer from Alcester Grammar, she was offered Academic Scholarships for King’s High and Princethorpe College. Marion has of course helped her with preparation and knowledge for the exams but more than that, with Marion’s kind, encouraging and thorough approach, she gave our daughter confidence in her own ability allowing her to thrive. Our son was also tutored by Marion to prepare him for an entrance exam into Warwick Junior School, and once again Marion worked her magic, making sure there were no holes in his knowledge and preparing him for the exam. We were thrilled to be offered a place there too. We cannot recommend Marion enough, she has been a wonderful academic support to both our children.

Fred and Kiri Brookes - May 2023

We can 100% recommend Marion for both 11+ plus and Independent Schools entrance exam tutoring.  Our son started with Marion at the beginning of Year 5 and his vocabulary and Maths knowledge and application came on in leaps and bounds.  Marion has an ability to stretch and challenge bright kids and really enthuse them with learning new words and mathematical concepts.  Our son was so pleased to have the choice of an academic scholarship from Warwick and a place at KES Stratford (despite being in the outer catchment circle).  We have no doubt that Marion's expert tutoring was a vital factor in these two offers.  What was more important to us as parents though was that our son loved the sessions - Marion has nurtured and developed a love of learning in an 11 year old boy which is a really rare talent!

Mr and Mrs Lewis - April 2023

Marion has played a vital part in our children’s education.  After all the interruption to their school life from Covid we felt it important that they spent some time 1:1 with a tutor to ensure that they were achieving the level of education expected for their ages.  Their confidence and ability has done nothing but improve since they began and they are both now working above expectation for their ages. Both of the children, who are very different, enjoy their time with Marion.  We couldn’t recommend her more highly. 

Jodie Cherry - April 2023

Marion has been a wonderful tutor for both my children who have prepared for their 11+ examination with her. Marion is well organised in her sessions and preparation expected from the child between lessons. She manages to combine a good balance of support and stretch to a child and explains concepts in a clear and engaging manner. My son achieved a good 11+ score and secured a place at a grammar school and my daughter is working towards her 11+ presently and is enjoying the sessions. 

Helen Swift - April 2023

Marion tutored my twin boys in preparation for the entrance exams for two local independent schools. Both boys are quiet and reserved but she quickly established an excellent rapport with the boys and really brought out the best in both of them. She very quickly grasped the learning needs of each individual boy and worked according to each child’s different learning style and at a pace they found manageable. Both boys were offered places in their schools of choice. Marion was also a fantastic support to me as a parent trying to navigate a difficult and anxious time. She patiently answered all my questions and helped guide us through the process. I have absolutely no hesitation in recommending Marion as a tutor.

Marie Clifton - December 2022

Marion has been a very helpful tutor for our son heading towards his 11+ school entrance examinations. Marion has a wonderful warm manner, is well informed and very amenable. Her lessons were engaging and rewarding, with weekly homework set. We have noticed a huge increase in our son’s confidence and great progress leading up to his exams. Marion was very encouraging and clear what to expect in his exams and even did some work on interviewing techniques. Our son was offered a place at both schools he applied to and felt so comfortable, he even asked if he could continue weekly lessons with Marion after the exam. We could not recommend her highly enough.   

Nadine von Paledzki - June 2022

We would highly recommend Marion as a tutor. She has a thorough, professional and considered approach. She tutored first my son, currently Year 9 at Warwick School and then my daughter, currently Year 7 at King's High School. Both children loved their weekly sessions and found Marion to be kind and encouraging. She focussed on the areas where they needed support and prepared them expertly for the entrance exam process. We were thrilled when our son received offers from both Warwick School and Princethorpe College, and our daughter received an academic scholarship from Kingsley and an offer from King's High School. 

Hester, parent of Year 9 and Year 7 children - June 2022

Marcus had weekly lessons with Marion in preparation for the 11+ in Warwickshire. The lessons started off with an initial assessment, followed by a gradual introduction into the task in hand. This, at the time, seemed like an arduous affair for an adult, never mind a 9-year-old child. Marion dictated the pace throughout the process. She did it in a balanced and friendly way, considering Marcus’ ability and personality. This helped our son to remain focused, without feeling overwhelmed or discouraged by the sheer amount of work involved. It was not always plain sailing for Marcus though, but Marion was able to identify those difficult moments and introduce a lighter and fun way of presenting the material. She invested a lot of time and effort to get to know him well. Marion quickly developed a deep connection with him and understood what kept Marcus motivated, thus able to adjust to his needs and character. Marion’s personal approach was key in making the experience a whole lot easier. Needless to say, we were very appreciative and relieved that Marion took charge of the whole process from start to end. She gave us a piece of mind and made our lives easier. We admired her hard work, dedication, and individual approach. All her personal qualities, combined with her extensive knowledge of the 11+ exam, prepared Marcus to achieve a result above the qualifying score for all three of the Grammar Schools in Warwickshire. Thank you Marion for being such a great teacher and an inspiration for Marcus.

Kris & Anastasiya Emanuel - June 2022

We would highly recommend Marion as a tutor. She has an excellent helpful and friendly approach yet remaining professional at all times. We approached Marion about a year ago to tutor our then eight year old who can find maths sometimes a real challenge with consequent impact on his confidence. Marion’s style makes him feel relaxed and at ease with a subject that usually fills him with anxiety.  She explains things in a way he can more readily understand and gives him confidence. He has now developed a positive attitude about his sessions with Marion because he feels the time spent is both useful and enjoyable. We are grateful they are such a good match.

Dr Tarunya Arun - January 2019

My daughter has loved working with Marion Lawlor. She is patient and kind whilst ensuring the work is completed every session. She has challenged Scarlett’s abilities, pushing her to the next level, whilst ensuring her emotional wellbeing is nurtured. Mrs Lawlor has done wonders in supporting Scarlett to fill in the gaps in her knowledge. She has kept us involved, explaining what is going well and what needs to be worked on. She has given us tips and strategies to help us support Scarlett. Our daughter is now confident in her abilities and is looking forward to sitting her 11+ Exam.

Amanda Duncan - August 2017

Mrs Lawlor makes learning fun. She has helped me with my work and I have become more confident in the areas I struggled with before.

Scarlett - Year 6 Student - August 2018

Marion is lovely, but having said that does not put up with any nonsense. My child gets on very well with her and Marion has achieved more with my child in six months than I could have in six years.

Mother of a Year 5 Boy