The Business of Tutoring & Dyslexia with Lizzie Edwards

[00:00:00] Ben: Is there a common misconception with dyslexia? 

[00:00:04] Lizzie: Well, some people just think unless your spelling’s terrible, your reading’s bad, and your writing’s bad, you haven’t really got dyslexia. Well, that’s, that’s a myth because someone can have learnt through sheer hard work and good teaching to be a very good reader even though they’re dyslexic.

There’ll be something, but particularly with very bright children, they’ll have come up with very clever ways to mask their difficulties, have worked very, very hard behind the scenes to achieve the same as somebody with perhaps less ability who hasn’t had to work anywhere near as hard. So yes, there are lots of misconceptions.

[00:00:46] Ben: Lizzie Edwards, welcome to Berko & Beyond. 

[00:00:48] Lizzie: Thank you. 

[00:00:49] Ben: I am looking for- well, I was looking forward to this conversation, but there’s been all sorts of preamble, and, uh, I feel like I might be diagnosed for something a- as we, as we go on. But let- We’ll get into it. Um, a- in all seriousness, preamble, uh, us chatting outside, it was like, “Right, stop talking.

Let’s get inside, uh, and let’s do the podcast,” uh, because it’s a fascinating subject. Tell us who you are and what you do, and then let’s dive into that subject. 

[00:01:15] Lizzie: Okay. Um, my name’s Lizzie Edwards. 

[00:01:18] Ben: We did that bit, but yes. 

[00:01:18] Lizzie: Yeah. And I run Next Steps Dyslexia Assessment based in Berkhamsted. 

[00:01:24] Ben: Yeah. 

[00:01:25] Lizzie: Um, set up that business in March 2025.

Um, so alongside that I also run a tutoring business- 

[00:01:33] Ben: Yeah … 

[00:01:33] Lizzie: Boost Tutoring, and I am a classroom teacher, just one day a week in a school, 

[00:01:39] Ben: So you started off as a, a full-time teacher, right? 

[00:01:42] Lizzie: Yes. 

[00:01:42] Ben: Yeah. And then, uh, wanted to spend more time with your own family? 

[00:01:46] Lizzie: Yes, because what some people don’t realize is if you are a classroom teacher, particularly a primary school teacher, is that you have to be in your own classroom with your class from about 7:30 in the morning, which means that you don’t get to take your own kids to school or pick them up.

Um, so yeah, after a while, after several years, decided a bit more work-life balance, wanted to see my kids more, so, um, stepped back and set up my tutoring business. 

[00:02:14] Ben: Um, so the tutoring business has been running for a few years now. 

[00:02:17] Lizzie: Yeah. 

[00:02:18] Ben: And the dyslexia side of things is- Well, it came from that, didn’t it?

It was- 

[00:02:25] Lizzie: It did. It’s, it’s partly personal, because we’d always suspected that one of my daughters had dyslexia. She always found spelling really hard, was never a reader, constant reports from teachers saying what she says is much more articulate. Verbally, she’s much more confident. What she writes on the page doesn’t transmit, blah, blah, blah.

Um, but she was so bright. You know, she was still doing everything they needed her to do. She was making the progress, so they kept saying, “No, she’s not.” Anyway, long story short, eventually, during her GCSE mocks, school contacted us and said, “She’s underperforming. She’s not completing the papers. She’s not producing what she can in class and what she does for homework.

Uh, we think you should get her assessed for dyslexia.” And we said, “Yes, we’ve been saying that for years, but thank you.” So she had a late diagnosis. Luckily, it happened before GCSEs. So she was able to achieve her very good set of results, and she’s now at uni. Um, but it drew my attention to the fact that there was a bit of a gap there.

There are plenty of dyslexia assessors out there, and in fact, I had my own preferred one that I would refer my own private students to- 

[00:03:39] Ben: Yeah … 

[00:03:39] Lizzie: as and when I spotted there might be an issue there. Um, and what I realized was that I was gaining a lot of experience in working alongside children with dyslexia, either undiagnosed or diagnosed.

Um, so decided to take the plunge, do the training, and become a dyslexia assessor myself. 

[00:04:00] Ben: Amazing. So how long does that kind of assessment, uh, does that training take? 

[00:04:05] Lizzie: It’s, the quickest you can do it is two years. 

[00:04:08] Ben: Right. 

[00:04:08] Lizzie: And it’s very intense, because you’re inevitably juggling it alongside work. Um, so there’s what you call a level five and then a level seven.

I won’t get into the technicalities of it, but you have to, you have to get a qualification as a specialist teacher before you can embark on the actual becoming a dyslexia assessor qualification. Um, so part-time, and it’s kind of roughly 20 hours a week, but it’s, it’s, it’s a lot, um, alongside the day job.

Um, so it’s quite intense. 

[00:04:41] Ben: So that’s quite a lot to take on, running a business and going back to school essentially, or going back to university I guess it’s more,

[00:04:49] Lizzie: Yeah. It was, it was really, it was really, it was good. I mean, really good. And I think most working adults at some point, if they can, should do it because, especially if you’re in the teaching profession, if you’re in the, in the field of education, being on the other side, being the pupil is, is really interesting.

And I learnt a lot about myself, how I learn, remembered all the things I didn’t like about learning, remembered all the things I did like about learning, and engaging my brain in a way that’s just very different, and I hadn’t done since I was at university. And this is, it’s a, it’s a post-graduate qualification.

It’s very high level. I had to write a dissertation. 

[00:05:29] Ben: Wow. 

[00:05:29] Lizzie: Um, and you know, learn how to learn in the modern world, so online with online libraries and referencing and all of that. 

[00:05:38] Ben: Um- It’s interesting ’cause from a, as a business owner, I often think, “Oh, I couldn’t imagine going back to school again and doing all that kind of stuff,” but I’m probably doing it anyway because, as you know, we’ve talked about it before on this podcast of, you know, we- we- we’re blagging it to start with when you start your own business.

Yeah. And a lot of the time, particularly if it’s- 

[00:05:58] Lizzie: Fake it until you make it, I think is the phrase. 

[00:06:00] Ben: There, there is that phrase. Yes, yes. And some of us, you know, have perhaps done that for a while, and then… But in all seriousness, that l- learning as you go and learning in different ways, and there are many different ways to learn now as well.

So from a, a, a business point of view, it is a great thing to go back to school. 

[00:06:18] Lizzie: Yeah. Yeah. It is. It is. It was really… I found it, um, very empowering and, um, I learned… Yeah, as I said earlier, I learned a lot about myself and, um, yeah, what I’m good at and what I’m not perhaps so good at. Um, but you’re right.

As soon as you become a business owner, you are learning on the job all the time anyway. So you’re right. You are a learner anyway, it’s just a learner in a different way. 

[00:06:43] Ben: Was there anything on that learning side of things that surprised you? You said you learnt a lot about yourself but was there anything in there where you were like, “Oh wow, I’m really good at this,” or, “Oh wow, I, I am useless at this.

Why didn’t I know?” Or- 

[00:06:57] Lizzie: Uh, yes. I was reminded at what a slow reader I am. Faced with all this reading to do, I thought, “Oh, this is gonna take me a long time.” So maybe the 20 hours a week that they kind of say is roughly a guide is gonna be longer for me, ’cause I’m generally slower. 

[00:07:12] Ben: Excuse me, please. Where is the audio version of this? 

[00:07:15] Lizzie: Yes. Yeah. Yeah, exactly. And, um, because you have to learn about all your full cognitive profile, you inevitably start looking in on yourself. And I’d be thinking, “Oh, working memory difficulties are often, um, sit alongside, uh, dyslexia. I’ve definitely got working memory difficulties.”

So it makes you hold the mirror up to yourself as well, because you’re doing a lot of learning about not just dyslexia, but the other co-occurring difficulties as well. And, um, thinking actually I recognize some of that in myself. And then you inevitably start to look at the people around you as well, your immediate family, your friends, your colleagues, and, um, yeah, you just start- 

[00:08:00] Ben: Your podcast host.

[00:08:02] Lizzie: Yes, your podcast host. Yes. We talked about that earlier, didn’t we? 

[00:08:05] Ben: Yeah, we did. But in seriousness though, you… I’m… As you’re describing, uh, your daughter’s dyslexia and the stru- and I’m like going, “Yep, yep, yep, yep.” So for someone like me at, at, at, you know, my, my age of life- does it matter? Does it- Uh, do, do, we, ’cause you, like, don’t need a diagnosis for something like that.

You cope very well with, with whatever it might be anyway. 

[00:08:31] Lizzie: Yeah. And that, that is my view. Obviously each in- individual is different. Um, and, you know, you’re running a successful business, so I don’t think you have any need for a diagnosis. And I will sometimes say that to friends who are adults, you know, “I think I’m dyslexic,” they might say.

“Do I need to get myself assessed?” Why do you need to do that? Because you’re running a happy, successful business and life. Why, why the need? I think where people seek an assessment and a diagnosis is where they’re finding something difficult. So for my daughter, it was because she was finding, um, exams and completing them in time, that, that’s what she was finding difficult.

And when parents come to me to discuss the possibility of doing an assessment for dyslexia, it’s because their child is struggling. They are finding school difficult, and it’s having a negative impact on them. People don’t seek these things unless, you know, there’s a reason. 

[00:09:28] Ben: Um, so we, we’ve mentioned the word dyslexia several times.

Can we talk a little bit about the diagnosis? Uh, sorry, about the definition, because I think to some people it means, it means different things, and actually we, well, you’ve, we’ve pulled up- I- We’ve pulled up the actual dictionary definition, as it were. 

[00:09:46] Lizzie: Yeah, yeah, 

[00:09:47] Ben: yeah. And we’re not sure you agree with it, or we agree with it.

[00:09:49] Lizzie: Yeah. There are, there are aspects. So the definition was updated in 2025, and I do agree with the definition broadly speaking, and we have to map our assessments and reports and diagnosis to the definition very clearly, and I understand that. But it was interesting to sort of remind myself, it says, “A specific learning disability, often on a continuum characterized by persistent difficulties in accurate or fluent word reading and spelling.”

And I think that’s a totally accurate, succinct overview. The word that I have a little bit of a problem with is disability. 

[00:10:28] Ben: Yeah. 

[00:10:29] Lizzie: I often say, um, a specific learning difference. 

[00:10:33] Ben: Yes. 

[00:10:34] Lizzie: Um, but then in conversations with other people, they will quite rightly point out that actually disability is a word that is understood universally, and sometimes it can be helpful in explaining that having dyslexia, much as having ADHD or autism or dyspraxia, has its pros, but it has its cons as well.

Um, so that awareness and that understanding from other people. 

[00:11:01] Ben: I guess from the child’s point of view from, if i- in your expertise as well, being able to call it a difference rather than a disability has pros and cons as well. 

[00:11:13] Lizzie: Yeah. 

[00:11:14] Ben: Probably within a friendship circle, saying, “I’m a bit different”, is a bit different saying, “I, I’ve got a disability,” and how kids react to each other as well. But the, the main thing obviously is that they’re gonna get help through their, the rest of their own, their educational life. 

[00:11:29] Lizzie: Yeah, yeah. 

[00:11:30] Ben: Extra time and- 

[00:11:31] Lizzie: Yeah, absolutely. And I think it’s really important how, um, that is communicated to the children.

That’s a really good point, and it’s often one of the things that a parent will ask me first of all, because they will say, um, “I’ve told my child that they’re going to come and see you, and they’re going to do some tasks and activities, but how shall I explain it to them that we don’t know, but we think you might have dyslexia, and we want to find out more to see if you have or not?”

And it’s presenting it in a way that’s positive, as if it’s, it’s not a negative thing. It’s just about ensuring that you get the help that you need and deserve at school and, you know, if you decide to go onto higher education, and then further beyond that in the workplace, just so that people have an awareness.

[00:12:23] Ben: And of that awareness, does it, do you, when you’re assessing, do, does it often come with something else? Is, or, or it’s like food allergies are like. Oh, it’s, you always have two, it’s always paired with something. Is the, if when you see dyslexia is the, with this ADHD, dyspraxia you’ve mentioned as well, they often,

[00:12:43] Lizzie: Yea. they often co-occur. And part of the training, quite a large part of the training, and in fact my dissertation may have been on this, um, is the prevalence of other things like autism, ADHD, um, DLD, which is developmental language disorder, dyspraxia, which is a coordination disorder. Um, because whilst I’m only qualified to assess for dyslexia, I have to have an awareness of all of those other things in order to be able to comment qualitatively within my report, and then I can make recommendations about referring on.

So I might say, um, “Here’s a referral letter. You might want to consider seeing your GP about a possible ADHD referral.” Um, or I might simply say, “This is an area I noticed during the process. Monitor it, keep an eye on it, be aware of it. Um, and possibly in the future you might want to explore having another assessment for a different, um, aspect.”

[00:13:45] Ben: There are people that will say that this kind of thing has been around for forever, and we just kind of, you just get on with it and… But there’s more awareness right now. Is, is that the reason for more diagnoses? 

[00:13:58] Lizzie: Yeah. There’s far more awareness, and there’s far more understanding and, um, support available, and an awareness that, um, children don’t have to just get on with it and make do.

Um, accommodations can be made, and actually- That’s a really positive thing because one of the things I hear again and again from parents is what’s perhaps motivated them to come to me in the first place, is that they’ve noticed an impact on their child’s self-esteem and their confidence. So they’ll perhaps have gone from being a really happy child who loves going to school, uh, to being a bit more withdrawn and starting to think that they are stupid, that they can’t do things.

And that’s really, that’s difficult to watch. It’s difficult to watch as a parent. It’s difficult to watch as a teacher as well. So I think, um, culturally and in our society now, we’ve become better at understanding that difference doesn’t have to be a negative thing. 

[00:15:00] Ben: Mm-hmm. 

[00:15:00] Lizzie: Yes, it can come with its challenges, but better to support the differences that children have, their learning differences, their learning profile, try and get the most out of them.

‘Cause at the end of the day, parents and teachers are aligned in that. They want to get the most. They want to each child to achieve their potential, and in order to do that, you’ve got to try and remove any barriers along the way. So that’s what it’s about. 

[00:15:25] Ben: And is that as the child develops, obviously things are getting more difficult as far as from a learning, you know obviously things are stepping up. Is that when it starts to show? Is there a certain age, age group where- It, th- that’s, uh, it sounds daft to say, but I say, like, daft things all the time. Is there a sweet spot for diagnosis that, at a certain age or- 

[00:15:45] Lizzie: I mean, I, I tend to think that if a child has shown signs of difficulty accessing the curriculum in primary school, it’s best to tackle it then, ’cause primary schools by nature are a much more nurturing environment.

They have one teacher invariably who knows their, e- each child very, very well. Um, so before they leave primary school. However, that said, some children can get by. They mask, and they’re doing just about okay at primary school. They’re quite happy. You can’t see any negative things going on there. So it takes until they get to secondary school for people to start to think, hang on a minute, this child’s gone from being this really happy, positive child who loves school to really struggling at secondary.

Why is that? And people start to ask questions, teachers and parents alike. So for me, there’s not really a sweet spot, but if a child is struggling clearly at primary school, particularly in key stage two, so from year three onwards, it’s better, I think, to look at why that might be when they’re in a more nurturing environment so that they’re then set up for success at secondary school, because it’s much easier to be lost in secondary school because it’s so much bigger, and the teachers don’t know you so well ’cause you’ve got so many different subjects.

[00:17:05] Ben: And it’s about giving them the right tools, yeah? Yeah. For that- 

[00:17:08] Lizzie: Yeah … 

[00:17:08] Ben: to, to, to excel in many ways. 

[00:17:11] Lizzie: Yeah. Absolutely. So if a child moves up to secondary school with a diagnosis of dyslexia, um, if it’s a good school, which most schools are, then there is an awareness that, that’s communicated to the teachers about the fact that this child, you know, shouldn’t be expected to copy from the board.

They’re gonna find certain things harder in a classroom context. Perhaps giving them extra time for assessments or even homework and that sort of thing. So again, it’s that awareness and understanding about what that child needs in order to succeed. 

[00:17:44] Ben: And talking of success, there are many people in the business world with dyslexia- 

[00:17:50] Lizzie: Yeah

[00:17:50] Ben: who probably wouldn’t be as successful if they weren’t dyslexic. 

[00:17:56] Lizzie: Absolutely. I mean, Richard Branson is the one that everyone quotes, very successful businessman, and there are countless others. There are successful people across the arts and business and everywhere, and in recent years they’ve been much more open about talking that in public and saying, “Yeah, I wouldn’t be without my dyslexia.

It’s given me an extra something. It’s made me work harder. It’s, it’s made me be more creative and find different ways of being successful because school was always challenging. I had all these other challenges, so I went looking for other things elsewhere.” And dyslexic people are often some of the most creative thinkers.

They can think outside the box. They’re not deterred by obstacles in the way, often much more determined and very hardworking. 

[00:18:42] Ben: I think there’s a thing there about not just, uh not having to get it r- not having to get it be p- it be perfect so you d- you then can move on and get to the next bit and overcome that step and then, and then just iterate as you go.

[00:18:57] Lizzie: Yeah. And actually often, and this’ll be one of the reasons why a lot of successful business owners are dyslexic, is they’re not deterred by making mistakes. It’s that classic mantra of you learn through your mistakes, and they make you stronger, they help you learn, and then you pick yourself up and you try a different way, or you try a different tact, or you go down a different route.

And that tenacity and that ability to keep going even when you’re making mistakes and you’re learning on the job, it, it, it can be very, very successful. 

[00:19:30] Ben: Um, so let’s go back to, to you as, as the business person and, uh, from the teacher to the tutor- 

[00:19:39] Lizzie: Mm … 

[00:19:39] Ben: uh, now in- into the assessment. Um, it’s a lot to take on.

[00:19:45] Lizzie: Yeah. 

[00:19:45] Ben: Um, h- how do you feel now you’ve come out the, the other side of it? Uh, and, and, and what are the biggest challenges at the moment? 

[00:19:53] Lizzie: So I feel very proud of myself. 

[00:19:55] Ben: Um- So, and quite rightly so … 

[00:19:56] Lizzie: yeah, and I, and, and that gives me a buzz, the fact that I’ve not sat still. Um, I, I, I’m not dyslexic, but I am constantly learning from my mistakes, picking myself up, saying, “Oh well, don’t worry about that too much.

Keep going. Keep going.” Um, and trying to reflect on what’s worked and what hasn’t, and trying to be kind to myself. Um, it does help that I live with someone who’s also a business owner. So although I don’t know the ins and outs of his business, my husband’s business, and he doesn’t really know the ins and outs of mine, it’s quite helpful to have those chats of an evening where you say, “Oh, I’ve had a really tough day.

It’s not gone according to plan. I tried X, Y, and Z. I thought this was gonna work, and it’s not.” Um, and then also the other thing is the sort of the business side of things, the commercial side, because having been in a classroom, I wasn’t commercial. Um, and then even just setting up my tutoring business, I had to become much more commercial than I had before.

And then I would say with the dyslexia assessment business, I’ve had to become even more commercial. 

[00:21:03] Ben: So what’s the most challenging thing about that, about that, then, the s- the setting up? By the way, just as a side note, you will find out more about your husband’s business if he ever manages to find time in his very busy schedule to come on this podcast.

And he, of course, can listen to your episode and find out all about your business. 

[00:21:20] Lizzie: Yeah. I have had words. He said he can’t make next Friday. 

[00:21:22] Ben: No, I d- I can’t, yes, too, too busy, before going on holiday or something was the, but, 

[00:21:27] Lizzie: Well, that’s, that, that is the thing, 

[00:21:29] Ben: holiday. 

[00:21:29] Lizzie: Yes. 

[00:21:29] Ben: Yeah, which are important, as we all know.

We do. As business owners, the downtime is important, so I’ll let him off. 

[00:21:35] Lizzie: Yeah. 

[00:21:35] Ben: Yeah. Um, but I, so, so going from, yeah, it’s, it’s a, it’s an interesting thing I’d like to dig into. Going from the classroom… as a teacher to then starting your own business- 

[00:21:45] Lizzie: Yeah … 

[00:21:45] Ben: is worlds apart, right? 

[00:21:47] Lizzie: Yeah, massive. Massive.

And I have been on a steep learning curve. So previously, I had never been on social media. Wasn’t really interested. My friends are my friends, and I’m quite traditional in that way. But clearly, in this modern world, you can’t run a business without being on social media, so I am on Facebook. In fact, Facebook is a brilliant tool and platform for me promoting what I do.

Um, I had to build a website, maybe with some help from my husband. I’ve had to learn about marketing, how to market my business. Um, I mean, the things that come naturally to me are the relationship management, the liaising with the parents and the children. Uh, what doesn’t come naturally to me is self-promotion.

I’m not very good at shouting about what I do and what, you know, saying I’m doing it really well. I just do the job and think that, you know, perhaps everyone should just know what I’m doing, and that I’m, of course I’m gonna do a good job, ’cause I care and I’m a teacher and I’m a, I’m a tutor and I’m a dyslexia assessor.

Um, but it doesn’t work like that, and I realize that. So juggling all of those things, so staying true to what I believe in and what I want to do to help the children and keep tutoring and teaching and assessing and helping and supporting, but balancing that with the commercial side of things has been challenging.

[00:23:09] Ben: And there are many a business owner will be listening to this podcast going, “Yes, that’s me. That’s the same thing.” Yeah. And it’s, um the, the term imposter syndrome is, is banded, uh, banded around, banded around is probably not right, but it, it’s used, it’s used a lot. You hear it a lot.

Does that relate in that sense? 

[00:23:31] Lizzie: The, the sort of marketing and business side of things, yes. Um, so yes, AI is very useful. Terms and conditions for business, thank you. I’ll, I’ll, you know … So it’s things like that, um, are, are very, very helpful. I don’t have imposter syndrome when it comes to the teaching and the tuition with all of that, because I’ve got years of experience with that. With the assessment, inevitably, uh, there are people who know more than me, but I just keep a very open mind, and I keep learning. So professional peers and colleagues are really important. So that was the other thing I was thinking about, actually, was my business network.

[00:24:11] Ben: Yeah. 

[00:24:12] Lizzie: Um, I’m part of a, a local, um, assessors group, and it’s a very safe space to be able to put on a WhatsApp group, “Help, I’ve just assessed this child. I’ve never seen a profile like this. There’s some real contradictions there. Has anyone seen a profile like this before?” And being brave enough to reach out to that professional network and say, “This is a new one for me.

Anyone experienced this before? Can you help out?” And it’s a very reciprocal thing. So fortunately, I’m also able to help other people as well. 

[00:24:46] Ben: It always really surprises me when I speak to business owners who, who don’t have that or don’t, don’t do it, or, or in some cases refuse to do it, because one of the running themes on this podcast is exactly that.

If it’s a peer group, it’s a mastermind, it’s a WhatsApp group of fellow professionals. And it’s invaluable, right? 

[00:25:07] Lizzie: It, it is. I, I would go insane, literally go insane without my professional network. Um, and I have one in particular who we’re all… I mean, like barely a day goes by. Personally, I hardly know her, but professionally, we know each other inside out, and we’re very open and very honest, and there’s, there’s that reciprocal respect.

And we help each other out all the time, and we learn together all the time, most importantly. Because, you know, one of the things that some people don’t talk about is that running your own business can be a bit lonely because it is you, and the buck stops with you, and it’s your responsibility. So for me, and when I’m quite a sociable person, it seems totally natural and normal to reach out to that professional network and share experiences and ideas.

I couldn’t do it by myself. 

[00:25:55] Ben: I was gonna say, let’s talk about the loneliness of it because um, for you, it, it’s even…business owners talk about it being lonely at the top or lonely as the leader or, you know, l- lonely running the business because even though you’re surrounded by a team, uh, be that big or small, you know, two or 20 or 200, you’re at the…You’re the one who’s supposed to lead or lead upwards, as Ben Morton, previous, uh, podcast guest would talk about. But you are a, you’re, you’re a, a one-person band. A solopreneur is probably one of the terms that’s used as well. 

[00:26:31] Lizzie: Yeah. 

[00:26:32] Ben: Um, and you didn’t, I guess, sign up for that, but you did.

[00:26:36] Lizzie: Yeah, yeah. It, it’s not something I would necessarily choose. I’m quite comfortable being my own boss, but yes, it can be lonely, so the professional network is really important. The other thing that’s really important for me is going into school one day a week, because it keeps me current with what’s going on in the broader world of education, and I think that’s critical ’cause it’s constantly, constantly changing.

And in fact, I was motivated to go back into the classroom in 2021 in the aftermath, uh, aftermath of COVID. 

[00:27:10] Ben: Yeah. 

[00:27:10] Lizzie: Because I was at home doing a lot of Zoom tuition back to back, all day, every day, and I felt lonely, and I was motivated to apply to go back into the classroom. I didn’t wanna go back into the classroom five days a week, and I was quite happy with the tutoring, but I just felt the need to find an environment, a team, um, a community of fellow professionals that I could go and touch base with on a weekly basis.

And even the commute, I quite like that as well. It’s over in Watford, it might take me an hour, the traffic’s a nightmare, but it’s that thing of going to a place of work, seeing a team of colleagues, most of whom are brilliant- 

[00:27:52] Ben: Yeah … 

[00:27:53] Lizzie: and teaching children again. Actually being in the classroom and having that experience and that kind of, yeah, I, I did miss that. I don’t want it five days a week. I may have mentioned that a couple of times, but one day a week is perfect. 

[00:28:06] Ben: Do you find you’re honing your skills there as well? Did you, even if it’s subconsciously? 

[00:28:11] Lizzie: Yeah, definitely, because all the children are individuals. Over the course of the day, ’cause I teach the whole of key stage two, I teach just over 160 kids.

[00:28:22] Ben: Wow. 

[00:28:23] Lizzie: And because I’ve been at that school for five years now- 

[00:28:25] Ben: You’ve assessed every single one of them? 

[00:28:26] Lizzie: Well, pretty much … pretty 

[00:28:27] Ben: much. 

[00:28:28] Lizzie: Yeah. And I know all their names, and I’ve seen them grow up through the school from year three all the way to year six, and then they’ve gone off to secondary school, and I love it.

They just… It, it just gives you something, and it does keep you professionally current as well, which is really important. 

[00:28:45] Ben: Um, we said we might go off on a tangent in this podcast. Let, let’s do that slightly, ’cause something we were talking about there with COVID and kids and, and teaching. 

[00:28:54] Lizzie: Mm. 

[00:28:56] Ben: And parents that, that fellow parents that I talk to, no matter what age they are, the kids, everyone thinks, or everyone… I think there was a period where it was like our kids at this age, the two-year bits that they missed, that were, they were, they had it really bad in, in COVID. 

[00:29:13] Lizzie: Yeah. 

[00:29:13] Ben: And I think as we’ve gone on, I think it’s turned out that every year group almost who went through those COVID years have come out with something that’s, that’s been different to, to…

I’m not articulating this very well. Um- 

[00:29:31] Lizzie: All the children, whatever age they were during COVID, have missed out in some way or other, and in many cases they have caught up, they’ve made up for it in one way or another. But I don’t know of any age group from reception all the way through to upper sixth, year 12, that wasn’t impacted in some way.

[00:29:52] Ben: So we always said with our kids, who are 8 and 10 now- 

[00:29:56] Lizzie: Mm … 

[00:29:56] Ben: so, uh, through those reception years, and I think it was we got to year four, and my eldest, that was the first full year of school they had, ’cause they also had a disruption with the, with the teachers. They had a teacher swap in- Oh … in, in the middle of it, and it was like, “Oh, well, that’s the year that suffered the most.”

Mm. And then you speak, exactly like you were saying, you speak to someone whose kids were doing GCSEs or A-levels or didn’t do GCSEs or A-levels. 

[00:30:20] Lizzie: That was us. 

[00:30:21] Ben: Yeah. And then, um, that sounds totally different and it… Was it a plus? Was it a minus? I dunno. So how, how did it work not doing the GCSEs? 

[00:30:32] Lizzie: So, um, yeah, my youngest daughter did GCSEs and, and so she did do them, um, but it was a very different experience, and there was a lot of coursework and all of the learning in the lead-up to that was invariably at home.

Um, I think that’s another reason why, to be fair to the school, why they didn’t clock until the GCSE mocks that she had dyslexia, and that there were other things going on preventing her from being successful. Um, my other daughter was doing A-levels and she had moved sixth form, and just at the point where she was making new friendship groups, the world shut down.

She was also doing art, French, and Spanish, which are all very interactive subjects that benefit from being in an art studio, in a language lab, communicating with other people. Um, so that had a massive impact on her. Yeah, it, it… I don’t think there’s any child who wasn’t impacted in some way. Um, and there is a lingering, yeah, a consequence of that with most children, I think.

I mean, the most common one I hear is, um, we thought that the difficulties my child was experiencing at primary school was due to COVID, and the gaps that they had was due to COVID. But now we realize, and our teachers have pointed out to us, that over the last two or three years, the other kids have all caught up, and those gaps have been filled.

And they are where they should be. But we’ve noticed that, you know, this child hasn’t, your child hasn’t, so we need to look at other reasons beyond COVID. And in fact, it’s one of my standard questions in the sort of screening process is, what was the impact of COVID? How old was your child? What year group were they in during those, those years?

Because it will have had an impact 

[00:32:24] Ben: So the, the, the marketing and self-promotion thing, a lot, a lot of people find difficult- 

[00:32:31] Lizzie: Yeah … 

[00:32:31] Ben: uh, and continue to, to s- struggle with it might be the wrong word, but to b- it being a challenge. 

[00:32:37] Lizzie: Yeah. 

[00:32:37] Ben: But you set up your first business on word of mouth, right? 

[00:32:41] Lizzie: Yeah, yeah. I was very fortunate.

Um, I made some postcards, again, with a bit of help from my husband, and old school, very old-fashioned, I went round Berkhamsted and all the, um, notice boards, I just put these postcards up all around town. And, um, it was one person, Felicity, I won’t give her surname, but thank you, Felicity, uh, saw it, called me and said, “Oh, I’ve been looking for a tutor for my son and my daughter.

Perfect. Can you help?” And I said, “Of course.” And then bless her, bless Felicity, she put my details on a parents’ WhatsApp group at school, and all of a sudden my timetable was full of all of her friends who wanted me to tutor their primary school children, and there was my business set up. And thereafter, I mean, children often stay for a year, two, three years, depending on what their needs are, but I’ve always had a waiting list for the tutoring business, and it’s all word of mouth.

I haven’t had to do any marketing at all. People just recommend me, which is my perfect kind of marketing. 

[00:33:48] Ben: But it is. It’s, it’s a testament to the job that you do, and actually so many people miss. It’s like- 

[00:33:56] Lizzie: Mm … 

[00:33:56] Ben: you, you, the, there’s a book called, uh, Unreasonable Hospitality, and it’s basic- you know, you go, you go above and beyond to deliver that service.

[00:34:07] Lizzie: Yeah. 

[00:34:07] Ben: Because then, hey, guess what? 

[00:34:09] Lizzie: Yeah. People come back. Repeat custom I think it’s called, isn’t it? 

[00:34:14] Ben: Yeah. And creating fans, or super fans, or super referrers. 

[00:34:17] Lizzie: And it’s, it works both ways. I often say to the parents who are referring me, I say, “It works two ways,” because it also means that I am getting a, it weeds out the time wasters.

By the time someone’s picked up the phone or sent me an email or a WhatsApp or whatever it is, they’ve already spoken to a friend who they trust. So it’s that circle of trust as well where, “Well, oh, well, you know so-and-so.” “Yes, I tutored their child.” “Of course, come round,” ’cause I tutor from home as well.

So, you know, I’m welcoming people into my home. I have a separate study and it’s all very professional, but there’s an element of trust there on both sides, and so it works well for me as well as them, hopefully. 

[00:35:00] Ben: Qualified leads. 

[00:35:01] Lizzie: Mm. Yes. Is that what it’s called? I didn’t realize it had a term.

Qualified leads. Yes, I like qualified leads. 

[00:35:08] Ben: Um, is there a, a common misconception with dyslexia? Is there anything that people just- Think about it and go, “Oh, you’ve got dyslexia, you can’t, that you can’t read,” or- 

[00:35:22] Lizzie: That, yes … 

[00:35:23] Ben: you can’t spell, or,

[00:35:23] Lizzie: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, some people just think unless you’ve got all of the things, i- unless you, your spelling’s terrible, your reading’s bad, and your writing’s bad, you haven’t really got dyslexia.

Well, that’s, that’s a myth because someone can be, have learnt through sheer hard work and good teaching to be a very good reader even though they’re dyslexic. There’ll be something, but particularly with very bright children, they’ll have come up with very clever ways to mask their difficulties, have worked very, very hard behind the scenes to achieve the same as somebody with perhaps less ability who hasn’t had to work anywhere near as hard.

So yes, there are lots of misconceptions. Just because a child can read well doesn’t mean to say they don’t have dyslexia. 

[00:36:14] Ben: So if we’ve got parents listening right now, which I’m sure we have- 

[00:36:16] Lizzie: Mm. Mm … 

[00:36:17] Ben: uh, who are worrying about their child struggling, what would you say to them? What would the, the, the advice be to them?

[00:36:25] Lizzie: Talk to the teacher first of all. The school should be your friend, so the teacher should be your first port of call. And if done well, parents’ evenings are really good. There should be a SENCo in the school as well who, um, you should be able to speak to about your concerns and what you’ve observed. So working closely with the school is always the first point of contact.

Um, and, you know, a good teacher, a good SENCo will acknowledge those difficulties and might even engage with a conversation of, “Well, yes, I have noticed dyslexic traits there. There are difficulties. We can continue to monitor it, or you might want to look at perhaps getting them assessed for dyslexia.” Um, the difficulty at the moment is that there’s no government funding, so it can only be done through a private assessment to get a diagnosis.

[00:37:18] Ben: And we know someone who might be able to help there. We’ll put all the links, uh, to both your tutoring and your dyslexia assessment in the show notes. 

[00:37:27] Lizzie: Brilliant. Thank you. 

[00:37:28] Ben: And I think that piece of advice is a brilliant place to, uh, round the conversation off. Okay. Other than to say, uh, this has been fascinating, and we should do it all again sometime, but only after your husband has been on the show.

[00:37:39] Lizzie: Well, I’ll have a word and see if he’s got time after his holiday. 

[00:37:42] Ben: Some of his valuable time to offer- 

[00:37:44] Lizzie: Yes, yes …  

[00:37:45] Ben: the Berko and Beyond Podcast. 

[00:37:45] Lizzie: I, I will have a word. Thank you, Ben. 

[00:37:46] Ben: Lizzie, thanks for joining us. 

[00:37:48] Lizzie: My pleasure. All right. 

[00:37:50] Ben: Thanks for watching this week’s episode of Berko and Beyond. If you’d like to be a guest on the show, then drop us an email, podcast@berkoandbeyond.com.

And don’t forget to like and subscribe wherever you watch or listen to your podcasts. We’ll see you next week.