Specialised tuition and coaching in Barnet.
One to one tuition and 7+, 9+ and 11+ preparation in Barnet for children aged 7 to 13, and children's coaching for ages 7 to 18, delivered by a qualified teacher with a background in child psychology.
Working with families in Barnet and across North London.
- London Teacher of the Year Award 2021
- BSc Psychology
- Qualified Teacher Status
- Assistant Psychologist & Psychological Research Experience
- In person across North London and online worldwide
Ruby works with children and families across Barnet, in person, across both coaching and specialist tuition. Some children come to her because school has become hard in a way that is not really about the work. Others come for academic support or entrance exam preparation. Many need both, and the two are rarely separate.
Coaching for children in Barnet
Coaching is the part of what Ruby does that families most often tell her they could not find anywhere else. It supports the child behind the schoolwork: confidence, friendships, resilience, managing worries, handling change, and understanding their own feelings and reactions. It is for ages 7 to 18, it is practical and forward looking, and it is not therapy or clinical treatment.
Most families arrive with something specific. A child who has stopped putting their hand up. A friendship group that has shifted and left them outside it. A child who melts down after school every day and cannot say why. Mornings that have become a battle. None of these need a diagnosis or a referral to be worth addressing, and none of them are things a tutor alone can help with.
Areas Ruby covers in and around Barnet
Ruby works with children, young people and teenagers across Barnet and the surrounding parts of North London, in person and online. That includes Finchley, East Finchley and Finchley Central, Muswell Hill, Highgate, Hampstead and Hampstead Garden Suburb.
Tuition and 7+, 9+ and 11+ preparation are for ages 7 to 13. Coaching runs from 7 to 18, so it continues through secondary school and into the teenage years.
If you are just outside these areas, ask anyway. And if in person does not suit your family, or you are further afield altogether, everything Ruby offers also runs online.
Tuition and entrance exam preparation in Barnet
Alongside coaching, Ruby offers one to one specialist tuition for children aged 7 to 13, including subject teaching, support for neurodivergent learners, and preparation for 7+, 9+ and 11+ entrance exams. Everything is individually planned. Ruby works with every child herself, and nothing is passed on to anyone else.
There is more on entrance exam and interview preparation on the 11+ page.
How sessions work in Barnet
Sessions across Barnet usually take place in person in the family's home, and are booked around your child rather than around a fixed timetable. Weekly or fortnightly both work. Where in person is not practical, or where it simply suits your family better, sessions run online instead.
The first step is a free 15-minute conversation about what is happening for your child. There is no obligation, and if Ruby is not the right person she will say so and try to point you somewhere better.
What Ruby offers in Barnet
- 11+ and independent school preparation, including interview practice
- One to one primary tuition for children aged 7 to 13
- SEN and neurodivergent support, without asking a child to mask
- Coaching for confidence, friendships, organisation and big feelings
- Support for children finding school hard to attend
How sessions work
- In person at home, or online where that suits the family better
- Weekly or fortnightly sessions, at a time agreed in advance
- A plan built around your child, not a fixed syllabus
- Regular written parent updates so you always know where things stand
Frequently asked questions
Do you cover all of Barnet?
Ruby works across Barnet and the surrounding areas, including Finchley, East Finchley, Finchley Central, Muswell Hill, Highgate, Hampstead and Hampstead Garden Suburb. Sessions also run online, wherever you are. If you are not sure whether you are within reach, just ask.
Where do sessions take place?
Usually in your home, which is where most children are most comfortable. Online sessions are available as an alternative.
Is coaching the same as therapy?
No. Coaching is educational and forward looking. It does not diagnose or treat mental health conditions, and it is not a substitute for clinical support. If Ruby believes a child would benefit from clinical support, she will always say so.
Do we need a diagnosis or an EHCP?
No. You do not need a diagnosis, an EHCP or any formal label to be supported here.
What ages do you work with?
Coaching is for ages 7 to 18. Tuition and entrance exam preparation are for ages 7 to 13.
Where to start
If you are not sure which kind of support fits, that is normal and it is what the first conversation is for. You can read about specialist tuition, 11+ and entrance exam preparation or coaching, or simply get in touch and tell Ruby what is going on.
Qualified teacher, psychology graduate, and award-winning specialist educator.
Ruby Cole is a qualified teacher with Qualified Teacher Status and a BSc Psychology (Hons), and winner of the London Teacher of the Year Award 2021. With 10+ years working with children and young people across the UK and internationally, she supports both how a child learns and how a child feels.
Qualified teaching background
Classroom and specialist experience across London schools brings clear knowledge of progression, assessment, school expectations, and age-appropriate teaching.
Psychology and child development
A background in psychology supports careful attention to motivation, confidence, emotional regulation, and how each child feels safest and most ready to learn.
Additional needs and neurodiversity
Sessions are adapted for neurodivergent learners and children with additional needs, without lowering expectations or making a child feel singled out.
Every programme is delivered personally by Ruby Cole, a qualified teacher combining academic rigour with an evidence-based understanding of how children learn and grow. Ruby is winner of the London Teacher of the Year Award 2021, BSc Psychology (Hons), Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), with ten-plus years working with children nationally and internationally, including specialist 1:1 tutoring, Assistant Psychologist experience, and research with UCL and the Anna Freud Centre.
Every programme is built around the same principle: a child who feels understood is a child who can achieve more.
Talk it through with Ruby.
A free 15-minute discovery call, no pressure and no obligation.