Our Tutors

Chris Mcdowell

Hi there, I’m Chris! 

I have completed a 3 year BA degree (Liberal Arts with Physical Education) at St Mary's University Belfast. I then worked in an all boys Secondary School in North Belfast as a SEND teaching assistant for children who were visually and auditory impaired and also worked closely with children with Aspergers syndrome. I thoroughly enjoyed this line of work, and decided to take it a step further and completed a PGCE at Ashton-on-Mersey SCITT in Manchester in 2015. Since then, I have lived and worked in schools across South Manchester and Stockport. The majority of my experience is in KS2 but I love teaching any year group. My favourite subject is Mathematics as I enjoy the challenge that it presents and the feel good factor of solving problems that are quite tricky - even at the age of 29!

I am a huge sports fan and my specialist subject is PE at my current school. I enjoy using PE as a learning tool and incorporate it into my lessons where possible. In addition to a busy teaching life, I also manage an under 10's mixed football team in my spare time, alongside fellow tutor Simon. I happily admit that I’m no Alex Ferguson, but I do like to try!

Simon Robinshaw

Hi, I’m Simon.

After 12 years of being a postman, I decided I needed a new challenge in my life. That challenge was to become a teacher.  I completed a 4 year BA degree in Education at Manchester Metropolitan University in 2013. When I first left University, I decided to enrol with a teaching agency (Hays Education) and taught at schools in Stockport, Tameside and Manchester. This gave me the opportunity to teach at various schools, in a variety of different surroundings and settings. This experience was valuable to me and helped me to become the teacher I am today.

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I taught in a large primary school in Wythenshawe, then moved on to teach in Cheshire and the surrounding areas. Most of my experience is in KS2, however, I can turn my hand to any year group and love the challenge this brings. I am familiar with working on a one to one basis, helping children through their SATs and understand the requirements and expectations of entrance exams in the Independent sector.

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I love Mathematics and enjoy the challenges that it brings. I understand children find problem solving tricky and I enjoy helping them overcome these challenges. In one of the schools, I started out as P.E co-ordinator before being asked to help with maths. I embraced this challenge, as I believed I could help develop the maths curriculum and take the school in another direction, one that was needed for the school to make important progress.

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I pride myself on building a solid rapport with parents and children alike, in order to meet their learning needs. I strive towards delivering exciting and interactive tutoring sessions to create a love for learning, to build confidence and maximise the child’s full potential. Due to the feedback that I have received from the senior leaders, student bodies, teachers and parents, I know I have warmth and openness in relationships with all people in the school community, mainly through my approachability and good sense of fun.

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Outside of teaching, I love to play any type of sport and I’m a huge football fan. I manage an under 10’s and 11’s mixed football team in my spare time. This is a voluntary position and I love every minute of it because I know I am giving something back to the children and the local community. Move over Pep Guardiola.