From One WhatsApp Message to 45 Students a Week: Claire Torbett’s Power Up Tuition Story

One of the things I love about this finalist series is that every business starts differently.

Some begin with a detailed plan, a polished brand and a five-year strategy. Others begin with one small opportunity that turns out to be the start of something much bigger.

For Claire Torbett, founder of Power Up Tuition, that opportunity arrived in a street WhatsApp group.

Someone nearby asked if anybody knew a GCSE maths tutor. Claire had taught maths before, offered to help and quickly rediscovered how much she loved teaching.

As she told me, “It all came from a WhatsApp message.”

From that first student, the business grew through conversations, referrals and local demand. Today, Claire works face to face with around 40 to 45 students each week, supporting children from Year 3 through to Year 11 across Woking and the surrounding area.

Spotting the Gap in the Local Market

Claire had previously worked as a classroom teacher before life took her in different directions through family, moving abroad and supply teaching.

After returning to education, she knew something no longer felt right.

The tutoring enquiry gave her another route back into the part of teaching she genuinely enjoyed, and once more families began approaching her, Claire started looking closely at what was already available locally.

She found a clear gap: face-to-face group maths tuition.

Rather than automatically moving online, she built a model around what families in her area were actually asking for. Her sessions now take place in schools and from home, creating convenient, community-based provision that works for parents as well as children.

Claire’s current model includes:

• Face-to-face group tuition for children from Year 3 to Year 11
• Small, carefully matched groups based on age and ability
• Practical and playful maths sessions for younger children
• Focused GCSE support for older students
• A small number of one-to-one sessions
• Tutor mentoring for teachers moving into self-employment

That local focus has helped Power Up Tuition grow without Claire needing to expand online or chase a much wider audience.

Confidence Before Correct Answers

The heart of Claire’s approach is confidence.

Her younger sessions are designed to feel more like exploration than another school lesson, using games, crafts, equipment and practical activities to help children experience maths differently.

“If you build the confidence, then that builds the motivation,” Claire explained.

That belief also shapes the way she supports older students.

One student arrived struggling to achieve a pass in higher-tier GCSE maths. After only a few months, she gained an additional 17 marks in her mock exams and moved into a safer grade.

When Claire asked what had made the difference, the student replied, “I just believed I could try.”

That one sentence captures so much of what children need.

Fear can stop a student before they have even written anything down. Claire teaches them that they do not need to solve the entire question immediately. They need enough confidence to identify one piece of information, write one useful step and begin.

As she tells them, “You can’t get any marks if you write nothing.”

Changing the Story Around Maths

Claire also spoke about the negative messages children absorb around maths.

It is still socially acceptable for adults to say they were never good at maths or cannot do it, even though most people would never speak so casually about being unable to read.

Those comments matter.

Children hear them, carry them and begin to believe that maths ability is fixed rather than something that can be developed.

Claire’s job is to interrupt that story.

She wants students to understand that:

• Maths can be practical, playful and satisfying
• Getting part of a question right still matters
• A mistake is not proof that they cannot do it
• Confidence grows through repeated attempts
• Progress should be linked to the child’s own next step

Her work is not about pushing every child towards the highest possible grade for the sake of it.

Claire asks what they need next.

Do they need a pass to access a college course? A grade six to study a particular A Level? Greater confidence before moving into secondary school?

“We know that’s the baseline and anything beyond that is a bonus,” she said.

It is a much more human way to think about achievement.

You Do Not Have to Build a Bigger Business

One of the most refreshing parts of our conversation was Claire’s honesty about growth.

She does not want to employ a large team, manage multiple tutors or build a national online business. She has created a successful solopreneur model around her family, capacity and the work she enjoys.

“I don’t have to want that,” she realised after attending a tuition leadership event. “I can just be me and deliver the things that I want to deliver.”

That is such an important reminder.

Growth does not have to look the same for everyone. A business can be full, profitable and impactful without becoming bigger, more complicated or further removed from the founder.

Claire is now at capacity with students, so the next stage of growth is coming through mentoring other tutors who want support with group tuition, school partnerships and building their own businesses.

She is growing, but on her terms.

Watch Claire’s Full Interview

Watch my full conversation with Claire Torbett to hear more about building Power Up Tuition from one WhatsApp enquiry, helping children find confidence in maths and choosing a business model that genuinely fits her life.

Watch the full interview here.

You can also meet Claire at The Class Business Live and The Class Business Awards & Afterparty on Saturday 10 October 2026 at the National Conference Centre in Solihull.

The Class Business Live runs from 9:00am to 3:00pm and brings finalists, judges and sponsors together for a high-energy day focused on connection, visibility and impact. Expect guest speakers, mastermind table discussions and opportunities to connect with leaders from across the class-based business sector before the evening celebrations begin. Book your ticket here.