What Happened to First Tutors?
Tutoring news for UK tutors
What Happened to First Tutors?
A timestamped guide for tutors and students trying to understand the First Tutors closure, the company record behind the brand, and how TutorDex emerged in response.
Published: 25 May 2026 · Last updated: 29 June 2026
Current answer
What happened to First Tutors?
In early May 2026, the First Tutors UK website began displaying a closure notice stating the company had "made the difficult decision to close". The notice initially listed info@firsttutors.co.uk for existing queries and dpo@firsttutors.co.uk for data privacy enquiries. The live notice now points data-privacy enquiries to privacy.firsttutors.com/portal — a self-service Privacy Center. No official reason for the closure has been published.
The safest summary for tutors is: the First Tutors UK service appears closed, an official reason has not been found, and EduNation Limited remains active on Companies House. Website status and company status are different things, and tutors should treat them separately.
What has changed since the closure: First Tutors now provides a self-service Privacy Center at privacy.firsttutors.com/portal where tutors can download their full account data including reviews. TutorDex is the successor platform — the only one that accepts a full import of your First Tutors history so you can carry on with minimal disruption.
Timeline of events
Mid-to-late April 2026
Trustpilot reviews and tutor discussion posts began reporting site access problems, missing profiles, bounced emails, and uncertainty about the platform's status.
21 April 2026
A Trustpilot reviewer wrote that "the site has been offline for several days" and asked whether the service had closed down — an early public sign connecting access problems with possible closure.
27 April 2026
A reviewer reported seeing Error 404 behaviour and mentioned social-media chatter that First Tutors may have ceased trading.
28 April 2026
A reviewer wrote: "The website has disappeared along with my tutor credentials, documents and testimonials" — the clearest tutor-specific report connecting website disappearance with lost materials.
Early May 2026
Public discussion shifted from "is the site down?" to "has First Tutors closed?" and "what evidence is there?" across Reddit and tutor forums.
7 May 2026
A reviewer framed the timing as the "BUSIEST TIME of YEAR (in terms of exams) in the UK", explaining why a tutor-facing outage felt especially urgent during exam season.
10 May 2026
A live check of the UK First Tutors page confirmed the closure notice and the contact email addresses were displayed on the official site.
11 May 2026
A reviewer referred to seeking "copies of all your account information including reviews" after seeing the closure notice — showing why account history and review text became practical concerns.
After the notice
Search results may still show old profile pages, FAQs, contact pages, or review snippets. These are indexed historical material and should not be treated as current support instructions.
Who was behind First Tutors?
Historical First Tutors privacy-policy wording identified the company as follows:
"First Tutors is the trade name of EduNation Limited"
Companies House lists EDUNATION LIMITED (company number 06071367) as active, incorporated on 29 January 2007, with a registered office in Garstang, Preston, Lancashire. Edunation Holdings Limited is listed as a person with significant control.
A check of the public filing history does not show an obvious post-closure filing such as dissolution, strike-off, liquidation or administration. The latest visible filings as of 29 June 2026 were a confirmation statement and annual accounts. The absence of an insolvency filing is not proof that nothing is happening privately, but it means the public Companies House record does not currently provide an explanation for the closure.
| Similarly named company | Companies House record | How to treat it |
|---|---|---|
| FIRST TUTORS LIMITED (05562753) | Dissolved on 3 May 2011. | Not connected — a dissolved similarly named company. |
| FIRST TUTORS UK LTD (10351243) | Dissolved on 19 December 2017. | Not connected — a dissolved similarly named company. |
| FIRST TUTORS LTD (15575996) | Active 2024 company; not identified as operator of firsttutors.com. | Not connected in the evidence reviewed — do not assume from the name alone. |
Important: A registered office is a formal company-record address, not a customer-support address. Use the contact routes in the closure notice for queries.
Where tutors are discussing First Tutors
Public discussion can be useful for understanding what other tutors are concerned about, but it should not be treated as proof of why First Tutors closed.
Trustpilot
Recent reviews include tutors and users discussing website access, missing profiles, reviews, documents, and communication concerns. Some post-closure reviewers report receiving their data after submitting subject access requests, while others report delays or uncertainty. These are user-generated reports, not verified findings.
View Trustpilot reviewsReddit (r/TutorsHelpingTutors)
Active threads from April–May 2026 discussing the closure, evidence, and what tutors should do next. Check dates and first-hand detail before relying on any claim.
View Reddit discussionsWhat is confirmed, reported, and still unknown
Separating official evidence from public reports and unanswered questions before deciding what to do next:
Confirmed from official sources
The First Tutors page shows a closure notice. The notice gives info@firsttutors.co.uk for existing queries and points data-privacy enquiries to privacy.firsttutors.com/portal. Historical First Tutors privacy wording identifies the trade name as EduNation Limited, and Companies House lists EDUNATION LIMITED as active.
Reported publicly by users
Trustpilot and Reddit discussions from April and May 2026 include reports of an inaccessible site, worry about profile pages and reviews, concern about stored documents, and difficulty contacting support. Some users report receiving SAR data; others report delays. These show reader concerns, not the official cause.
Still not confirmed
No official reason for the closure was found. No official closure timetable, account-restoration plan, data-retention note, refund process, insolvency notice, cyberattack statement, data-breach notice or confirmed migration to another service was found in the available evidence.
What tutors can do now
These steps are practical guidance, not legal advice. They are designed for tutors who had a First Tutors profile, messages, documents, reviews, or billing records.
Download your data from the First Tutors Privacy Center
Go to privacy.firsttutors.com/portal, sign in with your First Tutors email, choose Download my data, and select both "Reviews about me" and "My full account data" for a complete copy. This is the quickest method — no password reset needed.
Import your history into TutorDex
TutorDex is the successor to First Tutors and the only platform that accepts a full import of your data — reviews, references, old requests and student details — so you can carry on with minimal disruption.
Save your own records as a backup
Keep screenshots, old emails, invoices, payment records, profile text, references, lesson enquiries, and any profile URLs you already have. Do not rely on search results staying visible.
Pursue refunds if you paid for a subscription
Tutors who have joined TutorDex report success with Section 75 claims through credit card companies, chargebacks through banks, and pro rata refunds from First Tutors for unusable Premium Tutor membership periods.
Use email as a fallback only
If the Privacy Center does not work for your account, use info@firsttutors.co.uk for existing queries and dpo@firsttutors.co.uk for data privacy enquiries. Keep the request focused and save a copy of what you send.
Fallback email wording — use only if the Privacy Center does not work
Data request email template
When this applies
Try the First Tutors Privacy Center first. Adapt this template only if you cannot access the self-service portal. Send personal-data requests to dpo@firsttutors.co.uk.
Suggested wording
Subject: Personal data request — former First Tutors tutor account
Hello,
I previously used First Tutors as a tutor. Please treat this as a request for access to personal data held about me.
My details:
- Name used on First Tutors: [your name]
- Email address used on First Tutors: [your email]
- Tutor profile URL, if known: [link]
- Approximate dates of use: [dates]
Please confirm whether you are processing my personal data and provide a copy of the personal data you hold about me, along with the supplementary information required for a personal-data request. If held, this may include my tutor profile text, subjects, prices, messages, reviews or feedback linked to my account, uploaded identity or qualification documents, references, billing records and account identifiers.
If any personal data I provided is available in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable form, please also let me know whether it can be supplied in that form.
Please tell me if you need reasonable identity evidence before responding, or if this request should be sent to another address.
Thank you, [your name]
The successor to First Tutors
TutorDex: the successor to First Tutors
Following the closure of First Tutors, TutorDex was built as its successor. TutorDex is the only platform that accepts a full import of your First Tutors history — reviews, references, old enquiry requests and student details — so you can carry on with minimal disruption. It operates on the same directory-style model: families find and contact you directly, you set your own rates, and you keep control of lesson arrangements.
TutorDex operates on a finder's fee model. A one-off payment of £9.99–£39.99 releases your chosen tutor's contact details. All further payments, communications, and arrangements are handled privately between you and the tutor. If your tutor does not meet your requirements, leave feedback to tell us why and we will connect you to another one free of charge.
Review imports and what to watch for
While TutorDex accepts a direct import of your First Tutors data downloaded from the Privacy Center, other platforms may offer review-import schemes with different methods. Before participating in any review-import scheme, consider:
Check what you are sending
Be careful before sending DSAR responses, private messages, student details, or email source files to a third party.
Ask how imported reviews are labelled
Ask whether imported reviews will be clearly labelled as originating from First Tutors.
Understand verification methods
Understand what verification methods are used — raw email source files, DKIM signatures, Wayback Machine snapshots, or official data exports.
Verify the platform's independence
Treat new directory-style services as independent unless they can prove a legal or operational connection to First Tutors or EduNation Limited.
TutorDex supports importing your historical First Tutors reviews directly via Web Archive links. Our system scans your archived profile snapshots, verifies your highest lifetime review count and average rating, and feeds that data into our search algorithm so you do not start from zero. Learn how to import your reviews →
Questions to ask of any new tutoring platform
The First Tutors closure has changed what tutors and parents should ask of any tutor marketplace. Before building a business around any directory, verify:
Export and portability
Can reviews, profiles, and messages be exported? What notice would be given before closure? Are shutdown and export promises written into the terms of service?
Operator identity
Is the operator clearly identified? Are the company details public? Check Companies House before relying on a new platform.
Review provenance and ranking
Are reviews native or imported? How are imported reviews labelled? Do imported reviews affect search ranking, or are they displayed separately? Can search placement be bought?
Data and refund policies
What happens to your data if the platform ceases operations? Is there a clear data-retention, data-portability, and refund policy?
Safeguarding and verification
Does the platform review documents or just collect them? Are DBS, PVG or AccessNI badges current? Are qualifications verified with the issuing body or self-declared?
Avoid single-platform dependence
Maintain your own profile page, keep lawful copies of testimonials, preserve email evidence of reviews, save invoices and platform receipts, and periodically export any data a platform allows.
Support and clarity
Frequently asked questions
Has First Tutors closed?
Yes. As of 29 June 2026, the live First Tutors UK page displays a closure notice stating the company "made the difficult decision to close" after more than 20 years of trading. The live page should be refreshed before relying on the exact status.
Why did First Tutors close?
No official reason has been published. The closure notice simply states the company "made the difficult decision to close". Various theories exist in public discussion, but none have been confirmed by official sources.
Can I recover my First Tutors profile, reviews, or documents?
Yes — the First Tutors Privacy Center at privacy.firsttutors.com/portal provides a self-service portal where you can download your reviews and full account data. Choose Download my data, sign in with your account email, and select both "Reviews about me" and "My full account data". Then import your data into TutorDex, the successor to First Tutors and the only platform that accepts a full import of your First Tutors history.
How long should a subject access request take?
ICO guidance says organisations should respond "without delay and within one month" in most circumstances. This may be extended by up to two further months if the request is complex or if there are numerous requests from the same person.
Is TutorDex connected to First Tutors?
TutorDex is the successor platform to First Tutors, built by a community of tutors following the closure. It is not operated by EduNation Limited and has no legal or operational connection to the previous First Tutors platform. It is, however, the only platform that accepts a full import of your First Tutors history — reviews, references, old enquiries and student details — downloaded from the First Tutors Privacy Center.
How is TutorDex different?
TutorDex operates on a finder's fee model rather than hourly commission. A one-off payment of £9.99–£39.99 releases your chosen tutor's contact details, and all further arrangements are handled privately. Tutors set their own rates, and TutorDex completes identity and reference checks on all registered tutors.
Are Trustpilot, Reddit, or tutor forums reliable sources?
These sources show what tutors and users are concerned about, but they are not official evidence of why First Tutors closed. Always verify claims against official sources, and check dates and first-hand detail before relying on any information.