Who are we?
Hello,
My name is Sue Riddle and I have brought together the best team of teachers who love supporting our young people to achieve their academic and personal successes. Like me, they are experienced and fuelled by knowing that they are providing a superior education to our students. We all understand the pros and cons of traditional school settings and we enjoy our work because we know that we can bolster young people’s knowledge base, skills and confidence: at Left Hand Thread, we have created the arena to fully develop our own skills and we can pass that creativity forward to our students.
We truly believe that an holistic approach to education is the way forward and that’s why, although our students work hard to achieve their full potential, they thoroughly enjoy their learning experience and keep coming back for more.
Sue has over twenty years’ experience working with children in an educational setting. She is extremely dynamic, has been a Unit Leader for a local Brownie Pack (Brown Owl), led the PTA for her own children’s school and gained her English degree whilst juggling life as a single parent and working two jobs.
She spent valuable years working as a teaching assistant before becoming an English teacher and putting into practice the teaching methods she’d observed. Later, she set up and led the English department in an Alternative Provision school before moving into private education, teaching in tuition centres and in an Alternative Provision school for vulnerable children. She built up a successful private tutoring business through word-of-mouth alone and Left Hand Thread Academy fulfils her ambition of expanding this business so that more children can benefit from the knowledge, skills and methods she has honed over those twenty years.
She is a brilliant teacher: demanding and focused on instilling rigour, with an intuitive understanding of how to give her pupils the tools they need to think for themselves and be ambitious. She also has great warmth and passion, and works tirelessly to make her lessons memorable, enjoyable and fun.
Sue is a brilliant teacher – inspiring, energetic, provocative, demanding. She instinctively knows how to equip her students to learn: from having a calm and disciplined classroom to pre-teaching what students need to know to successfully navigate a new topic. Every time I work with her, I take something away to improve my own teaching.
Colleague
Shaun Austin spent fifteen years working in the corporate world before following his passion for language and teaching. He gained a first class honours degree, a distinction at MA, an MRes and a PhD in linguistics. He has a PGCE in secondary English and a CELTA for teaching English as a second language. He has a wide range of teaching experience, having worked with vulnerable children in care, immigrant agricultural workers, engineers, nurses, children with behavioural problems and undergraduates at a Russell Group university.
He is an expert in English language and loves to engage children in aspects of language not usually covered in mainstream education, such as the study of language and power and how different social subgroups use language to navigate their world. He has a passion for introducing children to challenging cerebral activities such as chess and moral philosophy and believes these pursuits are invaluable for developing young minds and building character, as well as providing cultural capital to make pupils stand out when competing with their peers.
Testimonials
We went out for a walk while he had his lesson. Have to say, while we were walking, I was thinking how lucky we are to have found you. A is certainly beginning to find his way! Thankyou! I am so delighted that you have A on the right track.
Thankyou sooo much, Miss, for being such an incredible tutor, for all of your lessons, advice and for all of the help that you have given me throughout my studies. Many thanks, A
Hi Sue, I first want to say thankyou for being my English tutor. I feel like I have improved so much with your help.
It's always a pleasure to meet tutors who are genuinely interested in the kids. To be honest, I couldn't support Tobi like you do and I'm really grateful.
Thanks Sue, He absolutely enjoyed your lesson! I've never seen him so enthusiastic after a lesson. I wish I had been patient and used you for my daughter.
Talk to us
Have any questions?
We are always happy to talk about your children and how we can help you.