A new private tuition centre has opened in the Maldon district to offer maths, English and reasoning sessions to children in small group workshops from pre-school age to GCSE.

Mum-of-four Susie Crafer decided to open the MagiKats tuition centre in Tollesbury after working as a secondary school teacher for almost 20 years, most recently as an assistant principal, and witnessing "firsthand what support is needed to enable children to be successful".

The centre offers weekly interactive workshops to support the school curriculum and provide a core skills development programme which is tailored to each child, focussing on study, thinking and problem-solving skills.

It is accepting student enrolments now.

Susie said: "The quality and variety of resources and support that students get face-to-face from their mentors, alongside the skills they develop by working in small groups means that students get the best of both worlds.

"The core work that they complete independently means that they develop skills in independence and resilience which are vital to their future success."

Susie has lived in Essex for 10 years and moved to Tollesbury 18 months ago.

While based in Tollesbury, the centre also covers Tolleshunt D'Arcy, Tolleshunt Knights, Heybridge, Goldhanger and Maldon.

She said: "Our tuition centre is based in the beautiful village of Tollesbury within easy reach of Maldon and the surrounding areas with good parking and bus routes.

"Our mentors are experts in their subjects and have been through the local education system so understand what is needed to be successful in this area."

Susie is a keen runner and fundraiser outside of her work, and runs a half marathon every year for charity - often for MS-UK or the MS Society - alongside supporting pregnancy and baby loss charity Tommy's and Bliss.

Until recently, she was a director and volunteer coordinator for junior parkrun.

Now embarking on her latest venture to help children succeed, Susie already hopes to expand and open additional MagiKats tuition centres in Essex in the future.

To find out more about the Maldon MagiKats centre, call Susie on 01621 212652.

Alternatively, click here to view the website.