To become a Functional Skills tutor you need two things: subject competence in English or maths — usually at least a Level 2 in the subject you'll teach, and frequently higher, up to A level or a degree — and a recognised teaching qualification. The usual entry qualification is the Level 3 Award in Education and Training (AET); a full tutor role often expects the Level 5 Diploma in Teaching (Further Education and Skills) or a PGCE (FE). You do not always need the teaching qualification before you start: many providers take tutors on and let them gain it on the job. Functional Skills Qualifications in English and maths are current and still funded — they are not being phased out — and are taught across colleges, adult learning and apprenticeships. Pay is indicative but sits within the National Careers Service further education teacher range of £28,000 to £47,000, typically toward the lower-to-middle of it. Below is the honest route in.
Figures here are indicative and dated. The salary range is the National Careers Service further education teacher profile (accessed July 2026); Functional Skills tutor roles usually sit toward the lower-to-middle of that band. Actual pay varies by region, subject, hours and provider — treat it as a guide, not a fixed rate.
What qualifications do you need to be a Functional Skills tutor?
Two building blocks sit under every Functional Skills tutor role. The first is subject competence: solid enough English or maths to teach it, usually evidenced by at least a Level 2 in the subject and frequently more — A level, a degree, or a numerate or literate professional background such as accountancy, engineering or writing. The second is a teaching qualification, because you're teaching adults and older teenagers in a further education setting, not just using the subject yourself.
Most tutors start with the Level 3 Award in Education and Training (AET) — the short entry teaching qualification — and build up to a full teaching qualification while working. The table below maps the route.
| Qualification | What it's for | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Subject competence in English or maths | Proof you know the subject well enough to teach it — usually a Level 2 minimum, often A level, a degree or a numerate/literate professional background | Level 2+ |
| Level 3 Award in Education and Training (AET) | The entry teaching qualification — enough to begin delivering with support | Level 3 |
| Level 5 Diploma in Teaching (Further Education and Skills) | The full teaching qualification for a substantive tutor role | Level 5 |
| PGCE (FE) / Cert Ed | The university route to full teaching status in FE | Level 5–7 |
One thing worth clearing up before you pay for anything: a PGCE (FE) is the further education route, not a schools PGCE with qualified teacher status. Functional Skills is a post-16 and adult qualification, so the teaching qualifications that count are the FE ones. If you're weighing teaching against assessing, or you're not sure which combination employers ask for, our explainer on how FE teaching and assessing qualifications fit together sets them side by side.
Are Functional Skills being phased out?
No. Functional Skills Qualifications in English and maths are current and still funded — RQF qualifications from Entry Level up to Level 2, delivered widely across colleges, adult learning and apprenticeships. They are not being scrapped or replaced.
The confusion comes from a real change that people mishear as "Functional Skills are going." From February 2025, the mandatory requirement for adult apprentices aged 19 and over to achieve Level 2 English and maths to complete their apprenticeship was removed — whether an adult apprentice works towards English and maths is now the employer's and apprentice's choice, rather than a condition of reaching gateway and completing (FE Week, 2025). What did not change: apprentices aged 16 to 18 at the start still must work towards and achieve Level 2 English and maths. So the qualification itself is intact and funded; one exit requirement was relaxed for one group. If a job advert or a colleague tells you Functional Skills is being abolished, that's the story they've garbled.
For a candidate, the practical read is simple: the teaching is still there, the funding is still there, and the entry route hasn't moved.
How do you get into it from another job?
Functional Skills tutoring is one of the more open doors into further education teaching, because the barrier to entry is subject competence you may already have. Numerate professionals — from finance, engineering, science or trades — and people with strong English backgrounds routinely move across, often after a career break, a return to work, or a shift out of a first career. You don't need the full teaching qualification before you begin; you need enough of the subject and a willingness to qualify on the job.
The route in tends to run like this:
- Confirm your subject competence — at least a Level 2 in English or maths, ideally higher, plus the confidence to teach it to mixed-ability adults and 16- to 18-year-olds.
- Take the AET — the Level 3 Award in Education and Training is the short, widely available entry teaching qualification.
- Find a provider that will develop you — many colleges and training providers hire on a "qualified or working towards" basis and fund the Level 5 Diploma in Teaching once you're in post.
- Build towards the full qualification — the Level 5 Diploma in Teaching (Further Education and Skills) or a PGCE (FE) opens up substantive and better-paid roles.
If you're aiming at adult learners specifically — evening classes, community provision, ESOL or adult numeracy — our guide to becoming a tutor in FE and adult education covers that setting in more detail, including where Functional Skills sits within it.
What does a Functional Skills tutor earn?
Pay is best treated as indicative, because there's no single national scale and providers set their own rates. The useful anchor is the National Careers Service further education teacher range of £28,000 for a starter to £47,000 for an experienced teacher (accessed 2026). Functional Skills and English and maths tutor roles typically sit toward the lower-to-middle of that band, and vary by provider, region, hours and whether the post is full-time, sessional or term-time only.
A few things move you up it. A full teaching qualification rather than just the AET, experience across both English and maths rather than one, and work in specialist contexts — SEND or ESOL, for example — all tend to command more. Sessional and part-time rates are common in adult provision, so compare the hourly or pro-rata figure, not just the headline salary, when you weigh up roles.
Is there still demand for Functional Skills tutors?
Yes — and this is where the February 2025 change matters more than the headlines suggest. Removing the mandatory English and maths requirement for adult apprentices makes that slice of demand more employer-led than automatic: some employers and apprentices will still choose to include it, others won't. But it's only one slice. The larger, protected sources of demand haven't moved.
| Learner group | English & maths requirement (from Feb 2025) | What it means for demand |
|---|---|---|
| Apprentices aged 16–18 at the start | Must still work towards and achieve Level 2 English and maths | Mandatory — steady, protected demand |
| Adult apprentices aged 19+ | No longer required to achieve Level 2 to complete — now the employer's/apprentice's choice | Employer-led rather than automatic |
| 16–18 study programme learners and GCSE resits | English and maths remain a continuing condition of funded full-time study | Persistent, high-volume demand |
Put together, that keeps English and maths teaching a persistent shortage area in our experience recruiting across the sector: 16- to 18-year-olds on study programmes, learners resitting GCSEs, adults who still opt in, and providers who build English and maths into their offer regardless. Tutors who can teach both subjects, and who'll travel between sites or take on sessional hours, are consistently among the more placeable candidates we work with.
How Aptitude can help
We recruit only across further education, skills, apprenticeships and employability — and the founders came from delivery roles in it — so we can tell a career-changer honestly which providers develop unqualified tutors, where a maths specialism opens more doors than English alone, and which contracts are worth taking on their pro-rata rate rather than their headline one. If you've got the subject and you're ready to qualify on the job, or you already hold the AET and want a role that funds your Diploma, we can point you at posts that fit. See our advice for candidates, and talk to us before you take the first vacancy you find.
Frequently asked questions
Are Functional Skills being scrapped or replaced? No. Functional Skills Qualifications in English and maths are current and still funded, from Entry Level to Level 2, and are taught across colleges, adult learning and apprenticeships. The change people confuse with this is from February 2025: the requirement for adult apprentices aged 19 and over to achieve Level 2 English and maths to complete their apprenticeship was removed. Apprentices aged 16 to 18 must still achieve it. The qualification itself continues (FE Week, 2025).
Do you need a degree to teach Functional Skills? Not necessarily. You need genuine subject competence in English or maths — usually a Level 2 minimum, and often higher such as A level or a degree — plus a teaching qualification. A degree helps, but a strong numerate or literate professional background can be enough, especially where you can evidence the subject to the level you'll teach. Many tutors qualify as teachers on the job after starting.
Can you become a Functional Skills tutor without a teaching qualification first? Often, yes. Many providers hire on a "qualified or working towards" basis, taking you on with the AET (or the expectation you'll gain it) and funding the Level 5 Diploma in Teaching while you work. There's no requirement to hold the full teaching qualification before you start, though colleges will expect you to be working towards one.
How much does a Functional Skills tutor earn? Pay is indicative and set by each provider. The National Careers Service puts the further education teacher range at £28,000 for a starter to £47,000 for an experienced teacher (2026); Functional Skills and English and maths tutor roles typically sit toward the lower-to-middle of that band. Sessional and part-time posts are common in adult provision, so compare the pro-rata rate, not just the headline salary.
