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Westminster Tutors, independent sixth form college

Retaking your A levels is a route, not a setback

If the grades were not what you needed, you have not lost the plan. You have lost a year, and a year is recoverable. This is what a retake year at Westminster Tutors involves.

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1.5
grades of improvement on average A level retake students
94%
of retake students placed at Russell Group universities 2026 cohort
75%
of all A level grades at A* to B 2026 results

First, the reassurance, because you probably need it

Thousands of students retake A levels every year. It is an ordinary thing to do and it is a route that universities understand. People retake because they were ill, because they were in the wrong subjects, because something happened at home, or because a school with thirty in a class never noticed they were struggling until it was on a results slip.

None of those say anything durable about how able you are. What matters now is not why the grades happened but whether the next twelve months are designed properly.

What a retake year here involves

A retake year is not Year 13 again. Repeating a year you have already sat through, in a class, is the version that does not work.

It starts with a diagnosis

Before a timetable is written we work out where the marks actually went. Marks are lost in two quite different ways: you did not know the content, or you knew it and could not get it onto the page in the form the mark scheme rewards. Those look identical on a results slip and need completely different remedies. A student who writes disorganised twelve mark answers does not need to relearn the syllabus.

The course is designed around you

Retake courses are individually designed, and wherever possible they continue on the same exam board and the same units you sat first time. That means everything you already learned still counts. You retake one subject, two, or all of them, and the untouched grades stand.

The teaching is one to one

Every lesson is individual or in a group of two or three. There is nowhere in a room that small to quietly avoid a topic, which is uncomfortable for a fortnight and then becomes the reason the year works. Alongside it, every student has an hour of individual mentoring each week, which is where the university plan and the wobbles get dealt with instead of accumulating.

Students on our retake courses improve by 1.5 grades on average.

What it costs

Fees are quoted per student rather than published as a single figure, because a year retaking one subject and a year retaking three are not the same course.

We would rather you compared. Ask us where our figure sits against the other tutorial colleges you are looking at and we will tell you plainly. What we would say is that the comparison worth making is not the headline fee but how many students are in the room for it.

Placeholder. Fee levels and what a quote includes will be written here.

Questions families ask us

Can I retake just one subject?
Yes, and most students do. If one grade is standing between you and an offer, the sensible course is a full year on that subject while your other grades stand untouched. Retaking one subject is also considerably cheaper and less exhausting than starting again from scratch.
Do I have to change exam board?
No, and you should not want to. Wherever it is possible we keep you on the board and specification you already sat, so that two years of learning still counts and the year is spent on what did not land. We enter candidates with all UK exam boards.
When do retake courses start?
Most students start in September and sit exams the following summer. Shorter courses are available for students who need one subject or who join later in the autumn after a change of plan. If you are reading this in late August, call us before you assume it is too late.
Will universities hold the retake against me?
Almost all UK universities accept retakes and make offers on the improved grades. The real exceptions are concentrated in Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary Medicine, and those courses publish their position. In 2026, 94% of our retake students were placed at Russell Group universities.
Is there an entrance exam?
No. Westminster Tutors is non selective. There is no admissions test and no minimum grade profile. The interview exists to work out what your year would need to look like, not to decide whether you are good enough.

From students who did it

I was a retake student at WT, I came in with BCC and finished with AAB. The teachers were incredible as I never thought it was possible for me to achieve an A in Economics. The 1 on 1 teaching is extremely beneficial and not only the teachers but all the staff are so attentive and supportive.

Lotte, A level retake student 2024 Now studying Sports Science at King's College London

I cannot thank you enough. Such a different story to when we met you last year. He is thrilled with his grades. I know that he has worked hard, but so have you and your wonderful team.

Parent of an A level retake student

Read more before you decide

  • University applications

    Do universities accept A level retakes?

    Almost all of them do, and they treat the new grade as the grade. The honest exceptions are a small number of Medicine and Veterinary courses, and they say so in writing.

    Dr Will Bynoe , 4 min read

  • A level retakes

    Can you retake A levels?

    Yes, and there is no age limit, no cap on the number of attempts and no requirement to go back to your old school. Here is how a retake year actually works.

    Virginia Maguire , 4 min read

See all resources

Tell us what your results say

Bring the actual grades, subject by subject. In fifteen minutes we can usually tell you whether a retake year is worth doing, which subjects are worth retaking, and what it would take to get you where you want to go.

Talk to us about retakes Or call the college 020 7584 1288