About
Why HILT exists
HILT was created by independent language teachers for independent language teachers — because being excellent at what you do is not the same as being easy to find.
The challenges of teaching independently
Independent language teachers often do outstanding work with very little visibility. Learners searching online tend to find large platforms and agencies first, even when the teacher they would get on with best is working independently a few streets away or a video call away.
Independence brings other pressures too. There are no colleagues along the corridor, no staff room, and nobody to ask about the small practical questions that come up every week. Many teachers tell us the hardest part is not the teaching, but doing everything around the teaching alone.
HILT exists to change both of those things: to make independent teachers easier to find, and to make working independently feel less isolating.
What HILT aims to do
- Improve visibility. A well-promoted public directory that puts independent teachers in front of people actively looking for lessons.
- Build connection. A community where independent teachers can talk to people who understand the work.
- Offer professional support. Shared ideas, advice and professional development that grow as the membership grows.
HILT helps learners discover independent teachers. It does not employ teachers, arrange lessons or take commission from lesson fees.
The founders
Two independent teachers behind HILT
HILT was set up by Barbara and Jennie, both independent language teachers, who wanted the kind of home for independent teaching that did not yet exist.
Barbara
Co-founder, HILT
Barbara is an experienced French teacher and language business mentor with over 15 years’ experience in language education. Through her own teaching business, Lingua Forme, she has helped hundreds of adults and young people develop their French skills and become more confident speakers. She also supports independent language teachers and tutors to build sustainable, successful businesses, drawing on her own practical experience of creating courses, developing teaching resources, attracting learners and running a busy language school. Barbara co-founded HILT because she knows how isolating it can feel to run a language teaching business alone. She wanted to create a supportive community where independent teachers could connect, share ideas and learn from one another. HILT also gives excellent independent teachers greater visibility, making it easier for learners to find the right teacher for them.
Jennie
Co-founder, HILT
Jennie has been teaching French, German and Spanish for 24 years and spent nearly 20 years working in schools, before going freelance in 2021. She has worked with learners of all ages from ages 7 to 70+ and supported them to learn, pass exams and communicate with confidence. She now focuses mostly on teaching Spanish to adults. As well as running a tuition business she also runs a successful speaking assessors agency and supplies foreign language speaking assessors to schools and independent exam centres in England. Jennie remembers what it was like to set up a new business alone and how hard it can be to find information for this niche. She loves working with others and wants to provide a supportive community for independent language teachers and tutors.