Our History

Schoolfriend Ltd was founded in 1999 by Stephen and Amanda Argent. On realising that each of their daughters found different elements of their homework challenging, they recognised the need for the customised tuition. They soon identified the internet as the ideal medium to offer cost-effective, customised tuition, tailored to each child’s individual needs.

Schoolfriend was developed, in conjunction with education specialists, to be aligned to the National Curriculum. It was first introduced in schools in 2000.

At the heart of Schoolfriend is the belief that given the right support, every child can reach his or her potential. Schoolfriend aims to increase self-confidence and empower children with the skills to learn for themselves at their own pace; while making learning fun and engaging.

The programme has been endorsed by the Institute of Education and has received recognition and praise from both the press and education professionals. Schoolfriend is now used by over 850 schools and after-school clubs throughout the country.

Schoolfriend also plays a central role in Schoolfriend etc Clubs. Schoolfriend etc is the largest charitable provider of childcare in the country, and for about twenty minutes each night, every Schoolfriend Club uses the school’s IT facilities to work with children on the Schoolfriend programme.

Following the success of Schoolfriend, the company launched Phonicfriend in 2007. Phonicfriend uses an innovative and fun audio-visual method of learning to read. It provides children and adults with traditional reading exercises, presented in an interactive, entertaining and stimulating format via a web-based programme.

With Schoolfriend and Phonicfriend currently covering Maths, Spelling, Vocabulary, Reading, Punctuation and Grammar, there are future plans to expand the topic range to include English, Science, History, Geography, Verbal Reasoning, Non-Verbal Reasoning and General Knowledge.