A new education start-up business in Whitley Bay is providing children with a personalised and supportive alternative to the traditional school environment.
House of Orkney Education was founded by former Head of School, Catherine Orkney, who has launched a new service to support primary-aged children who are anxious, overwhelmed, struggling to have special educational needs (SEND) met, or just not thriving in mainstream education.
With nearly 20 years’ experience in school leadership, Catherine stepped away from her role in 2025 to create a teaching model aligned with her values – one that prioritises confidence, flexibility and meaningful relationships in learning. She says,
“Over time, I felt increasingly misaligned with the pressure-driven pace of mainstream education and the rising anxiety levels in children. So, I chose to look at how I could build something different for children and their families – a genuine alternative to high-pressure mainstream models.
“At the same time, I found myself needing to provide more support to my family as my mother has dementia. Managing the physical toll of that sustained stress was making my Head of School role increasingly unsustainable.”
House of Orkney Education focuses on building a child’s confidence in a calm and relaxed setting – with 1:1 tuition and small group learning sessions of up to four children available in-person or online.
Alongside her own teaching, Catherine also offers consultancy and training for schools and other education professionals. Her aim is to support leaders to rethink small-group provision, develop confidence building strategies and deliver sustainable alternative models.
Outlining House of Orkney’s approach, Catherine says,
“The learning model is intentionally low-stimuli, hands-on and confidence-led, creating a safe space where children can re-engage with education at their own pace. Currently, my clients include local families in the North East, home-educating parents and schools seeking bespoke support.”
Such is the demand for Catherine’s service that within 5 weeks of launching her business in January 2026 she had already enrolled 17 families.
Having identified a growing need for a sustainable alternative education model that could support the explosion of home schooling in the UK – which has increased by approximately 60% since 2018-19 – Catherine’s long-term ambition is to expand the offering and support more children with a combination of in-person Learning Hubs and remote tuition.
Stepping away from public sector and into the world of an education start-up
As a former Head of School, Catherine is used to being responsible for hundreds of pupils, staff teams and significant budgets. But becoming self-employed and starting up a business from scratch is something she admits to finding quite daunting at first:
“I left behind a good salary and pension when I left state education. My biggest concern initially was whether I could replace the income sustainably while maintaining the quality and values I stand for.
“I also lost my dad a couple of years ago. He was an ex-bank manager and would undoubtedly have been my go-to sounding board when launching something like this. I was very aware I was making this decision without that kind of financial mentor beside me, which made me approach the process with even greater caution and diligence.
“Rather than acting impulsively I treated the launch as I would any major strategic project – mapping revenue streams across tuition, group hubs and consultancy from the outset. I forecast capacity carefully, priced clearly and planned for growth from day one. That clarity turned uncertainty into informed action.”
In looking for support to validate her business plans and strategy, Catherine discovered the Enterprising North programme delivered by TEDCO Business Support and other partners, having first engaged with the Business Factory in North Tyneside. Funded by the UK government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund at the time, the programme gave her access to one-to-one support with business advisor, Bill Hartshorne.
Speaking on the support she has received, Catherine says,
“The mentoring I’ve received from Bill and the TEDCO team has helped me move beyond ‘educator starting something new’ to ‘founder building a commercially sustainable business’.
“Bill has helped me with structured conversations around financial forecasting, pricing models, scalability and positioning. But what has made the biggest difference is the ongoing nature of the support. Bill regularly connects me with local networks and organisations, flags courses and identifies funding streams that align with my growth plans.
“That continued engagement has helped me think bigger, act strategically and stay connected within the regional business community.”
Bill also introduced Catherine to some of the funding options available in the region, including the Growth and Funding Programme, which Catherine as one of 15 Female Founders to gain access to investor networks and specialist training.
In summarising her thoughts on the North East as a place to start a business, Catherine suggests:
“North Tyneside has a strong culture of community and collaboration. Word-of-mouth matters here and relationships are valued. Business owners are generous with their time and genuinely supportive of one another. There are excellent networking opportunities and real openness to innovation.”
Finding a renewed passion for teaching
Asked to reflect on what’s most rewarding about her chosen career move, Catherine says,
“It’s definitely seeing the transformation – in both children and parents. With children, it’s seeing confidence return. A child who once avoided learning begins volunteering answers. A parent says, ‘I finally feel informed about my child’s learning’.
TEDCO Business Advisor, Bill Hartshorne who has been working with Catherine since 2025, comments,
“Catherine is an incredibly impressive female founder who has achieved a huge amount in a short space of time. She began her start-up journey with a huge amount of experience in her chosen field, a clear idea of a gap in the market and a set of business values that shaped how she wanted to establish House of Orkney Education.
“It’s no surprise that she has already garnered so much interest from clients and funders alike. I can’t wait to see what the next few years hold for Catherine and her business.”
You can find out more about House of Orkney Education on the website.
Catherine’s support was delivered through the Enterprising North Programme which was funded at the time by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
From 1 April 2026, the Enterprising North Programme, a business support programme delivered by TEDCO Business Support and other partners is funded by the North East Combined Authority through its Integrated Settlement.
Are you ready to explore your own business ideas? Tell us a few details on this Initial Enquiry Form and we’ll be in touch to help you as much as we can.
