Exam Season Survival Tips for Northamptonshire Families: Advice from a Local Education Expert

If your house feels like it’s running on stress and revision notes right now, you are absolutely not alone. Exam season is one of those times where the pressure doesn’t just land on your teenager – it seeps into the whole household. You’re trying to be supportive without hovering, calm without being dismissive, and helpful without doing their revision for them. It’s a lot.

That’s why I wanted to share this advice from Tutu Alaka, CEO of Bauhaus Education in Northampton. With over 20 years’ experience supporting struggling and anxious students, she knows exactly what families are going through right now – and her tips are the kind of practical, no-nonsense guidance we all need to hear.

Also check out: Bauhaus Education: A Northampton Tuition Centre Celebrating 10 Years of Changing Young Lives

Northampton education leader issues exam season advice for local families

A Northampton education leader is urging local families not to let exam season overwhelm them – and is sharing practical, evidence-based advice to help students perform at their best during one of the most stressful times of the year.

Tutu Alaka, CEO of Bauhaus Education, has over 20 years’ experience helping struggling and anxious students turn things around. With GCSE and A Level exams running until the end of June, she wants Northamptonshire families to know that how students prepare in the days and hours before an exam matters just as much as the revision they have already done.

“The biggest mistake students make at this stage is thinking they need to cram. Your brain needs space to consolidate, not more information thrown at it. The night before an exam, stop taking in new material by early evening, eat a proper meal, and get to bed at your normal time. Sleep is when your brain finalises what it has learned – disrupting that is one of the biggest performance saboteurs there is.”

Tutu Alaka, CEO of Bauhaus Education

The morning of an exam

Tutu also has a clear message for the morning of an exam. “Eat breakfast, even if nerves reduce your appetite – your brain needs glucose to function. Give yourself more time than you think you need, because rushing activates your stress response before you have even sat down. And limit conversations with friends beforehand about what might come up. Those conversations tend to fuel anxiety, not settle it.”

Once in the exam room

Once in the exam room, Tutu advises students to take two or three slow, controlled breaths before reading a single question. “This is not a soft suggestion – it is neuroscience. Controlled breathing activates the part of the brain responsible for clear thinking. Under pressure it is the single fastest way to shift from panic mode into performance mode.”

She also urges students to read the whole paper before writing anything, and to start with the question they feel most confident about. “Confidence builds momentum. Starting with a question you know well settles your nerves and gets your thinking flowing. The harder questions often feel more manageable once you are in your stride.”

Advice for parents

For parents, Tutu’s advice is simple: be the calm in the storm. “Keep home as calm as you can during exam weeks. When your child comes home after a paper, don’t ask for a detailed debrief – ‘how did it go?’ is enough. Detailed questioning adds to the anxiety. Trust the preparation. Your quiet confidence in them is worth more than any last-minute advice.”

About Bauhaus Education

Tutu is CEO of Bauhaus Education, an OFSTED-registered tuition and complementary education centre based in Northampton town centre (Notre Dame Mews, NN1 2BG). Bauhaus works with students from Key Stage 2 to A Level, including those who are struggling in mainstream school, disengaged from learning or in need of targeted exam support. The centre is an approved examination centre for AQA and Edexcel.

“What I see every year at Bauhaus is students who come to us in September saying ‘I can’t do this, what’s the point?’ and who by the summer are saying ‘I actually did it’. That transformation is possible for every young person – but they need the right support, and they need to know that nerves are not a sign something is going wrong. Nerves mean they care. And that is a very good place to start.”

Tutu Alaka, CEO of Bauhaus Education

Whether your teenager is sitting a handful of GCSEs or a full set of A Levels, the weeks ahead can feel relentless – for them and for you. Tutu’s advice is a good reminder that some of the most powerful things we can do as parents don’t involve any revision at all. A calm home, a proper meal, and quiet belief in your child can make more of a difference than you might think.

If your child needs more structured support – whether that’s targeted tuition, exam preparation, or just a different environment in which to learn – it might be worth finding out more about what Bauhaus Education offers locally.

And if you’re looking for ideas to help the whole family decompress between revision sessions, why not take a look at my free rainy day ideas pack – sometimes a bit of low-key family time is exactly what everyone needs. You can also sign up to my weekly newsletter for local things to do – because life doesn’t stop just because it’s exam season.