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Home Education

What do the government documents say?

Elective Home Education Guidelines (2019)

Full documents above

Interesting Highlights

What is elective home education?

1.1 Elective home education is a term used to describe a choice by parents to provide education for their children at home - or at home and in some other way which they choose - instead of sending them to school full-time. This is different to education provided by a local authority otherwise than at a school - for example, tuition for children who are too ill to attend school.

1.2 Educating a child (or children) full-time at home is a rewarding but challenging task. Parents may choose to engage private tutors or other adults to assist in providing a suitable education, but there is no requirement to do so. There are other settings which may be used, for example parental support groups which offer tuition, and companies which give part-time tuition. This can also include provision made at further education colleges for children aged 14 and over.

1.3 Although children being home-educated are not normally registered at any school, parents sometimes choose to make arrangements for a child to receive part of the total provision at a school - the purpose of this will often be to provide education in specific subjects more easily than is possible at home. Such arrangements are sometimes known as ‘flexi-schooling’. Schools are under no obligation to agree to such arrangements, but some are happy to do so. When a child is flexi-schooled, the parents must still ensure that the child receives a suitable full-time education but the element received at school must be taken into account in considering whether that duty is met, just as it should be when a child attends other settings on a part-time basis as described above. Bearing that in mind, this guidance applies as much to children who are flexi-schooled as it does to others who are educated at home.

1.4 Parents who choose to educate a child in these ways rather than sending the child to school full-time take on financial responsibility for the cost of doing so, including the cost of any external assistance used such as tutors, parent groups or part-time alternative provision. If the child attends state-funded school or FE college for part of the week, that will have no cost to the parents. Examination costs are also the responsibility of parents if a child does not attend school full-time, although some schools or colleges attended part time may meet the costs, or the local authority may have a policy of assisting with such costs for children educated at home.

Why do parents home educate?

2.4 There are no specific legal requirements as to the content of home education, provided the parents are meeting their duty in s.7 of the Education Act 1996. This means that education does not need to include any particular subjects, and does not need to have any reference to the National Curriculum; and there is no requirement to enter children for public examinations. There is no obligation to follow the ‘school day’ or have holidays which mirror those observed by schools. Many home educating families do follow a clear academic and time structure but it should not be assumed that a different approach which rejects conventional schooling and its patterns is unsatisfactory, or constitutes ‘unsuitable’ education. Approaches such as autonomous and self-directed learning, undertaken with a very flexible stance as to when education is taking place, should be judged by outcomes, not on the basis that a different way of educating children must be wrong.

When is a child of concern?

3.1 If a local authority is aware that a child of compulsory school age is not attending a state or registered independent school full-time, and it is unclear how that child’s education is being provided, a local authority should consider the possibility that the child is being educated at home by its parents (possibly in combination with part-time attendance at another setting). In such a case, the local authority’s task is to find out how he or she is being educated and whether that education satisfies legal requirements.

 

3.2 Parents have a right to educate their children at home. Section 7 of the Education Act 1996

3.3 This means that the responsibility for children’s education rests with their parents. In England, education is compulsory, but – despite the phrase ‘child of compulsory school age’ quoted above – going to school is not. State-funded education is made available for all children of compulsory school age whose parents request it, and every child should be in school or receiving alternative provision made by the local authority or the child’s school, unless parents themselves can make suitable arrangements. If parents do educate children at home, section 7 means that the child should be getting an efficient, suitable full-time education.

 

3.4 In the case of some children who are home educated, this means that they have never attended school.

3.7 ...However, registration is currently not a legal obligation for either parents or authorities.

3.8 ...Home-educated children are NOT automatically ‘vulnerable’

3.9 Therefore Ofsted will look at the way each local authority deals with this issue, in particular the ways in which it identifies children who are not receiving suitable education and what steps the local authority takes to deal with that. Local authorities should keep known home educators and local home education support organisations informed of forthcoming Ofsted inspections and any input they can have, as well as outcomes of inspections – although reports on these are available on the Ofsted website. Ofsted has no responsibility for inspecting the provision of home education, only the way local authorities deal with it in the context of their statutory responsibilities.

Children who have never attended school

4.1 One of the most significant issues for local authorities in maintaining adequate oversight is the initial identification of children who are being educated at home. There is no legal duty on parents to inform the local authority that a child is being home educated. If a child never attends school, an authority may be unaware that he or she is being home educated.

4.2 Until a local authority is satisfied that a home-educated child is receiving a suitable full-time education, then a child being educated at home is potentially in scope of this duty.(sic)

Children who have attended school

4.6 Although most local authorities encourage parents who withdraw a child from school for home education to notify the school and/or the authority, (and DfE guidance to parents also encourages this) there is no legal obligation on parents to provide such notification, either in writing or otherwise, or indeed to provide any reason for withdrawal. The only exceptions to this are (a) that a child may not be removed from the roll of a special school without the consent of the local authority if enrolled there under arrangements made by the local authority, and (b) in cases where a child is enrolled at a school in accordance with a school attendance order, when the authority must revoke the order (or amend it to replace the school with a different school) before the child can be removed from the roll. However, it should be noted that until a child is removed from the school roll (which can only be when one of the trigger points specified in the Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006 as amended is reached), the parent is at risk of prosecution for not securing attendance at the school even if suitable home education is being provided. This means that it is in a parent’s interests to notify the school in writing of withdrawal for home education.

LA Responsibility

5.2 ...It is important that the authority’s arrangements are proportionate and do not seek to exert more oversight than is actually needed where parents are successfully taking on this task...

5.3 There are no detailed legal requirements as to how such a system of oversight should work, and it is for each local authority to decide what it sees as necessary and proportionate to assure itself that every child is receiving a suitable education, or action is being taken to secure that outcome. Establishing a positive relationship between the local authority and the home-educating parent – where that is possible - will allow authorities to better understand parents’ educational provision and preferences and offer them appropriate support. A positive relationship will also provide a sound basis for investigation if the authority receives information that a suitable education is not being 16 provided. 5.4 In any event, the department recommends that each local authority: • should provide parents with a named contact who is familiar with home education policy and practice and has an understanding of a range of educational philosophies; • ordinarily makes contact with home educated parents on at least an annual basis so the authority may reasonably inform itself of the current suitability of the education provided. In cases where there were no previous concerns about the education provided and no reason to think that has changed because the parents are continuing to do a good job, such contact would often be very brief;

Starting Home Education

6.2 Families beginning home education sometimes state that they are entitled to a period during which the home education provided for the child may not meet the requirements in s.7 because they are still, as it were, building up the provision to a satisfactory level. Some parents may go further and describe this period as being necessary for ‘deschooling’. There is no legal basis for such a position. Any statement along these lines could be an indication that the child is not being properly educated. It is not unreasonable that good home education develops with experience as a child becomes used to being in a different learning environment and parents ‘find their feet’, and it would be unrealistic to make a judgement about the suitability of home education provision only a few days after it is started. However, families should be aiming to offer satisfactory home education from the outset, and to have made preparations with that aim in view, as time lost in educating a child is difficult to recover. In such cases, a reasonable timescale should be agreed for the parents to develop their provision; it is easier to do this if the parents are engaging constructively with the local authority but in any event, there should be no significant period in which a child is not receiving suitable education, other than reasonable holiday periods at appropriate points.

After a school attendance order is served

6.15 At any stage following the issue of the order, parents may present evidence to the local authority that they have now made satisfactory arrangements for the child’s education and apply to have the order revoked. This evidence must be considered, and the order must be revoked unless the authority is of the opinion, having considered that evidence, that the parents have not made satisfactory arrangements. 6.16 If the local authority refuses to revoke the order, parents can choose to refer the matter to the Secretary of State, who may give a direction to the local authority which either requires revocation of the order, or confirms it (s.442 of the Education Act 1996).

ESO - Education Supervision Order

7.12 The local authority is under a duty, if an ESO is made, to give ‘due consideration’ to the ‘wishes and feelings’ of the child and the parent(s); and this might result in improved home education. However, an ESO imposes a duty on parents to allow the supervisor (the authority) reasonable contact with the child, though this need not necessarily be at the child’s home - unless the court imposes a visit at home as a specific condition of the order (paragraph 16 of Schedule 3 to the 1989 Act). Persistent failure to comply with direction given under an ESO is an offence unless the parent can show that he has taken all reasonable steps to comply, or that the direction is unreasonable. But in such cases the authority should be prepared to first make clear to the parents that the result of this may be an application to the court for a care order under s.31 of the Children Act 1989. This makes ESOs potentially very useful in ensuring that a child is suitably educated if one is appropriate.

HE and SEN

8.1 The parents' right to educate their child at home applies equally where a child has SEN. This right is irrespective of whether the child has a statement of special educational needs or an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHC plan), or neither. References hereafter to ‘EHC plans’ include statements of SEN unless otherwise stated. It can, of course, be the case that a local authority has no knowledge of a child’s special educational needs if the family has not sought assessment or support. However, local authorities have a duty under s.22 of the Children and Families Act 2014 to try to identify all children in their areas who have SEN. This includes home-educated children.

Suitable

9.3 This means that the wishes of parents are relevant. However, it does not mean that parents are the sole arbiters of what constitutes a suitable education. There is no definition of a ‘suitable’ education in English statute law. A court will reach a view of suitability based on the particular circumstances of each child and the education provided.

9.4 However, clearly a local authority must have a basis on which to reach the decisions called for in s.437 of the Education Act 1996 as to whether or not the education being provided is suitable. The term ‘suitable’ should be seen in the following light: a. it should enable a child to participate fully in life in the UK by including sufficient secular education. This means that even if the home education is primarily designed to equip a child for life within a smaller community within this country it should not foreclose the child’s options in later life to adopt some other mode of living, and to be capable of living on an autonomous basis so far as he or she chooses to do so. This view is compatible with the small amount of potentially relevant case law;14

‘Full-time’

9.8 The starting point is that there is currently no legal definition of what constitutes ‘fulltime’ education, either at school or in the home. Although there is no need for home education to replicate school timetables

Children’s rights and views

10.2 ..... If a young person has an EHC plan, however, then there is a duty on the local authority to consult with the young person about his or her wishes as to education, including any home education currently provided.

Pressure exerted by schools on parents

10.6 The practice of ‘off-rolling’ pupils through pressure on parents to withdraw them for home education is thought to be a significant contributor to the increase in numbers of home educated children, particularly those aged 14-16, although information on the practice is difficult to obtain. In such cases it is possible that the parent will be unable to provide proper home education, even if willing to attempt this. Local authorities should seek to reach agreements through schools forums which discourage pressure on parents to educate children at home, and address this issue directly in discussion with relevant schools. Local authorities should also consider informing Ofsted of schools where offrolling appears to be happening on a significant scale so that this can be looked into at the school’s next inspection.

Unregistered settings

10.10 Local authorities may encounter children who are said to be educated at home but in practice spend large amounts of time at various types of unregistered settings. These are distinct from the part-time settings mentioned previously which are genuinely supplementary to home education; the unregistered settings normally provide most if not all the education received by the child.

Safeguarding – use of tutors by parents providing home education

10.12 Parents may choose to employ other people to educate their child, though they themselves will continue to be responsible for the education provided. As in all situations where parents themselves employ tutors, the suitability of those tutors in terms of access to children is for the parents to ascertain. Parents should be advised to satisfy themselves on this point by taking up appropriate references and ensuring that the tutor has a reasonably recent Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) disclosure certificate. A small number of local authorities choose to assist home-educating parents in this task by undertaking DBS checks free of charge on independent home tutors, and the DfE endorses this helpful practice while recognising that for many local authorities with large numbers of home-educated children living in their areas, it may not be practicable to do this.

Acknowledging diversity

10.14 Parents' education provision will reflect a diversity of approaches and interests. Some parents may wish to provide education in a formal and structured manner, following a traditional curriculum and using a fixed timetable that keeps to school hours and terms. Other parents may decide to make more informal provision that is responsive to the developing interests of their child. One approach is not necessarily any more efficient or effective than another. Although some parents may welcome general advice and suggestions about resources, methods and materials, local authorities should not specify a curriculum or approach which parents must follow.

 

10.15 Children learn in different ways and at different times and speeds. It should be appreciated that parents and their children may require a period of adjustment before finding their preferred mode of learning and that families may change their approach over time. Parents are not required to have any qualifications or training to provide their children with a suitable education. It should be noted that parents from all educational, social, linguistic, religious and ethnic backgrounds successfully educate children outside the school setting and these factors should not in themselves raise a concern about the suitability of the education being provided.

Looked-after children

10.23 Local authorities acting as corporate parents of looked-after children should bear in mind that they assume the duties of parents under s.7 of the 1996 Education Act to ensure that the child receives a suitable full-time education; and local authorities in whose areas such children are placed by other authorities should take the same steps to ensure that the child is not missing education as they would for any other child resident in their area. It is legally possible for a looked-after child to be educated at home (for example by foster carers) if the local authority

Elective Home Education Guidelines For Local Authorities (2019)

Full documents above

Disputes between parents

10.3 In some cases two parents (usually divorced or separated, but both having parental responsibility) may disagree as to whether home education is desirable, or at least is being provided properly. The local authority should do its best to obtain full details of who has parental responsibility in such cases. The parent with whom the child lives for most of the time, is normally in effective control of the education provided and whether the child attends school. However that can be subject to a specific issue order made by the Family Court. If the local authority believes that the education being provided in the home in these circumstances is not suitable, it should take action and keep both parents 34 informed of what is happening, unless there is a specific reason (usually arising from safeguarding considerations) to limit this information for one parent.

 

10.4 If there is no relevant order by the Family Court, the parent who does not agree with the provision of home education may succeed in getting a child’s name entered onto the register of a school. If the child then does not attend that school, both parents may be committing an offence. This situation can arise because the law of education generally assumes that parents will agree on the education of their child. Clearly however it is desirable for matters to be resolved without recourse to the courts and local authorities should attempt to help parents reach a common view on what is in their child’s best interests, drawing on support from those who know the child - such as staff at any school that he or she attends or has previously attended - although such mediation may not always be possible

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