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EOTAS

What is the Education Otherwise Than At School?

Is your child too unwell to attend school, or refusing school?

 

EOTAS stands for Education Otherwise Than At School, provided by the Local Authority for children who cannot attend school due to ill health, mental health issues, etc. This is different from Elective Home Education (EHE), which is where parents take on full responsibility for their child's education. Some parents consider elective home education because their child is too unwell to attend school regularly. However, every child of compulsory school age is still entitled to free education provided by the Local Authority (LA) if they are not able to attend school.

 

"Each local authority shall make arrangements for the provision of suitable education at school or otherwise than at school for those children of compulsory school age who, by reason of illness, exclusion from school or otherwise, may not for any period receive suitable education unless such arrangements are made for them."  -  Education Act 1996 S.19 (England and Wales)

 

EHE should only ever be a positive choice, although some parents feel forced into it. It is worth fighting for EOTAS provision if you would prefer your child to be at school. You should not have to take on the full financial and organisational responsibility for education because your child cannot attend school.

 

The range of qualifications available to EOTAS pupils is different from that available to home educators.  EOTAS students may be able to take regular GCSEs as the LA can make arrangements for their pupils to undertake core practicals in schools. Therefore, if the LA is providing you with EOTAS then there is some expectation they will support you through exam placement.

 

What does EOTAS / Alternative Provision include?

EOTAS and Alternative Provision varies by area but often includes some of these and applies to children who are excluded as well as those who cannot attend school because of health needs:

 

Visiting tutors paid for by the LA  /  Online School eg Red Balloon Of The Air, Nisai, or similar.   /  Provision of an exam centre,  exam fees paid by the school or LA  /  Access arrangements for examinations - special provision to support children with additional needs through exams, e.g. extra time, readers, scribes, smaller exam rooms.  /  Access to qualifications which are normally only available through schools or colleges.  /  Referral to special college programs  /  Hospital Schools, which sometimes take children who aren't actually in hospital.  /  Alternative Provision: Pupil Referral Units or other special educational institutions

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