If you’re considering home education for your child(ren), or are new to home ed, you probably have so many questions! Firstly, don’t panic. Grab a cuppa and let me guide you through some of the most common home ed questions.
Is Home Education Legal?
In short, yes! It’s actually the default option- a parent chooses to send their child to school. There are some exceptions to the rules here, however. For example; if your child attends a special school, you’ll need permission from the council to home educate them.
If your child is in mainstream school and has SEND, you don’t need permission to home educate, even if your child has an EHCP. If your child has an SAO (School Attendance Order), you’ll also need permission from the council to home educate.
How Do I Start Home Educating My Child?
When home educating, the expectation is that learning begins from day 1. There is no ‘cooling off’ period, no grace period. It is expected that you’ll be educating your child from the get-go.
A really good way to start home-edding is by getting very familiar with the EHE Guidelines (Elective Home Education Guidelines), joining your local and national home education communities on social media, and sitting down with your child(ren) to have an in-depth discussion about how they like to learn and what their interests are.
From there, you can build their learning centred on things they enjoy- after all, the best learning happens when the child gains pleasure from the learning experience.
Do I Need to Follow the National Curriculum?
Nope! As soon as your child reaches Compulsory School Age at 5, they must receive a full-time education, but it doesn’t have to follow the National Curriculum. If you’re planning on entering your child for exams later on, it is helpful for them to know the content that’s taught to pass the exams, however.
What About Exams and Qualifications?
This very much depends on what your child wants to do for work when they’re an adult. If they’ve got their heart set on becoming a doctor, then they’ll need to follow the academic route of taking exams to enable them to get the required grades in order to go to college.
You can sit exams at exam centres nationwide or some schools that take private candidates. As with everything home ed, however, all costs are yours- GCSEs are not free for home educated children. There are also a plethora of accredited online courses that can be done completely free of charge, so it’s worth trawling the internet to see what takes your fancy!
Can I Home Educate a Child With Special Educational Needs (SEND)?
Of course! In fact, it can be more beneficial to home educate a child with SEND for several reasons. Attendance would no longer be an issue for appointments etc, you can tailor their learning to their exact needs, you don’t have to worry about them meeting ‘targets’ or ‘milestones’ at school- they can take everything at their own pace and in their own time.
As mentioned above, if your child is already in a special school and has an EHCP, you’ll need permission from the council to home educate them before deregistering.
What Resources Are Available for Home Educators?
Gosh! Where do I start?! There are millions of resources available for home-edders, many of which are free of charge. Make use of local libraries, museums, parks, free online courses and more! There are hundreds of groups on social media sites like Facebook that can assist you with where to find the right resources.
Don’t, however, expect to receive any funding for home educating your child. As with education being your sole responsibility, so is the financial cost. There is no grant, benefit, allowance or otherwise available to assist your home education journey.
How Do I Ensure My Child Receives A Full-Time Education?
I suppose the most important thing to understand with home education, is that it is NOT school. You do not have to follow lesson plans, timetables, or set hours for set subjects. It can often take some time for us as parents and carers that have been through the education system to ‘de-school’ and get out of the mindset that learning has to mimic school and only school. All that being said, you do have to ensure your child is actually learning.
Learning takes place all the time. From the moment your child opens their eyes, to the moment they go to sleep and beyond, they are learning and processing information. Learning doesn’t just take place on a sheet of paper in a classroom; if fact, that can often be counterintuitive to learning!
From teaching them to cook a meal, to a trip to the supermarket, to gaming, to doing some arts and crafts, your child is constantly learning. From these examples alone, you’ve covered so many topics and subjects!
What Support Networks Exist for Home Educators?
You might feel a little overwhelmed at first with the prospect of home educating your child. It can be daunting and you might feel as though you’re alone. This couldn’t be further from the truth, however. I would heavily suggest joining your local and national home education groups on Facebook- H.E.F.A is an excellent place to begin and the admins there really know their stuff!
There are also plenty of local and national in-person groups for meetups and socialising opportunities. Look out for your local community group too- some run home education sessions.
How Do I Deregister My Child From School?
This part can be a minefield if you don’t know what you’re doing, and haven’t read your rights and responsibilities beforehand. All that is needed is a deregistration letter sent via email to the headteacher of the school.
There are many templates available, so it’s worth looking into this before you do it. The deregistration letter is with immediate effect and is a legal document of instruction. Make sure you keep the evidence that you have sent the letter too. It must be a written instruction, you cannot deregister via a phone call/message.
- A ‘wet signature’ is NOT legally required. Some schools will insist that you have to have a signed physical document before the ‘deregistration process’ can begin. This is utter nonsense, an email is sufficient.
- A meeting is NOT required. Schools are told by the Local Authority that they must try to have a meeting to persuade the parents not to home educate their children, and schools take this as being law. It is not law, and not necessary. Schools can be pushy and will use wording such as ‘permission from the LA’ and ‘a meeting is required before beginning the deregistration process’. This is policy, not law- there’s a big difference between the two.
- The local authority does NOT need to grant you permission to home educate your child. The exception to this being if they are in a special school and have an EHCP, then you do need permission.
- You do NOT have to give reasons, fill out paperwork, or have anyone visit your home. These three things are vital to remember when deregistering your child. Many schools are known to ‘doorstep’ you demanding to see your child for ‘welfare checks’ or the local authority may insist they need to ‘assess your suitability for home education’. Neither of these are true, nor necessary. Read the EHE Guidelines and remember that policy does NOT supersede law!
Can Local Authorities Check On My Child’s Progress?
Local Authorities have a responsibility to identify children who may not be receiving an education in school. They may contact you asking about your home education and it is strongly recommended that you provide necessary information.
It is recommended by experienced home-edders to ensure all communication is done in writing, and that you provide a detailed annual report of your child’s learning and progress. You do not have to have visits, phone calls, or fill out their paperwork. Their sole remit is to ensure your child is receiving a suitable education appropriate to their educational needs and abilities.
Once again, read the EHE Guidelines and join your local and national home education groups for much more in-depth advice!
Hopefully some of these FAQs answer some of your initial questions about home educating your child. Let me know if there’s anything else I can help you with on your home education journey!
Laura x
