Thinking of Home Eding

[benito]

I am considering home educating my son who has just received a finalised statement. His school have made it clear that they are reluctant to provide for him (and in fact tried to avoid being namded) and I would like to HE while sorting out an alternative.

Do you know what effect this has on his statement?

I have been told by the Education Officer that the Authority has a duty to satisfy itself that what is offered is a suitable education for the child's age, ability and aptitude. They say that the EWS will get involved but they will respect my choice; it's simply about ensuring my child is safe and provided for.

Can you tell me what rights they have to involve themselves?

Assuming you are in England, they have the right to make enquiries about how you are providing a suitable education, if they have reason to think you may not be. In practice, many LEAs assume they will always have worries until they know how you are providing the education, so they will ask anyone who they know is HEing. If they ask, you are generally advised to answer (but you can choose how to provide the information).

They have no rights to check that your child is "safe", unless they have any reason to think there is a problem, such as previous involvement from Social Services. Otherwise, they are not allowed to decide that the fact you are HEing suggests any risk of harm or neglect.

As to the statement, I am not sure how it is affected - you may need to go through the process again with the new school once you have one chosen, specially if the current statement names his old school. But hopefully someone more knowledgable on statements will be along soon!

As AMumInScotland says.

And the fact that the LA has even raised the welfare issue suggests that they are either ill-acquainted with the law regarding home education, or not interested in following it. I'd suggest you bear this in mind during future communications with them. Feel free to ask here or on another HE list if you suspect they are trying to lead you up the garden path.

It's often recommended that you ask the LA to put everything in writing. Then you can be clear about exactly what they are asking you to do. If they are in the wrong, you can quote their own words back to them, together with the relevant law. This is usually enough to stop them in their tracks.