"Apparently going to court is pointless because they always side with LA..."
Do you mean it is pointless to try to defend against a prosecution after the LA has issued an SAO? I had the opposite impression, that it's extremely difficult for the LA to prove that a child ISN'T being educated suitably at home and that the court usually sides with the parents. The law is quite vague on what constitutes a suitable education, which makes the burden of proof high. I don't know the figures though. I'd be very curious to know what proportion of cases are won by the LA.
I only mean cases where the parents actually decide to go to court and turn up on the day to make a defence. Apparently many parents feel intimidated by the SAO and send their children to school as soon as it is issued, without a prosecution even being brought. Some of them may think that the SAO is actually a legal judgement, rather than just something the LA has done for reasons of its own. Others may not want to go to court and will cave as soon as a prosecution is brought.
Two of my friends felt vulnerable and sent their children back to school against their better judgement as soon as an SAO was even threatened, believing that the threat of an SAO meant they'd be forced to school anyway. The result in each case was disastrous for the child, and the parent removed the child from school a second time, this time better armed with the knowledge that they were actually fairly unlikely to be prosecuted and even if they were, they could defend it successfully in court.