Can a 16 years 10 months child be left at home to study without a parent?

[twomoreyears]

DS 'was' in year 12 (lower 6th form), age 16yrs 10 months, studying for A Levels but has had behavioural issues at school - mixed with the wrong peer group. Has now been discovered with illegal substance (weed), so head has excluded and made clear that permanent exclusion will follow.

As alternative to exclusion head has said will support a managed move - however after many phone calls it seems no schools want to take our DS part way through A Levels (that are now 'linear' so no two schools follow the same curriculum sequence).

I am thinking to pull DS out of school for home schooling (so avoid exclusion on his school record), however I can't be at home to supervise DS as I have to be at work - perhaps managing to work from home once per week.

Is this a problem at this age leaving a child to study themselves?

DS 'says' will put his mind to distance learning A-Level study (not cheap), so I am prepared to give it a go. He did cram hard for GCSE (3 A*, 5A, 2 B), plus 'says' wants to go to university (although has no idea what he wants to do).

Any advice or alternative suggestion welcome.

I would suggest an apprenticeship, the money should keep him motivated although it's pittance and he will be studying as well

Have lou lookes at the possibility of him joining one of the Prince's Trust programmes - maybe the Achieve programme? Alternatively, what about stepping away from the A levels for a bit and doing a long Outward Bound/Tall Ships Sailing/Brathay expedition for a month over the eary summer - there are bursaries available for all of them. They may open up new possibilities to your DS, and you can then look together at how he might achieve what he wants.

Sorry about rubbish typo's!

On the outward bound idea from Autumn, there's also PGL - he could apply to be a youth leader type thing.
They have sites all over the country, and I think it's pretty much year-round so not just the summer (although I might be wrong).

I would be inclined to look at that sort of thing like Autumn said, and swerving A-levels completely for the rest of this school year at least.

Does he have any interest in the military? Could start with an apprenticeship and would further his education also x

Maybe look at your local FE college for September.
I wouldn't contemplate just pulling him out and letting him sit at home doing nothing.
Or look at Apprenticeships. Not really a 'pittance' for this age group tbh.
I mean, possibly he is not as academic as you would wish. No offence.
What about a CSV placement?

Thanks all.

Next stop is council careers service and re-contacting local FE college asking about options other than A-Level.

Could I just say though...at this age he is really not a 'child' as you describe him in your thread title...

At his age, pupils can all be so different. Some are really grown up and focused but others are still children and all over the place.

From your OP it sounds like he still needs a lot of direction but many pupils are like that. From my experience at sr. school/colleges, pupils must really be committed to A Levels to make good progress - it's no good choosing some subjects you 'sort of' like.

If you are taking the 'study at home' route, could you hire a tutor to work with him at home? If there's a local uni, you might be able to find a sensible type to guide him, especially if his A Level subjects are more technical.

At a minimum, I would try to find a relative or neighbour to supervise so that he keeps his nose to the books.

If paying is an option I’d recommend looking at tutorial colleges (crammers). They are very expensive but it would mean he could still do A levels. I don’t think they turn people away for having been excluded.

I know this feels like a complete disaster. Our society is fairly obsessed with young people getting qualifications, and getting them at the earliest possible age.

This doesn't have to be the end of the line for your son. It might do him good to have a break from education for a while to get some work experience in and think about what he wants to do with himself. He's still young. There's plenty of time.

Eventually he may find his way to a career he likes which doesn't require academic qualifications. Many adults do. Or he may return to study at some point in the future. I should think that academic institutions will be much more likely to accept him onto courses once he has had a break from study, demonstrated some maturity, and showed that HE is the one making an active decision to return to study instead of having mum/school/government/society push him in that direction.

Good luck to him. There's a good chance he'll land on his feet. Show him that you believe in him and you expect him to make something of himself even though he isn't going down the academic route you'd hoped.

Thanks for all the suggestions. Quick comments - a private crammer (there aren't many near us), rejected him :-(, motivating himself at home is deffo an issue, he is now mostly (except for his one fave subject), fed up with education and just wants to earn some money. Also, I acknowledge that my DS is no longer a child and I need to let him live his life complete with mistakes.

We're going with one A-Level distance learning (Likely Absorb online Physics he likes - he was on track for an A*),plus a job of some sort (hopefully 30 hours).

Most jobs for 16/17 years old seem min wage of £3.70/hr which is not very motivating - but should keep him occupied and give him some references from an employer to counter the school reference (of inevitable exclusion).

In the next few weeks if things settle down, he may apply for an apprenticeship starting in Sep. He should just make closing dates.