Petition Against Home Ed Register

[Isawthesigns]

Now It Is Evident The Goverment Is Committed To A Register Of Children Not In School Which Will Be Followed By Assessments And Monitoring

Please Sign And Share The Petition Help Us Defend Our Right To HE Without State Interference

petition.parliament.uk/petitions/594065?fbclid=IwAR0o70ZNS9miOu6k8l769Kcu9XJnFbkAYggnqkbHzaknueGt39nnQrbhZTo

We have a responsibility to educate our children as parents. You can do it yourself, pay someone to do it for us, or accept the states offering. ALL the options require the parent to ensure their child receives an education.

@Lobster5

deansgate

Can you explain what expertise you have that would enable you to assess if children were receiving an efficient education? Or what skills you have that would enable you to identify and resolve safeguarding issues? In my experience, people doing your job think access is the problem but have extremely limited training and expertise in anything but perhaps truancy issues or at a stretch, education at school.

@Lobster5

I have an honours degree in education, including child development. Primary teachers, early years consultant, headteacher, designated safeguarding lead, Prevent trained, community cohesion board and principle local authority adviser...as well as parent to my own children. ...is that what you meant or did you mean more generally in terms of how would 'officers' assess what is suitable?

95zeds

Wide range of ages. Yes I do as they're ambitious. It's not really about what I see for them though is it. They have to choose their own career ambitions. I'm slightly baffled you can't see the point I'm making about inter high but it's fine. I would certainly use it if there was a need to get a standard qualification and it was considered preferable by the child.

Dean's Are you aware that the people regulating home ed rarely have any of these qualifications? How do you feel about this? Do you appreciate that there are many ways to deliver an efficient education that you will not have been trained in within the established education system? Do you accept that it's acceptable for children to learn at a pace that may be very different to what you have been trained to expect?

@Lobster5 so what have your older children chosen to do and did they have the skills needed to get there? It's not really about what I see for them though is it. well I was assuming you would have some insight into what is out there, what they like and if they’re likely to get there? I mean you’re their parent and educator you must have some idea.

The loudest voices in the larger Facebook groups tend to veer towards no formal work but I have met and mixed a wide variety of home educating families over the years and the majority of them do some kind of formal education particularly once the child is 7+.

My main concerns at the moment are the people who are removing their children from school and have no idea of what their responsibilities are towards their children. They are often ignorant about the most basic information about home educating and need to be spoon fed because they seemingly can’t find out for themselves. I understand some may remove from school urgently due to something major happening but surely when making a huge decision you take the time to research what you need to do.

School is such an important place for safeguarding, it is so scary to think of the cases of neglect and abuse that would be missed otherwise which are picked up in school. It is absolutely tragic what happened to the boy in Wales and anything that can avoid home education becoming a way for some people to hide their child abuse and neglect I am all for. One case is enough to change the law for, absolutely. Safeguarding can be a royal pain in the arse even for parents who are doing everything right, but it is worth it to prevent cases like that.

School is such an important place for safeguarding, it is so scary to think of the cases of neglect and abuse that would be missed otherwise which are picked up in school. and so scary thinking of the number of children missed by school and abused in school. Good decisions are rarely made in response to fear.
One case is enough to change the law for, absolutely. but we don’t shut down schools because of the paedophilic predators they attract do we? I honestly think we DO need to protect children better. I’m just not convinced that starts with a register of Home edders.

I home educate and honestly I would be totally fine with a register. The home ed Facebook groups are very very "anti", however.

I do have to say (politely) that none of the HE council workers I've interacted with are in any way qualified to judge whether or not the education I provide is "suitable". All my letters and emails from them are absolutely riddled with the most basic grammatical errors. Clearly school didn't do them much good, from an educational perspective at least.

I think the national curriculum is dreadful, but I do keep my eye on where my son "should be", in case he ever goes to school. He's lightyears ahead in all areas.

Of course when you say your child is ahead academically, you immediately get "well I bet he's behind socially", as if people have such a narrow mind that they can't possibly imagine any other form of socialising than one gained from being sat at a desk 5 hours a day.

If I sound fed up, it's because I am - fed up of questioning by council bods who can't even write a coherent sentence, and of people generally being incredibly rude and assuming we are religious nutjobs, hippie off gridders or anti social weirdos.

I still don't object, in principle, to a register. I've got a good relationship with our local LA, despite often feeling resentful of them!

So many children are removed from school to keep them out of the sight and care of people who should be looking out for them, this register is absolutely necessary.

Of course it's not all home schooling families and the nice middle class committed home schoolers think they must all be like them, but they're not.

So many children are removed from school to keep them out of the sight and care of people who should be looking out for them, this register is absolutely necessary.

Not to be provocative, but what's your evidence for that pretty sweeping statement? Apart from that poor little boy who had scurvy, all the most recent high profile child abuse cases involved children who were at school (which didn't do them much good!). I'm not really sure there is absolutely anything to suggest that "so many" children are home educated for the sole purpose of their parents abusing them.

Also in this country it is home education, not home school. It's not school at home.

@Trymonnia

So many children are removed from school to keep them out of the sight and care of people who should be looking out for them, this register is absolutely necessary.

Not to be provocative, but what's your evidence for that pretty sweeping statement? Apart from that poor little boy who had scurvy, all the most recent high profile child abuse cases involved children who were at school (which didn't do them much good!). I'm not really sure there is absolutely anything to suggest that "so many" children are home educated for the sole purpose of their parents abusing them.

Working in schools and seeing families remove children to home school just as social care referrals are about to be made and/or just as children are about to be excluded. (Which only means excluded from that school the LA is LA responsible unless they're home educated).

School doesn't suit some of these children and good home education may be good for them but lots of the families simply aren't equipped for it.

Children ending up dead isn't the only poor outcome from having children removed from safeguarding protections and abuse isn't the only thing safeguarding protects them from.

Schools can still make a referral to social services; they don't lose the right to do that just because a parent pulls their child out, especially if they were about to make one anyway.

In any case all children who are pulled out of school to be home educated are on the radar of the local LA anyway if they are doing their jobs properly. If you've ever registered your child with a school and then withdraw them to home educate then they are obligated to pass your details onto the LA, who will then be in touch.

The ones people are worried about are not the kids that people see at forest school, home ed groups and Brownies. They'd have nothing to be concerned about from an inspection. It's the Khyra Ishaqs, the traveller kids, the ones whose parents are dodging fines for poor attendance and so on. The ones who are receiving no real education, and possible abuse on top. Those are the ones such a system is intended to protect.

Those last couple sentences is saying 'middle class children aren't abused'.

Luckily as someone who's done safeguarding training a fair few times I know that it's an ignorant and dangerous misconception.

Hop on over to the 'but we took you to stately homes' thread and see for yourselves.

@Trymonnia

Schools can still make a referral to social services; they don't lose the right to do that just because a parent pulls their child out, especially if they were about to make one anyway.

In any case all children who are pulled out of school to be home educated are on the radar of the local LA anyway if they are doing their jobs properly. If you've ever registered your child with a school and then withdraw them to home educate then they are obligated to pass your details onto the LA, who will then be in touch.

Safeguarding isn't a one off referral to SC and it's done though. You make one report and it's not considered serious enough for anything other than light touch support then something else happens and you make another and repeat. If children aren't in school and no one else is checking on them those subsequent issues won't be known.

If you believe the LA is already following these children what's the problem with a register?

I totally disagree. I was home educated in New York State for primary school and there was state oversight. I now live in the UK and I'm really surprised there isn't even a register.

If you believe the LA is already following these children what's the problem with a register?

If you read my previous posts, you'll see I haven't got a problem with a register.

@Spiceup

So many children are removed from school to keep them out of the sight and care of people who should be looking out for them, this register is absolutely necessary.

Of course it's not all home schooling families and the nice middle class committed home schoolers think they must all be like them, but they're not.

I would be very interested in your evidence for this? How many are removed so that they are out of side? It’s quite a big accusation to make.

Out of sight*

I also feel like a lot of people forget how much bullying and trauma can result from actually attending school.

Home educating parents are consistently questioned (by themselves as much as anyone else!) as to whether they're doing the right thing by their child in not sending them to school. I very much doubt that parents of schooled children question whether they're doing the right thing in sending their child to school.

My child was hurt ar school repeatedly. School could not stop it. We took him home so he could learn without being punched and slapped. Let’s keep everyone safe. I think all the children need to be on the register and all of them need to be kept safe.

just as children are about to be excluded.

But don't you see that a parent whose child is being excluded is right to make a decision to home educate as clearly the school is doing nothing and all but admitting defeat? Your attitude is really unpleasant.

I know parents who are doing everything they can to support children who were labelled naughty at school but in fact required SEN support they never received.

It speaks to the callous lack of provision that a despairing parent whose child isn't allowed to attend school anyway should then be referred to SS because their desire to home educate couldn't possibly be genuine in that context. That is exactly why the parents of home educated children often feel like LEAs are out to get them.

What would you do if it was your child? Keep sending them to a place you've been asked to keep them away from as that's obviously the only non-suspicious course of action?

You couldn't make it up.

Children ending up dead isn't the only poor outcome

I would like to see evidence proving that children to go to school are effectively safeguarded.