How do I start Home ed - any info/help/support please?

[mermaidsvssuperheros]

My 9 yr old son isn't having a good time at school, and hasn't really since he started in school nursery...

Part of me would like to home educate him - however I am worried about money.

I am on my own with him. I currently work f/t, however my job is a pretty low income one.

No family support and most of my friends either don't have children or they have flown the nest.

I guess what I'd really like to know is;

can I home educate my son on no income?
if I give up work to home ed. how would this work?

advice / discussion about this would be very helpful.

Thank you

[SometimesRavenSometimesParrot]

You theoretically could home Ed on no income although realistically most people spend some money on it - even just clubs. Eventually there would be costs around exams.

I’m not sure whether you would be able to claim anything if you’ve chosen to stop working to home Ed though. Could you go part time and home Ed on your none working days?

[NutCheeseBag]

Check out Facebook. There should be a group for your area. Our one is excellent on the legal aspects of withdrawing from school and you will find parents who have faced every issue you will. It’s much better to find a local group, because uk is very different from USA and England is different from Scotland, and possibly also Wales and NI

[mermaidsvssuperheros]

THANK YOU so much....
Yes Iguess I need to find out if iam entitled to any govenment money help if i volunteraliiy give up work and take him out of school?
He has been asking for this for a while...

[Saracen]

Yes, if you give up work altogether, you would not be able to claim means-tested benefits. Part-time work is probably your best bet. Look into the minimum hours you would need to work in order to be eligible, and do the sums. Bear in mind that you can probably claim something toward the cost of childcare. A childminder might work well. If you are lucky, you might even find a childminder who home educated, who would have their own older children at home to be company for your son. That's what I did for a while, and it worked brilliantly for all of us. The CM took my child along to home ed activities, museum trips, and other outings.

The amount of time you will need to spend actively educating your son is a fraction of the time he currently spends at school, since home ed is one-to-one and vastly more efficient. You'd have no trouble fitting it into the time you aren't working.

So really I would say your main challenge is around childcare and how you can afford to live on a reduced income.

[WhenZoomWasJustAnIceLolly]

That not necessarily true about means tested benefits. Get proper advice on that.

[mermaidsvssuperheros]

this is where I am so confused and don't really know where / how to find out the exact...
I know if i give up work then I think i am not entitield to benefit for a certain amount of time

however, if i have a child (primary school age) ?????

so many questions...
i don't really want to ask dwp....

thanks to everyone who's taken the time to help/ reply.
its really appriciated.

[Saracen]

One key point to know with respect to benefits is that the child's place of education is not relevant to benefits.

Home educating does not exempt you from the usual requirements to seek work. You'll be expected to look for work which is compatible with looking after your child yourself (e.g. working as a childminder), or to seek childcare to cover your working hours.

But by the same token, you cannot be told that you must put your child into school and use school as a form of free childcare to enable you to work. This is because the government line is that school is purely for educational purposes and is not childcare. (Of course, in practice many parents do use school as part of their childcare arrangements, but you can't be made to do so.)

[Apple40]

Hi, there is nothing stopping you home educating and if it does not work out your son can return to a school setting. My only question is are you going to be able to afford to buy the resources you will need e.g. work books, subscriptions to websites, etc. As there is no government support / funding for home educating families and at GCSE level you will have to pay for every exam he wants to sit. (Our LA does have a few centres where home educating 14/16 year olds can attend for half the week to study and take a GCSE in English and Maths and the centre pays for the exams but these centres are very popular and have long waiting lists)

[Saracen]

@Apple40

Hi, there is nothing stopping you home educating and if it does not work out your son can return to a school setting. My only question is are you going to be able to afford to buy the resources you will need e.g. work books, subscriptions to websites, etc. As there is no government support / funding for home educating families and at GCSE level you will have to pay for every exam he wants to sit. (Our LA does have a few centres where home educating 14/16 year olds can attend for half the week to study and take a GCSE in English and Maths and the centre pays for the exams but these centres are very popular and have long waiting lists)

I disagree about resources being expensive. I don't buy any of the things you've mentioned. We use the library and the internet and watch documentaries. We do go on a lot of outings and both of my kids did sports etc, but I think of those as an optional extra: I don't think my kids' education has been significantly better than those of their friends who didn't go.

It's true that it is very hard to do GCSEs on a very tight budget. Even if the child only sits half a dozen or so, and self studies rather than using tutors or online schools, the exam fees alone do add up. But that wouldn't inform my advice on taking an unhappy nine year old out of school. As a backup plan, you could let the child spend the next five years getting their needs met well via home education, then send them back to school in Y10. Or wait an extra few years and do some GCSEs for free at college after the age of 16, though admittedly colleges don't offer the wide range of GCSE subjects which kids can do at school or home.

Really, aside from GCSEs, I don't think the DIRECT costs of home ed ought to put anybody off. The cost of childcare, and/or lost earnings, will dwarf any direct costs of education.

[languagelover96]

Use online forums. I found many good quality workbooks on Amazon, and other important items like pens in my local bookshop and they were useful. Get story books from your local library, bookshop and garden center if that is possible etc.

You should definitely check out family friendly events at museums, art galleries, and the like. You can also print out exam papers from the Internet. Go out on outings to parks, lakes and so on. Find activity classes that are simulating and fun at the same time, take a look online or ask around.

Not having financial support did not put my mom off however. She used some of the money to purchase tools and supplies needed for us and got discounts whenever possible. Resources are not cheap but there are discounts and deals to snap up if you look hard enough and talk to the right folks too. Money should not limit you in other words.

Good luck.

[mermaidsvssuperheros]

It's not so much the resources Iam worried aobut - i found amazing things/places etc during lock down.
it is more the access to univeral credit as i won't be working and how this operates.
i looked into child minders last night and some take older kids. but not sure if this is just as after school as on my LA site it doesn't specify say... guess i should phone and ask them...
also, if i used a CM, would UC cover this as child care- given that ds is 9 years old?
i currently work as a TA in school full time - i could look for a part time position if a CM would take ds.
again, i don't know how all of this effects UC / housing benefit / work pay etc.....
his current school don't do flexischooling - i asked !

[mermaidsvssuperheros]

as for gcse / a levels - i can cross this when we are closer to it. hes only 9,
and like someone said - if we don't get on with HS, he can always go back to school !
in theory tho, both of us like the idea
we actually enjoyed lockdown learning - used our own resources etc. was good for both of us ...
Thanks to everyone for all your replies and info.
it's great to be able to get all this

[NutCheeseBag]

Bear in mind that you don’t have to follow the same curriculum as a school (or any curriculum, look up unschooling). And you don’t have to do your educational activities between 9 and 3.30. You could easily work part time and/or do your educating around those hours, at the weekend and between say 4 and 7.30.

[mermaidsvssuperheros]

@NutCheeseBag

Bear in mind that you don’t have to follow the same curriculum as a school (or any curriculum, look up unschooling). And you don’t have to do your educational activities between 9 and 3.30. You could easily work part time and/or do your educating around those hours, at the weekend and between say 4 and 7.30.

that would be ideal - my question is what does ds do / where can ds go whilst I am at work ?
do CM's take older children during the day and does UC cover the child care costs?

google comes up with such a mix of answers, Idon't knojw what to belive... hence why I thought Id' ask MN -

[NutCheeseBag]

Well, make contact with the many home educators in your area. It is possible you might be able to share child minding with someone or several someones else. I know that what’s considered appropriate these days is very different from my childhood, but I was home alone throughout the school holidays from the age of 8, and my children were home educated and just worked by themselves while I worked between 8am and 12, every day at the ages of 7, 12 and 13. You will find that many of the problems you anticipate are very overcomable in fact.
😉

[mermaidsvssuperheros]

@NutCheeseBag

Well, make contact with the many home educators in your area. It is possible you might be able to share child minding with someone or several someones else. I know that what’s considered appropriate these days is very different from my childhood, but I was home alone throughout the school holidays from the age of 8, and my children were home educated and just worked by themselves while I worked between 8am and 12, every day at the ages of 7, 12 and 13. You will find that many of the problems you anticipate are very overcomable in fact.
😉

sharing the child care is an excellent idea - seems so obvious ! but I'd not thought of that !

I'd be more than happy to mind / look after / share lessons or what-ever with someone elses child/ren

would be a good way for ds to not be on his own...

most issues are overcomable - it's just getting there that is hard sometimes...

worrying /anticipating is the worst part.

thanks for your message as it'sgreat to hear how others have got on

[Saracen]

@mermaidsvssuperheros

It's not so much the resources Iam worried aobut - i found amazing things/places etc during lock down.
it is more the access to univeral credit as i won't be working and how this operates.
i looked into child minders last night and some take older kids. but not sure if this is just as after school as on my LA site it doesn't specify say... guess i should phone and ask them...
also, if i used a CM, would UC cover this as child care- given that ds is 9 years old?
i currently work as a TA in school full time - i could look for a part time position if a CM would take ds.
again, i don't know how all of this effects UC / housing benefit / work pay etc.....
his current school don't do flexischooling - i asked !

It's up to the individual childminder as to what time of day they want to take older children. There is nothing to prevent them looking after older children during the daytime.

I suggest you reassure potential CMs that you are only looking for childcare, and that you don't need them to provide any education as you will do that yourself when your child is with you. (Of course, in practice the time spent with the CM will be educational too: they will talk to your child, answer his questions, and provide access to books and games. But you don't have to formalise that.) Many CMs worry that looking after a home educated child during the day might lead to them being classed as tutors and being responsible for education. This is not the case. In fact, looking after a HE child involves less educational responsibility than looking after a preschooler, as the CM doesn't have to implement and document delivery of the EYFS for an HE child as they would with a preschooler.

Yes, for benefit purposes childcare is childcare. It doesn't matter whether you use it during the daytime or (as many working parents do) from 3-6pm. I don't remember the maximum age at which the child is eligible, but it's bound to be older than nine! Some parents might choose to leave a 9yo home alone, but you wouldn't be expected to do so.

[mermaidsvssuperheros]

Thank you for such a reassuring and lovely reply.
I feel much more confident I have lots of positive avenues to investigate now and HE feels like it's not the impossible dream!
It's starting to feel exciting...