Yet another government review of Home Education

[AMumInScotland]

government review

They're just going to keep on at this. We have 4 weeks to respond!

Not read through it yet myself properly, but according to another forum the questions are:

1. Do you think the current system for safeguarding children who are

educated at home is adequate? Please let us know why you think that.

1. Do you think that home educated children are able to achieve the

following five Every Child Matters outcomes? Please let us know why you think that.

1. Do you think that Government and local authorities have an obligation

to ensure that all children in this country are able to achieve the five outcomes? If you answered yes, how do you think Government should ensure this?. If you answered no, why do you think that?

1. Do you think there should be any changes made to the current system

for supporting home educating families? If you answered yes, what should they be? If you answered no, why do you think that?

1. Do you think there should be any changes made to the current system

for monitoring home educating families? If you answered yes, what should they be? If you answered no, why do you think that?

1. Some people have expressed concern that home education could be used

as a cover for child abuse, forced marriage, domestic servitude or other forms of child neglect. What do you think Government should do to ensure this does not happen?

The very nature of Home Education is bound to attract non-conformists and authority-bucking types - simply because of what HE is. So I agree Litchick you are having to deal with a particularly difficult client group - people who buck authority and are very anti-system are never going to come on board easily.

I would not wish to be perceived as one of those types - I have made my decision to HE based entirely on my childs feelings and emotional state here and now and his lack of progress in school. At some point I would hope he will return to the system - if he doesn't - fine - whatever is best for him.

I am just as annoyed about being labelled a PITA because some of my peergroup are militant and unable to listen to reasonable argument as I am about this review. What I take issue with is "people" - whether they be govnm, lawyers, teachers etc - not treating me and my family as an individual unit. I refuse to jump through an unreasonable set of hoops simply because of my subscription to a lifestyle.

If the govnm want my cooperation and support in trying to make a difference to abused children's lives then they need to go about asking for it in a different way. My job requires me to subscribe to and understand the crucial principles of safeguarding children. IMHO the system that is currently in place is actually pretty good. Where it falls down is individuals in various departments/walks of life not doing their bit. The neighbour who suspects but says nothing, the Social worker who is so stressed they don't see beyond their own nose, the teacher who is having enough trouble dealing with differentiation let alone spotting signs of abuse......

The system is robust and is more than adequate - its the individuals along the chain who prevent it from being effective.

HELP PLEASE!

Was just trying to respond to the consultation document: the first page asked for my name, address, email, etc. The second page then asked me to state whether I was a home-educating parent... As it happens, one of my (4) children is known to the LEA (I'm meeting the quite nice Southwark lady early Feb) but the rest aren't, and for those who children aren't known at all, won't this tell the gvt exactly where to find us???? I ticked the 'confidential' box but does this mean they can't 'use' the info I've provided about my home-educating status?

I'm confused!

WEll I know of other 'unknown' parents who have sent in strongly worded responses to the previous consultations over the last three months.
So far no-one has knocked on their door BUT I think if I were you and wanted to be sure of protecting my not known status, I'd open a Hotmail account and reply from that.

I don't think full details of name and address are necessary to replying.
Worth a try.

"those who children aren't known at all, won't this tell the gvt exactly where to find us???? I ticked the 'confidential' box but does this mean they can't 'use' the info I've provided about my home-educating status?"

psychomumma - they know where you are already - presumably your children are registered, signed on with a doctor and so on? Why are you worried?

bump. here's the link to the consulation survey.www.dcsf.gov.uk/consultations/index.cfm?action=consultationDetails&consultationId=1605&external=no&m enu=1

HE is something I'm strongly considering for our future and so I'd like to support HE in answering this consultation as a member of the public - can I just ask for a little guidance on how people are answering these questions?

Obviously it's disgraceful that this consultation is taking place anyway, and the questions themselves are ridiculous, so not sure quite how to answer

1. Do you think the current system for safeguarding children who are educated at home is adequate? Please let us know why you think that.

• I want to say 'yes', but, I'm not sure what the current system is, if it is the same as safeguarding all children then given the spate of recent high-profile abuse cases WITHIN the system then obviously it isn't adequate. I don't want to answer 'no' though because that will show up as an anti-HE statistic!!

1. Do you think there should be any changes made to the current system for supporting home educating families? If you answered yes, what should they be? If you answered no, why do you think that?

• what system of support is there currently, I was under the impression there was very little support??? I think LA's should support HE-ers, for example by
• allowing unlimited borrowing from public libraries
• reduced cost to facilities eg swimming pools, leisure centres, hire of community centres/halls for HE groups
• HE groups to be able to apply for grants for educational materials/resources etc?

does any of this happen now? what is it that current HE-ers want?

Thanks. I'll get writing my nicely-worded replies to the other ridiculous questions....

There are some good draft responses:

here

here (scroll down a few posts)

here

and I'll have mine up here in the next half hour or so (I am taking a breather before submerging myself in their garbage again...)

Thanks

Have sent in my replies, response no 487.

I hope my one little member-of-the-public voice can help.

Now I'll go back to lurking.....

I like the responses and totally agree about the exam thin mentionned in one of your link onward. I think its so important that we HEers give measured, reasonable responses to surveys such as this.

This review is very overdue. While of course people like yourselves who post on home ed forums are most likely doing a good job of educating your children, and I am not against home ed in itself or informal learning etc, it needs to be acknowledged that some who claim to home educate are doing nothing worthy of the name.

At present if families are living in an area with a pro home ed LEA it is possible that very poor standards of education can be provided. I have seen this personally and up close in my own family. Without giving too many details the situation now is that a teenage boy has essentially ended his education at 14, is lacking in all academic skills and has no friends or access to peer group at all. This has been allowed to happen despite reports being made by concerned individuals to the LEA. It is a form of child abuse, with the boy himself confiding that he is deeply unhappy.

More most be done to ensure that parents are not able to ruin their children's childhood like this while also writing off their future. At the moment it is too easily done.

Your anecdote doesn't demonstrate that the law is failing. It demonstrates that the implementation of the law by government agencies is failing. If they have reason to believe either that there are welfare concerns or that an education suitable to the age, ability, aptitude and any SEN of the child is not taking place, they are legally obliged to investigate and take action. From your anecdote, the LA have been made aware of concerns. Those who have expressed those concerns need to put pressure on the LA to act, preferably with the participation of the child in question since you say he is unhappy with the situation.

If they haven't listened so far and haven't helped so far, what leads you to believe that they would listen even if he was sitting in front of them twice a year in compulsory monitoring meetings saying "I'm really unhappy with this, I want to go back to school"???

If reports have been made to the LEA and not followed up what makes you think that giving more powers to LEAs would cause them to follow things up if they won't apply the powers they already have now?

If the boy is unhappy with the situation and there are concerned individuals couldn't they support him in speaking to the LEA himself?

lalalenny
You have said this boy is already known to the LEA. They are obviously satisfied with the education he is receiving or they would be intervening. (As alread stated on this thread on numerous occasions the LEA already have enough powers to intervene)
If you genuinely think the boy is being "abused" then that is a case for SS and it is them you should be reporting your concerns.
If he has left school at 14 "with no academic skills" what has he been doing in school for 9 years?
You said

"More most be done to ensure that parents are not able to ruin their children's childhood like this while also writing off
their future. At the moment it is too easily done."

The same could be said for parents who send their kids to school. Have you read the latest horrific statistics relating to school children?

As others have said, there is a difference between the question of whether there is an adequate system in place (I believe there is) and whether that system is implemented in a consistent and effective way (which this example shows is false).

To my mind it's like some of the discussion of drink-driving laws - "people are still driving over the limit, so we have to reduce the limit". Well, you could try enforcing the current limit more strongly. That's a completely different issue to whether the current limit is correct or not. There may or may not be two separate problems, muddling them all up as if it was all the same big problem does not help the situation.

This boy has not ever attended school. The LEA are satisfied but it is quite obvious that his needs are not being met. While they may have powers it ultimately comes down to one person's opinion at the time of the inspection, and as stated in this case the person responsible was pro home ed.

You need to acknowledge that not all parents who claim to be home educating are in fact providing adequate education and opportunities for their children. This is not intended to criticise those who home educate and take their responsibilties seriously, but to high light that a review of current policy is necessary. This is one child I know of. I am sure others are also being failed.

Perhaps in this case the LEA inspector needs some additional guidance in what a "reasonable person" would consider to be a suitable education?

I think you are right, and therefore there needs to be some kind of framework that the LEA can use to consider whether what is being provided is acceptable or not. This is being proposed by this review.

The current case law is very hands off in repect of HE. Parents are not required to show any sort of curriculum or achievements.
I've represented a number of parents who were beibg investigated or challenged by the LEA and I've never lost a case.
You don't have to provide much evidence at all to show you're doing a good job. In the vast majority of cases this reflects the very different way in which, partcularly autonomous learners, progress ie there isn't anything to show but still the kids learn.
If a kid really wasn't getting a proper education then it would only take a smart arse like me to come along and use the case law to get the LEA off their backs or frankly they could get shedloads of help on any HE fora.

Litchick, this very accurately reflects what has happened in my family. SS have been contacted, but they simply refer to the fact that the LEA inspection was adequate. On further investgation it was clear that we could do little but remain extremely unhapy about the current situation

There already is a legal framework for establishing whether an education suitable to the age, aptitude, ability and SEN of the child is taking place. It's well supported by case law. It's quite clearly there in the 2007 Guidelines on Elective Home Education for LAs

If it is, as you say quite obvious that the boys needs are not being met, and that he is unhappy about it, I do not understand why the LA staff are not acting. They have the powers to do so.

This consultation is not, at least, not within the terms of the questionnaire we are being invited to answer, about educational monitoring of HE children at all. It is about the prospect of introducing routine WELFARE monitoring of all HEed children - i.e. that every HE family is to be considered a family where abuse may be taking place, and that the State will therefore take upon itself the responsibility of assessing every single one of us.

The boy in your anecdote won't be helped by this unless his parents are abusing him in welfare terms and, if they were, I would sincerely hope that you or someone else would have contacted Social Services by now.

This isn't an anecdote it's a real life situation. As Litchick says there is in fact very little that can be done as at present very little evidence of learning is necessary.

This situation has not arisen out of malice, but it is unacceptable and tougher guidlines need to be in place.

"Parents are not required to show any sort of curriculum or achievements"

Do you believe that a curriculum is necessary for a suitable education to be taking place?

Do you believe that demonstrable achievements are necessary? In schools, educational product is VITAL so that the schools can show the parents and OFSTED (and, indirectly the tax payer) that there is learning going on. But in the actual process of learning, it is the process which is important, and demonstrable educational products may be non-existent or private.

The only way that you could absolutely guarantee that every child in the country was getting a demonstrable education would be to require every child to be exposed to the sort of education you get in schools, with curricula and measurable learning outcomes and educational product. That is NOT the only way to learn, it's arguably not even the most effective way to learn.

I would be very interested to know how someone outside a family, or even someone outside the head of the child concerned, can be sure that a child is not receiving a suitable education. If a child feels his/her parents are not helping him/her enough, then that's something which that child needs to find a support network to help them to express and to solve, ideally by using friends and extended family to back them up or, in extremis, by using childline or the LA Childrens Services. The 14 year old boy needs more help from those who love him, not a more punitive legislative framework.

Why is it that when a schooled child is let down it's evidence but when a Home Educated child is let down it's hearsay or an anecdote?
All these children are real are equally worthy of our care.

But... tougher guidelines to achieve what exactly?

If I described the life of this child I feel that you would agree the provision made for him is far from adequate. While I am not within the nuclear family, he is family and I know how he spends most of his days.

If it is not necessary to show evidence of learning how can we change things so that other children do not have to live like this?