Elective Home Education: role of the local authority

What we provide

Before making a decision about elective home education (EHE) we can organise a 3-way meeting with parents, the school and an EHE Officer, to make sure parents are fully informed. This can be made at the request of the school or parent.

West Berkshire Council maintains a database that contains the names of all EHE pupils. 

The EHE Team will contact you at the first opportunity to discuss your plans, offer support and guidance and arrange a first appointment. Along with the offer of an EHE appointment, we send an introduction letter and information bundle.

Please see our resources and information which we will keep updated.

We will email out any safeguarding information relevant to all parents and children. We will also contact you with any NHS or public health information relevant to compulsory school age children. We also provide a termly newsletter to all our EHE community promoting news, ideas and support available. There are a lot of supportive networks if you are considering EHE.

Once a child is deregistered from school for EHE, the local authority may make informal enquiries to ensure that suitable education is being provided.

There is no funding available from West Berkshire Council for families who electively home educate. All costs are the responsibility of the parents. See our planning for Elective Home Education (EHE) page for further guidance.

What we are required to do

Legal framework

Local authorities operate under several key legal duties:

• Section 7, Education Act 1996: parents must ensure their child receives a suitable education, either at school or otherwise
• Section 436A, Education Act 1996: local authorities must identify children not receiving a suitable education
• Section 437, Education Act 1996: if it appears a child is not receiving suitable education, the authority must serve a notice requiring the parent to demonstrate otherwise
• Section 175, Education Act 2002: authorities must safeguard and promote the welfare of children in their area
   

Key duties of local authorities

1. Identifying children not in education

Local authorities must make arrangements to identify children of compulsory school age who are not registered at a school and are not receiving suitable education elsewhere (for example, at home or in alternative provision).

2. Enquiring about suitability of education

If a child is known to be home educated, the local authority may make informal enquiries to determine whether the education is:

• efficient
• full-time
• suitable to the child's age, ability, aptitude, and any special educational needs

Parents are not legally required to respond to informal enquiries, but cooperation is encouraged.

See sections 3.5 and 5.1 of the government's elective home education guidance for local authorities.

3. Taking action if education appears unsuitable

If the authority is not satisfied that a suitable education is being provided, it may issue a Section 437(1) notice, requiring the parent to provide evidence within 15 days.

If the response is unsatisfactory, the authority may issue a School Attendance Order (SAO), naming a school the child must attend.

4. Safeguarding responsibilities

While local authorities do not have automatic rights to enter homes or see children solely to monitor education, they must act if there are safeguarding concerns under:

• Children Act 1989 (Sections 17 and 47)
• Children Act 2004 (Sections 10 and 11)

They may also consider an Education Supervision Order (ESO) as an alternative to prosecution if parents fail to comply with an SAO.

5. Providing information and support

Authorities should:

• offer clear, accessible information about EHE to parents
• respect diverse educational approaches
• maintain positive, supportive relationships with home-educating families

Expectations of a suitable education

Under Section 7 of the Education Act 1996, parents must ensure their child receives an education that is:

• efficient - it achieves what it sets out to achieve
• full-time - while there is no legal definition, it should be regular and consistent
• suitable - it must be appropriate to the child's age, ability, aptitude, and any special educational needs

A suitable education is expected to:

• enable the child to make progress according to their individual potential
• prepare the child for life in the community they are part of, without limiting future life choices
• include opportunities for literacy, numeracy, and personal development
• be delivered in a way that encourages engagement and learning, even if it does not follow the national curriculum or traditional school methods

There is no fixed number of hours for home education. However, local authorities may consider:

• whether the education is regular and consistent
• whether it provides sufficient learning opportunities across the week
• that one-to-one learning often takes less time than classroom-based teaching

Parents are not required to:

• follow the national curriculum
• have formal lesson plans or timetables
• use specific teaching methods or materials
• provide formal assessments or exams

Instead, they can use a variety of approaches, including:

• structured lessons
• project-based learning
• outdoor education
• online resources
• tutors or group learning

There is no 'cooling off' period when making the decision to electively home educate. It is very important that plans are created and adopted from the very start.

The education your child receives at home must be suitable for their special educational needs or disabilities and if they have an Education, Health and Care plan (EHCP). This does not, however, imply that you must supply what the school has already supplied. It is possible that your child can still receive speech and language treatment, occupational therapy, and physical therapy through the NHS.

When it comes to education, the goal should be to enable the child to become an independent citizen of the United Kingdom when they are an adult, with a minimal standard that is appropriate.  

Parents should be able to demonstrate the amount of time for which a child is being educated and education which does not occupy a significant proportion of a child's life is unlikely to meet the section 7 (Education Act 1996) requirement.

Article 29 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child states that Education must develop "the child's personality, talents and mental and physical abilities to their fullest potential". In addition, it states that education must develop the child's respect for human rights, as well as respect for their parents, their own cultural identity and that of other cultures or civilizations and the natural environment. (See Article 29 of the UNCRC).

Education is a gateway to choice for many UK Citizens and enabling this for your child is the greatest gift, however you choose to. West Berkshire has high aspirations for all our children.