Information For LEAs

Introduction

Our perspective

Education Otherwise was established in 1977 to re-affirm that parents have the primary responsibility for their children's education and that they have the right to exercise this responsibility by educating them in alternative ways to school. Our long history, large national membership, and network of local contacts/groups provides a useful perspective on relationships between home educators and local authorities. Over the years this relationship has grown and developed. This is primarily because there are now a lot more parents opting to home educate and local authorities come into contact with them much more frequently. Consequently all parties have gained knowledge and experience. EO has been working with LEAs/EAs for many years, as well as consulting with the DfES.

Understanding is key

Where local authorities have a good understanding of home education, often helped by making links with local groups, our members usually report that few problems arise. For LEA officers with many years experience in the school environment, however, some approaches to home education can appear quite radical, and a lack of understanding of these approaches can lead to difficulties. Using the buttons on the left (with green writing) you will find links to information about how home education works and the different ways families approach it, plus various research reports considering outcomes. We also have a publications area which offers a range of informative books.

The law

The law relating to home education has changed very little since the 1944 Education Act, except with regard to deregistration. It is important for LEAs to be clear about the rights and responsibilities of both themselves and parents. Our Summary of the Law booklet gives the basic information.

Welfare issues

Education Otherwise has always been clear that the welfare of children is vital, but the best people to look after and raise children are parents. Further information about how things like Section 175 of the 2002 Education Act apply to home education is available in the Welfare Section.

Further help

We hope that the information gathered here will prove a useful resource and we would encourage you to browse. If you find that you have a specific question that hasn’t been answered, please email us  or phone our help line on 0870 7300074 and we will try and help. Of course we cannot discuss individual home educators with third parties without the express permission of the home educator.

We can provide assistance at the draft stage if you are drawing up information packs for parents or putting information on the web. We can also offer a consultancy service including training sessions, workshops and briefings, using experienced home educators who have a training background.

If you have any feedback about this section of the website please let us know.