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Considering Home Education *help*
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sara_501
Posts: 157 Forumite
Hi
(JUST TO BE CLEAR FROM THE OUTSET...)
I am NOT looking for a debate on the rights or indeed the wrongs of home education, I am purely looking for advice from parents who have removed their child(ren) from mainstream schooling.
In particular from the legal aspect and from the point of view of your contact with the local education authorities etc.
I am in the process of taking steps to do so, and was interested in any problems you may have experienced in doing the same with your children.
thanks
Sara
(JUST TO BE CLEAR FROM THE OUTSET...)
I am NOT looking for a debate on the rights or indeed the wrongs of home education, I am purely looking for advice from parents who have removed their child(ren) from mainstream schooling.
In particular from the legal aspect and from the point of view of your contact with the local education authorities etc.
I am in the process of taking steps to do so, and was interested in any problems you may have experienced in doing the same with your children.
thanks
Sara
0
Comments
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http://www.education-otherwise.org/
Have a look at that site. It will have all the info you need.
I try not to have contact with the LA, but many families do either by choice (or by force).
You do NOT need to do Nat. curric, timetables, terms. Just educate to their age, aptitude and ability.
You can go out during the day with your kids, you can go away in "term time" with your kids. you do not have to give details to truancy officers or police if you come into contact with them, saying "my children are home educated" should satisfy them.
They are not classed as "Children missing education" and any official who say so are acting illegally as far as the law is concerned as long as the children have been de-registered properly.The "Bloodlust" Clique - Morally equal to all. Member 10
grocery challenge...Budget £420
Wk 1 £27.10
Wk 2 £78.06
Wk 3 £163.06
Wk 40 -
We withdrew our 9 year old and taught him and his 4 yr old brother at home,we rang our local council offices spoke to the education dept who took details and arranged a short visit,we wrote to school to say son would not be attending anymore please remove him from the register,the first visit was from child welfare just to check that we were home educating for a purpose and not abusing our children(although this wasnt realised at the time) she wrote a report out,and then every year we were asked to produce written reports and evidence and had an educational welfare officer visit for a time so far weve had 3 different ones were pretty much left to our own devices until inspection time,son has now gone to secondary school where hes thriving(unlike primary)and youngest son is still home schooled.
Good luck xx
dee mum of 3 "before you buy ...think,how many hours have i worked to pay for this?,do i need it? or can i get it r&r in tesco!! hee heee:A0 -
As far as I'm aware as Home Educating parents, you don't have to stick to the national curriculum, so how can they inspect you when they have no targets to work from etc with regard to what your child should know/have learnt?
Sorry but this issue confuses me and from my recent experience with the local school/education welfare I really wouldn't trust them to know what is right for my child at all.dee_mum_of_3 wrote: »We withdrew our 9 year old and taught him and his 4 yr old brother at home,we rang our local council offices spoke to the education dept who took details and arranged a short visit,we wrote to school to say son would not be attending anymore please remove him from the register,the first visit was from child welfare just to check that we were home educating for a purpose and not abusing our children(although this wasnt realised at the time) she wrote a report out,and then every year we were asked to produce written reports and evidence and had an educational welfare officer visit for a time so far weve had 3 different ones were pretty much left to our own devices until inspection time,son has now gone to secondary school where hes thriving(unlike primary)and youngest son is still home schooled.
Good luck xx0 -
QUICK P.S.
I was myself a home educated child, I experienced both mainstream and home-based education. So I have no issues with either side as long as it works
. 0 -
okay,don`t panic,there is plenty of advice out there...see links already posted.
there are lots of families in sheffield home educating,can be contacted through education otherwise.
i am now elsewhere,but local authority here very good,and helpful. we educated dd,from 5 onwards,did not inform LA,but they eventually got wind.of us
We allowed their education officer to visit as we had nothing to hide,and plenty off work to show. you do not have to submit to any inspections,but for us,like most things in life,we found it easier to co-operate.
DD home schooled until 9 yo then went into french,then swiss system (not speaking the language at first) when we returned home she chose to go to local village school...one year later,we are returning to HE as school is not stimulating enough for her...do not want to push her "up" the years,as we do not think this is a good idea.
I was in the school any way doing more advanced english with her,and we supplemented her education at home...in fact it was the head teacher that suggested we took her back out again!!
we will be sending her to school for some sessions,more to keep in with the group of girls she will move up with, IF she goes to secondary school.
I for one will be glad to have her back home,i loved HE and missed her greatly.0 -
you do not have to follow any curriculum and you can be as formal or informal as you please...we are fairly formal as that suits my personality,but it is relaxed and we can get a lot done in a short space of time.
the the old chestnut of "socialisation" is just that,DD is,and always has been outgoing,confident and articulate.
At 9,she not only walked into school for the first time,but one in a foreign language.The french system,where we were,were flummoxed by an English child,and made absolutely no effort to help her.She coped by deconstructing lessons and working out what the teacher wanted.
The swiss system(french speaking) was used to having english children,and gave her extra help. She came out a year later with a report of 5.6 out of 6
I believe that HE gave her the ability to cope with the different systems.0 -
Mine were HE'd for 9 years.
They loved it and thrived on the easier approach to learning.
We told the LEA as we had ,had them both in school to start with.We also told the school.
There is no need to obtain 'permission',you are legally entitled to educate your children outside of school,
We had the school inspector once each year only for about 4 or 5 years,and then he didnt come again as he couldn't see why he needed to.
When a new Inspector started in his place, we decided we didnt need him to visit so just wrote about what provision we were making to home ed and sent that off stating that we didnt need a home visit(this is perfectly legal,you must prove an education is taking place).
The inspector looks for,what is being taught not wether it fits the national curriculum. Ours was interested to hear about how the kids socialised (Clubs) ,neighbours,friends and about new skills learned.
Their duty really is to accertain wether an education is being provided and report that back to the LEA.
My 2 returned to 6th form college for A levels(son did some GCSE and city in guilds at adult ed first,daughter didnt do any and had no trouble being accepted for the A level courses). The local college (not 6th form) were very unaccomodating else they'd have gone there.Some areas will take quite young teens in college but not where we live.
DS is now in university and DD hopefully will be by next Autumn as that is what they wanted to do next.0 -
as far as i am aware,unless they can prove general neglect,you do not have to submit to inspection.This only as a welfare issue,not an educational one.
You are correct,as there are no"targets",how can they hold you to any standards. i have a friend who HE`s totally autonomously,and has no "work" to offer as proof...the "inspector" is always happy.
despite years of groups campaigning on these issues,there is still widespread confusion...even among LA officers. if in doubt say that you will confer with "education otherwise" or other support group. its a good idea to join one of the organizations as they have access to legal advice.
having said that,there is much more acceptance of HE these days....but you will get the odd daft LA.
My sister in law,ran into one such in buckinghamshire...and she had to put them right on several points of law.
Good luck !!0 -
I am going to look into joining education otherwise in the next few days but thanks go to everyone who has offered me advice particularly with regards to inspections.
cheers! 0 -
Another Home Education Organisation is Home Education Advisory Service (HEAS).0
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