Home schooling

reeree

well, ive taken the first step and drafted a letter to the head, were any of you contacted by the school after you had sent your letters? just wondered if they might try to talk us out of it

mrs_mix

reeree wrote: »

well, ive taken the first step and drafted a letter to the head, were any of you contacted by the school after you had sent your letters? just wondered if they might try to talk us out of it

No I took the letter in and they didn't even ask why or were there any problems or anything

oldMcDonald

reeree wrote: »

well, ive taken the first step and drafted a letter to the head, were any of you contacted by the school after you had sent your letters? just wondered if they might try to talk us out of it

We had quite a nice letter from the head of the infants when we took our children out. She aknowledged our de reg letter and said that she understood the reasons behind our decision, and whilst she didn't personally see it as the right way forward for xxxx, she knew us well enough to know that we would not have made our decision lightly. She said that she believed we would do a good job of educating xxxx, that she had enjoyed his attending her school and that if we needed any advice on learning or teaching methods to contact her at anytime.

The school also posted all of our sons school work to us, along with some photos that had been taken at school and a card from his teacher saying goodbye.

We have bumped into her several times and she is always very positive about how our son is getting on and is really interested in HE. (maybe I should offer totalk to her at any time regarding learning or teaching methods:rotfl:)

The junior school, however, never replied to our de reg letter, and we have heard nothing since - not even from the LEA! I assume our daughter was taken off the register as this was over 4 years ago and we haven't had any letters regarding truancy:rotfl:

mrcow

oldMcDonald wrote: »

The junior school, however, never replied to our de reg letter, and we have heard nothing since - not even from the LEA! I assume our daughter was taken off the register as this was over 4 years ago and we haven't had any letters regarding truancy:rotfl:

That is quite worrying. That effectively a kid a can just disappear off the radar like that? Surely you must have had some sort of acknowedgement? If not, the system is severely flawed.

oldMcDonald

mrcow wrote: »

That is quite worrying. That effectively a kid a can just disappear off the radar like that? Surely you must have had some sort of acknowedgement? If not, the system is severely flawed.

No, we heard nothing. No letters, no phone calls. Nothing. I agree there is something very wrong when children can just slip through the net like this.

My children are safe and well and there are plenty of opportunities for them to be 'flagged' were there a concern. We have regular contact with the LEA as they visit my eldest son (14), and the children are regularly in contact with my 9 year olds school as he goes to a special needs school that are VERY focused on involving the family. My sons social worker* and health visitor often see him at home, and are very for HE and often spend as much time with the other children as they do with my son (the poor social worker was in a hurry and still sat through half an hour of my 10yo telling her all about the Mary Rose - he is very high functioning aspergers and can talk for hours on a subject in great detail:)).

It is very worrying that an abused child could get 'lost in the system' just as easily.

*disabled children have a social worker to help them access services, nothing worrying behind her visits:D

pipkin71

mrcow wrote: »

That is quite worrying. That effectively a kid a can just disappear off the radar like that? Surely you must have had some sort of acknowedgement? If not, the system is severely flawed.

I think the thing is that legally children do not have to be in school, so once the de-reg letter is sent, the school have no further legal association with the parents or children so there isn't anything the school can do.

Once the de-reg letter is sent to the school they have to [and within two days, I believe] remove the child's name from the school register. They will then forward that letter and the child's details to the LEA who will then make contact with the family, but the school's role is over at the point of receiving the letter. The child doesn't then disappear off the radar if the school doesn't contact the parent. Some schools do, many don't. Our school didn't contact us but the LEA have done.

reeree, once you have sent the letter you may receive one back off the LEA. They may suggest visiting you at home and make an appointment, but you don't have to agree to a visit - that's purely your choice and if you speak to the education otherwise contact for your area they will be able to discuss the legal side with you. Some families have annual visits with the LEA inspector, others prefer to send them an annual report on their child's progress

pipkin71

Thankyou for your post SWMBO. You have provided some useful information.

The cimt.plymouth site is a favourite of ours

ellieo

any updates on this topic

oldMcDonald

ellieo wrote: »

any updates on this topic

Are you interested in home educating, ellieo? Are you already doing so? Do you have any specific questions? If you do then just shout and I'm sure one of us can help

SWMBO

Updating with another useful resource http://www.veoh.com/collection/MagicSchoolBusEpisodes/watch :money: