Frequently Asked Questions (EHE)

Parents are responsible for ensuring that their children receive a suitable education. While most parents aim to do this by sending their children to school, some parents choose to educate their children at home.

Elective Home Education is the term used by the Department for Education (DfE) to describe parents ‘decisions to provide education for their children other than by sending them to school'.

This is different from:

• home tuition provided by a local authority
• education provided by a local authority other than at a school

In Suffolk we respect this right of parents. Our aim is to work constructively with parents to help them promote their children’s learning and development. We seek to establish relationships with parents that are based on mutual understanding and respect.

There are many laws that link and contribute in some way to Elective Home Education law.

The main act is the Education Act (1996), in which Section 7 states that all parents have an equal duty to ensure their child has an appropriate full-time education that is suitable for their child’s age, ability, and aptitude, and to any special educational needs they may have. Parents can do this either by their child’s regular attendance at school or ‘otherwise.’

Elective Home Education is the ‘otherwise’ part.

Parents must ensure that their children receive suitable full-time education for as long as they are being educated at home. 

Parents may choose to home educate their child from a very early age and so the child may not have been previously enrolled at school. They may also elect to home educate at any other stage up to the end of compulsory school age.

Parents do not need to seek the permission of the local authority to educate their children at home (unless their child is registered at a school as a result of a school attendance order).

If a child attends a special school, the school cannot remove the child’s name from the register without the permission of the local authority. The local authority will only be able to give that permission when they are aware that the child or young person will have access to the provision that is laid out in their Education, Health and Care plan. It is the parents responsibility to ensure their child has this access.

Where parents are funding a place for their child at an independent special school, they do not require permission from the local authority to de-register.

Schools must not seek to persuade parents to educate their children at home as a way of avoiding an exclusion or because the child has a poor attendance record.

Parents who choose to educate their children at home assume full financial responsibility for the educational costs, including the cost of any educational resources, sporting activities or part-time alternative provision and including the cost of arranging examinations and paying the examination fees.

In the case of children with an Education, Health & Care plan, please refer to the section below on SEND.

The type of educational activity can be varied and flexible. Home-educating parents are not required to:

• teach the National Curriculum
• have a timetable
• have premises equipped to any particular standard
• set hours during which education will take place
• have any specific qualifications
• make detailed plans in advance
• observe school hours, days or terms
• mark work done by their child
• match school-based, age-specific standards.

A parent does not have to provide a ‘broad and balanced’ curriculum or give formal lessons. They do not have to mark work done by the child, formally assess progress, or set development objectives. They do not have to match school-based, age-specific standards or reproduce school like socialisation or learning opportunities. However, many home-educating families do some of these.

Furthermore, it is likely to be much easier to show that the education provided is suitable if there is breadth of learning and content and the concepts of progression and assessment are incorporated into the child’s learning.

Suitable education

Efficient and suitable education are not legally defined in the Education Act (1996), however:

• Efficient has been described in case law as an education that “achieves that which it sets out to achieve”.
• Suitable education is one that “primarily equips a child for life within the community of which they are a member". A suitable education must enable a child to participate fully in life in the UK by including sufficient secular education. Literacy and numeracy are also considered an essential part of suitable education.

A suitable education should also:

• be age-appropriate
• enable the child to make progress according to his or her particular level of ability
• take account of any specific strengths the child may have.
• allow the child to grow-up to be an independent person, live beyond the community in which they are brought up, if that is the choice made in later life by the child.

Education at home should not directly conflict with the fundamental British values, and may not be suitable if it is delivered in circumstances which make it very difficult to work, or if it leads to excessive isolation from the child’s peers, and might impede social development.

Full-time education

There is currently no legal definition of ‘full-time’.

However, it would be considered as an education that takes up much of the child’s day over a similar number of weeks to the time that schools are open or equivalent. That may be fewer hours each day, but over more weeks of the year.

‘Full-time’ education does not mean keeping to the same hours that a child would have in school. In home education there is often almost continuous one-to-one contact and education may take place outside normal school hours.

Home educating parents do not have to teach the National Curriculum but familiarity with it is likely to be an advantage should your child return to school and if it is your intention for your child to access formal qualifications.

Firstly, we would strongly urge you to speak to school and ensure that you have all the information you need before informing the school in writing of your intention to take responsibility for your child’s education and Electively Home Educate.

This will then require the school to remove your child’s name from the register. The school then informs the local authority of your child’s removal from the school roll.

The Elective Home Education team will then contact you and ask for some basic information and make a request to complete the Parental Confirmation of Elective Home Education form. This form is not compulsory, rather one option for sharing the provision that a parent has put in place. Equally, some parents choose to provide a detailed report of the provision, others prefer to meet and share the information, either in person or virtually and some choose to email pictures and photographs of their children’s work alongside one of these options.

Parents may choose to employ other people to educate their child, but parents will continue to be responsible for the education provided. They will also be responsible for ensuring that those people they choose to work with their child, are suitable to have access to children. Parents are advised to satisfy themselves by taking up appropriate references and Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks, which the people employed should be able to produce. There is a guide available from the team to help with this.

If your child is not yet of statutory school age and you intend to educate him or her at home, it would be very helpful if you inform the Elective Home Education Team by email at EHE@suffolk.gov.uk

The simple answer is no, but you are advised that it is wise to do so.

If your child has never been to school or you are new to the area you do not have to inform the local authority. However, it would be helpful for us for you to do so by emailing EHE@suffolk.gov.uk

If a child is on the roll of a Suffolk school the school should not delete the child's name from their admissions register until they have received written notification from the parents that the pupil is receiving education otherwise than at school.

The school will then inform the local authority of your child’s removal from the school roll.

The Elective Home Education team will then contact you and ask for some basic information and make a request to complete the Parental Confirmation of Elective Home Education form. 

Parental Confirmation of Elective Home Education Form

The simple answer to this question is ‘No’.

Local authorities have no legal responsibility or obligation to fund parents or carers who choose to home educate.

You will need to look at the costs that may be involved (equipment, visits, books, tutors etc.) and plan what you intend to do before home educating. In common with many local authorities, Suffolk does not provide direct funding or resources (e.g., exercise or textbooks, pens, pencils or paper, home computers etc.).

Parents who choose to educate their children at home must be prepared to assume full financial responsibility, including bearing the cost of any public examinations.

The right of parents to educate their child at home applies equally when a child has Special Educational Needs (SEN). Where a child has an Education, Health & Care (EHC) plan and is Electively Home Educated, it remains the local authority’s duty to ensure that the child’s needs are met and therefore, the EHC plan will continue to be reviewed annually via the statutory Annual Review process. The only difference being that the review will be undertaken with the Family Services Team Coordinator.

If a child has a special school named in the EHC plan, the local authority will need to give its ‘consent’ to the school to be able to remove the child from its roll. This can only happen when they have information about how the child will be accessing the provision that is laid out in their EHC plan. To do this they will make contact with the parent and ask them to provide this information. The pupil will remain on the roll of the special school until such time as consent is given for the child’s name to be removed from the roll. Should consent not be given, then the local authority will expect the pupil to attend the special school named in EHC plan.

A parent who is Electively Home Educating their child may ask the local authority to carry out a Statutory Assessment or reassessment of their child’s SEND by contacting the Family Services Team and making that request. The Elective Home Education team can help and advise with this process and there is an information sheet available from the team to help parents with this.

Part time attendance is an arrangement (between the parent and the school) by which the child is registered at school but attends part time; the rest of the time the child is Electively Home Educated.

Part time attendance is a legal option, but it requires the agreement of the head teacher of the school. The child will be required to follow the National Curriculum whilst at school but not whilst he or she is being Electively Home Educated. There would be an expectation that information is shared around the provision being made for your child on the days they do not attend school. This is not the same as when a school and parent agree a temporary part time timetable in order to support a young person who is experiencing difficulties in school for whatever reason.

The GOV.UK home education web page also says "Write to the headteacher if you plan to take your child out of school. They must accept if you're taking your child out completely. They can refuse if you want to send your child to school some of the time."

Local authorities have a duty to make arrangements to establish as far as possible the identities of children in its area who are not receiving a suitable education.

When we become aware that you are home educating your child, we will contact you to ask for some basic information such as child's name and date of birth as well as preferred contact details. We will also ask how you wish to provide the local authority with information about your home education.

Providing we have the assurance that a suitable education is being provided we will normally be in touch once a year to confirm that you are still Electively Home Educating and that the provision being made remains suitable. This annual contact and assurance are a duty of the local authority. If you move house or your child starts school, we would be grateful if you could let us know as we would not automatically be made aware by the school.

Parents who choose to educate their children at home assume full financial responsibility for the educational costs, including the cost of arranging examinations and paying the examination fees.

Children may have to go to an examination centre to sit papers and parents will have to pay the costs involved but parents do have the advantage of selecting the board whose external syllabus most suits their child.

Useful introductory information on exams can also be found at the home educator Ed Yourself. Other information is available from organisations such as Education Otherwise.

Some Suffolk schools and academies may be willing to allow external candidates to access courses and sit examinations. The team have an information sheet available to help you with this and are happy to advise further.

Electively Home Educated children may take part in work experience that is arranged by their parents. Parents should consider the extent to which their children are covered by the health and safety, child protection and insurance provisions of the workplace. An information sheet is available on how to undertake these checks from the EHE team.

For various reasons you may decide that your child should return to school and we will always be willing to offer a place for your child at a Suffolk school. If you decide to return your child to school you will need to apply for a place at your preferred school provision.

School places - Suffolk County Council will provide you with detailed information, advice and guidance on applying for a place, and on the appeals process should admission be refused to a particular school.

Should you have concerns about returning your child to school you may wish to contact the SENDIASS service (01473 265210) during Monday to Friday office hours or email sendiass@suffolk.gov.uk).

Alternatively, you may wish to write or email to the Elective Home Education department explaining that you have been home educating your child but no longer wish to do so and seek information and advice on returning you child to school.

Elective Home Education
Children and Young People Services
Suffolk County Council
Endeavour House
8 Russell Road
Ipswich
IP1 2BX

Email: EHE@suffolk.gov.uk

Parents can Electively Home Educate and provide a suitable education for as long as their child is of compulsory school age.

Some parents do home educate their children beyond the age of 16 in order to comply with the duty of young people (aged 16 and 17) participating in education or employment with training until their 18th birthday.

This duty of participating in education or employment with training (until their child’s 18th birthday) relates to the government initiative known as ‘Raising the Participation Age (RPA)’.

Most children will continue (until their 18th birthday) in education or employment with training through the following programmes of learning:

1. full-time study in a school, college or with a training provider (at least 540 Guided Learning Hours per year - i.e. 15hrs per week over 36 weeks of an academic year).
2. full-time work or volunteering (20 hours or more per week for 8 or more consecutive weeks) combined with part-time education or training (at least 280 Guided Learning Hours per year).
3. an apprenticeship or traineeship.
4. an engagement programme designed to move the young person into one of the above.

If a 16- or 17-year-old is home educated until their 18th birthday, no hourly requirement of education applies. The amount and content of home education is at the discretion of the home educator.

However, at this age we would strongly advise the young person seeks advice and guidance that will encourage, enable and assist them to participate in education or employment with training. This support can be sought from our Early Help Specialist Youth Support Service by going to The Source. 

We also recommend the ICANBEA website.

The National Apprenticeship website is also a very useful resource.

Below are some links that may assist in discovering further information regarding ‘Raising the Participation Age (RPA)’.

• Know when you can leave school (GOV.UK)
• Raising the participation age (GOV.UK)

Suffolk recognises that there are many, equally valid, approaches to educational provision. What is suitable for one child may not be for another, but all children should be involved in a learning process. Suffolk seeks to provide parents who home educate with information and advice through the work of its Home Education Consultants and Advisors. Contact details are available below.

As well as providing information and advice, the Elective Home Education Team help the local authority discharge its statutory duties.

5.1 The duty under s.436A means that local authorities must make arrangements to find out so far as possible whether home educated children are receiving suitable full-time education. DfE Elective Home Education Guidance for Local Authorities 2019

Our procedures and approach are outlined in the PDF document Suffolk Elective Home Education Procedures.

Suffolk's Elective Home Education Consultants will be able to give you information about resources, examinations and SEND needs and services.

You can find also information online about different approaches to home education. Local and national organisations that inform and support home-educators include:

• Department for Education
• Education Otherwise
• Ed Yourself: The Home Education Consultancy
• Home Education Advisory Service (HEAS)
• Home Education UK
• National Curriculum
• West Suffolk Home Education Hub (includes details of Suffolk home education groups, events, resources and there is a magazine)

SCC would always encourage parents to research thoroughly before making the decision to home educate. The best sources of information are local and national elective home education groups and forums. 

Parents sometimes talk about ‘deschooling’.

The word is mainly used to refer to a transition process that children and parents go through when they leave the school system in order to start home-schooling.

Whilst it is clear that there will undoubtedly be a period of time when as a parent you are finding out what works best for your child in terms of home school, it is not lawful for there to be extended periods where no home education provision is being made.

The Departmental guidance states clearly that there is no legal basis for ‘deschooling’. Any statement along these lines could be an indication that the education is not properly being provided. These kinds of statements could indicate that education is not at that time, suitable and meeting a child’s needs.

It is not unreasonable that good home education develops with experience as a child becomes used to being in a different learning environment and parents ‘find their feet’. However, families should be aiming to have a satisfactory offer available to their child from the outset, which will adapt and evolve as the child becomes used to a new way of learning and working, perhaps having a greater involvement in what, how and when they learn.

Deschooling is often used interchangeably with the term unschooling. They are not the same thing. Unschooling is about working in a way that is different from most school settings. It involves teaching children based on their interests rather than a prescribed curriculum. The child’s learning is not directed by a ‘teacher’ or adult, rather facilitated by an adult providing guidance and resources to help a child access and make sense of the world, develop their questions, identify those things they are interested in and to help a child develop curiosity and the skills to find out what they would like to know and how this will lead to what they would like to do in the future

This is a private matter between the parents, the local authority cannot take the side of any parent. Where there is a Family Court order the local authority must follow this decision.

We would strongly urge parents to try to come to some agreement about home education, but where this is not possible would advise that independent legal advice is sort. this might be from a solicitor, the citizen's advice bureau or visit Suffolk Law Centre via this link  Suffolk InfoLink | Suffolk Law Centre