Elective home education (EHE)

Parents are responsible for ensuring their child is properly educated. While many parents fulfil this responsibility by ensuring their child attends a school parents may elect to educate their children at home. The Education Act (1996) states that:

The parent of every child of compulsory school age shall cause them to receive efficient full time education suitable to their age, ability and aptitude and to any special needs they may have, either by regular attendance at school or otherwise.

A parent electing (choosing) to educate their child at home is responsible for all aspects of the child’s learning (even if this is a temporary measure, such as while awaiting a school place). This includes:

• ensuring that the education provided is suitable: there should be a minimum standard even if choosing not to follow the National Curriculum – GOV.UK which enables the child, when they become an adult, to function as an independent UK citizen, and beyond the community in which they are brought up if the child chooses to
• ensuring that the education is efficient: so if it is aiming to enable the child to make good progress across a number of subjects, it is the responsibility of the parent to ensure that the education they provides enables this to happen. The parent should be able to demonstrate that the child is making progress in their learning
• ensuring that the education is full time: the parent should be able to quantify and demonstrate the amount of time for which their child is being educated and this should occupy a significant proportion of the child’s life
• planning a suitable package of education: the parent should be able to demonstrate that the programme of work they have put in place is appropriate to the child’s age, level of ability and any special needs they may have
• providing tuition – this may be the parent teaching the child or providing other forms of tuition such as online schooling, private tutoring or attendance at tuition centres or group activities
• providing appropriate learning resource – such as laptop, tablet or computer, Internet access, study books and work books, art materials, PE equipment etc

Parents should be aware that resources are not provided by the Local Authority and parents are responsible for funding these themselves.

Children who have not yet started school

If your child is not currently attending school, the Department for Education (DfE) strongly recommend that you notify the local authority of your intention to home educate when your child becomes of statutory school age, in order to provide you with relevant advice and support.

Considerations before deciding to home educate

Mainstream education and home education both have benefits for the child, which will suit your child and your circumstances best?

Will learning away from their peers be right for the child? Will they respond well to the education that you will be putting in place for them?

How will you provide for social and emotional aspects of your child’s development? How will you engage them in social learning and contact with other children? Will you be able to plan a suitable package of education?

Planning for education is the parent’s responsibility and ideally needs to start before your child starts being educated at home. On-going planning will be needed to ensure that your child is receiving a suitable education. This can require a significant time commitment from the parent.

You might want to consider:

• how will you provide for your child’s physical development?
• will you have sufficient funds to pay for resources, books, subscriptions, stationary, tuition, educational visits, exam fees etc?

When electing to home educate parents take on full financial responsibility for every aspect of the child’s education. There are no grants or funding from the local authority of the Department for Education (DfE).

Making the commitment

It is important for a parent to be aware of the time involved in planning, identifying resources, teaching and/or supervising the child’s learning. Unless subscribing to an online school, tuition centre or private tuition, it will be a long-term commitment whilst your child is being home educated.

Be aware that awaiting a school place may be for an extended period of time. Some parents assume they will get a place within the next term, whereas many awaiting places in oversubscribed schools may end up home educating indefinitely.

Read all the relevant guidance and policies

A parent needs to be clear about the expectations on them before deciding to choose to home educate. These documents clearly set out the expectations for the parents and the Local Authority’s role in monitoring the education being provided.

Read our Elective Home Education (EHE) policy.

Read the Elective home education: Departmental guidance for parents – GOV.UK.

Ensure your child is making progress

We understand that a parent wants the best for their child, so you will want to consider how you will ensure that they are making good progress across the curriculum. You will need to think about how you’ll assess their progress so that you know how well they are learning and what areas they need extra practice or teaching in.

Consider how will your education package may impact your child's choices in later life

Will they be able to follow GCSE syllabuses? Will you be able to organise and pay for them to be entered for exams as a private candidate?

Allocating a satisfactory study area

Your child will need a space that enables them to be educated efficiently - this may be a dedicated study are that is away from distractions and lots of noise so that they can focus on their learning.

Children with an Education and Health Care Plan (EHCP)

Where a child has an EHCP we ask that parents contact their allocated officer in the Special Education Needs Assessment Team (SENAT) before they are taken off the school roll. SENAT and EHE officers will meet with the parent to discuss the parent’s plans for home education and to ensure that the child’s education needs and objectives outlined in the EHCP will be met. 

The request will then be considered by the SEND Provision Panel before the child is removed from the school roll.