Home education in England

Your duty as a parent

The law (section 7 of the Education Act 1996) says parents must make sure a child of compulsory school age gets an efficient, full-time education suitable to their age, ability and aptitude, and to any special educational needs – “either by regular attendance at school or otherwise”. Home education is the “otherwise”. Compulsory education starts from the term after your child turns 5.

What you don’t have to do

• You don’t have to follow the national curriculum.
• You don’t have to keep school hours, terms or a timetable.
• You don’t need a teaching qualification, and neither do tutors you use.
• Your child doesn’t have to sit exams.

Taking your child out of school

• Mainstream school: write to the head teacher saying your child will be educated otherwise than at school. The school must then remove your child from its admission register. You don’t need the school’s or the council’s permission – even if your child has an EHC plan. Use our deregistration letter.
• The school tells the council. It sends the council your child’s and your details and the reason your child was taken off the roll.
• Special school: if the council arranged your child’s place at a special school, you need the council’s consent before your child’s name can be removed. See SEN and EHC plans.
• School attendance order: if one is in force, you must get the council’s permission before educating your child at home.
• Never been to school? There’s nothing to deregister. You don’t have to tell the council under today’s law, but the guidance strongly recommends it.

What the council does

Councils don’t have a general duty to monitor home education. They must try to find children who aren’t getting a suitable education, so they may make an “informal enquiry” to check your child is getting one.

• You can answer in writing – for example a short report on your approach and what your child has learned, with some samples of work. You don’t have to agree to a home visit or a meeting.
• Councils shouldn’t dismiss information just because it isn’t in their preferred format, but they need enough to see the education actually being provided – a statement of intent alone may not be enough.
• If the council isn’t satisfied, it can serve a formal notice (giving you at least 15 days to show your child is receiving a suitable education) and then a school attendance order.

Our reply to an informal enquiry template helps you set this out.

What “suitable”, “efficient” and “full-time” mean

The law doesn’t define these words. The DfE guidance says:

• Efficient: it achieves what it sets out to achieve.
• Suitable: it fits your child’s age, ability, aptitude and any special educational needs, and prepares them for life in modern Britain. Councils look at literacy and numeracy, and at social contact.
• Full-time: there’s no set number of hours. Home education doesn’t have to copy school, but you should be able to show roughly how much time is spent on education.

Flexi-schooling

Flexi-schooling means your child stays on the school roll and is educated at home part of the week. The head teacher has to agree, and the school can refuse. Use our flexi-schooling request if you want to ask.

Going back to school

You can apply for a school place at any time – you don’t need permission to stop home educating. In-year applications go through your council’s school admissions team or, for some schools, the school itself. See going back to school in England.

Exams, SEN and money

• Exams: your child can sit GCSEs, IGCSEs and A levels as a private candidate – how it works.
• SEN: home education with SEN or an EHC plan.
• Money: you pay for resources and exam fees. There’s generally no funding, though some councils help at their discretion.