More families being 'forced' into home education

University courses Education & Childhood Studies
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This is an article from BBC news discussing around home education:

Summary:
The number of children in England being moved to home education has doubled over the past five years, rising from 28,000 in 2019-20 to over 66,000 in 2023-24, according to data obtained through freedom of information (FOI) requests. The increase is particularly significant in the North and Midlands, where figures have more than doubled, and in the North East, where they have more than tripled.

The Children’s Commissioner for England, Dame Rachel de Souza, expressed concern that many families feel “forced” into home education as a last resort, particularly those with children who have special educational needs (SEND), are at risk of exclusion, or come from disadvantaged areas. Challenges include insufficient school support, unmet needs, and the lingering effects of the pandemic.

Although some parents report positive outcomes, such as improved confidence and happiness for their children, others note the lack of resources and social interaction compared to traditional schooling. The government has pledged to improve SEND support and create mandatory home education registers to better track and support families.

It is a serious problem for the government to consider how can home-educated children receive social interaction and resources comparable to those in traditional schooling?

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It feels like the real question is how schools and communities can do more to support children and parents before they feel like leaving is their only choice.

The government’s plans to create better SEND support and home education registers are a step forward, but they’ll need to go further to address the root issues behind this trend. There’s so much potential to make both school systems and home education more inclusive and sustainable.

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