A BBC investigation revealed a dramatic increase in children receiving home education in the South East.
In April, 11541 children received their education at home, compared to 6,345 in 2020. Parents told BBC South East that schools could not meet their children’s special education needs.
According to the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS), families cite dissatisfaction and mental and emotional health issues.
Killie Milano, a mother of a 3-year-old autistic girl, stated that her daughter was very nervous and didn’t want to attend school. She couldn’t express what was wrong with her but didn’t feel like she was not listened to. She revealed that she was forced to go to school, which was wrong; she also ended up at the back of the classroom with the little girl crying.
Many parents choose to educate their children at home. Kellie started Club Ausome to assist other parents with their home education. She says that a growing number of parents now teach their children at home. The numbers have increased massively, and parents are always discussing the options of home education.
Government data from the educational census in autumn 2023 revealed that the most significant known reason for moving to elective home education remained philosophical, which is 16% of the data, and mental health care was close (13%).
Experts also think that some students have behavior issues, which led to bad school experiences after the pandemic. Leanne, a resident of Sussex, has been educating her teenage son, who has autism, for over three years. Leanne said her son cannot attend school because of the noise and the smell; she added that it is too much for him. The school tried to help by doing their bit, but they couldn’t do it.
His senses got worse, and he did not want people to see his routines. According to Leanne, many families opt to remove their children from school. She added that some schools are incredible at special needs but do not have enough teaching assistants, and there is a lot of pressure. Initially, there was a bit of stigma, but it now seems normal. Leanne said people were shocked when she started homeschooling, but many parents joined.
According to Heather Sandy, Chair of the ADS’ Education Policy Committee, a register in and out will not keep the children safe. Still, it helps identify the number of students in school who might be vulnerable to harm. However, Wendy Charles-Warner stated that a register that feels like punishing parents will always meet resistance and that resistance will mean fewer children receiving support.
Most parents are doing well a good job of home education. If care is not taken, the few who need support and are not receiving the sort of education they should receive will disappear.
According to a Conservative Party spokesperson, English students are now the best readers in the Western world, and they have risen to 11th place in the international rankings in maths. She added that they support parents who opt to educate their children at home, as many of them do it very well.
According to the Labour Party, urgent priorities would be a new register of students who are not in school, ending private schools’ tax breaks to ensure access to mental health counseling support in every paid school, and making free breakfast clubs available to every private school.
The Liberal Democrats also call for dedicated, qualified mental health professionals in every primary and secondary school to ensure children and parents have come to assist them in times of need.
