Rising Interest in Home Education
- Nikki Miller
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
There has been a notable rise in parents choosing to home educate their children over recent years, and particularly since the COVID pandemic.
Elective home education – carrying out a child’s education at home, outside the school system – is a legal right in the UK.
The number of families home educating is not known. There is no legal requirement to register with a local authority, nor is there any other register for parents choosing to home educate. This means relying on data from organisations carrying out research to gain an idea of these numbers.
The Association of Directors of Children’s Services reported that there were around 81,200 children receiving home education in England in 2021. Charity Education Otherwise reported a similar number of 83,974 in April 2021.
More recently, the Department for Education has begun conducting its own research on home education, from data reported by local authorities. It found that in January 2023, around 86,200 children were being home educated in England – and that this had risen to around 92,000 in autumn 2023.
Ways of home schooling
In Scotland, a parent needs the local council’s permission to withdraw their child from school.
If a child is not at school and has not been entered into the schooling system, there is no requirement to alert the local authority and they can simply continue to educate how they want.
Some parents may choose a combination of school and home education. This is known as flexi-schooling: the child attends school part time and learns at home part time. See below for further details from Edinburgh Council.
Reasons Parents Choose Home Education
A study that explored why parents in the UK chose to home educate found the most common reasons were that parents were disappointed with the education and schools (31%); they had always planned and had the intention to home educate (30%); their child was being bullied (25%) or the child was sick, exhausted or depressed (24%).
Social media – whether through homeschooling families’ Instagram accounts or sites such as the Not Fine in School Facebook page, where parents discuss the challenges their children face in mainstream education – has played a powerful role in expanding knowledge of home education. More parents may be making this choice because they know it is an option available to them.
The challenge is to ensure adequate support is in place for the children who may want to remain in school but feel they cannot, as well as for those whose families wish to take this route.
Consent to withdraw your child from school
The City of Edinburgh Council supports both home education and flexi schooling.
Home Education
If your child has been going to a City of Edinburgh Council school, then following Scottish Government guidance, you are required to obtain our consent before withdrawing your child from school. Your child should continue to attend school whilst your paperwork is processed.
Consent is NOT needed if the
child has never attended a public school
child has never attended a public school in that authority’s area
child is being withdrawn from an independent school
child has finished primary education in one school but has not started secondary education in another
school the child has been attending has closed.
If you wish to educate your child at home, then after you submit your letter seeking consent to withdraw, along with an outline of educational provision, then you will be contacted to discuss your plans, before a decision is made. We will also seek to give the child the opportunity to share their views.
If consent is granted, the child's name will be removed from the school roll. From this time the parents / guardians are responsible for providing their child with an efficient and suitable education.
Flexi Schooling
If you wish to apply to flexi school your child, then this will also need to be discussed with the child’s school, before submitting the application. All City of Edinburgh Council schools are eligible for a flexi schooling applications.
It is our expectation that parents assume full responsibility for the education of their children on the days agreed. Any changes to the agreed flex-school timetable, once agreed, must be renegotiated with the Headteacher in advance. Ad hoc changes will not be permitted. Please note that for new applications received after 1st September 2024, that Flexi-Schooled pupils must attend a minimum of 3 days at school.
Formal qualifications
There is no legal requirement for children to sit a particular set of examinations. If parents want a child to take a particular qualification, they should investigate thoroughly whether, and how easily, their child is able to access examination and assessment arrangements.
The internal assessment component of many qualifications such as Scottish National and Higher Qualifications, GCSEs and A Levels can restrict the certification of external candidates. These are not, however, the only types of qualification available and parents may wish to investigate alternative options which may be better suited to home education.
Parents / guardians educating their children at home can make arrangements for their children to sit formal exams (for example, through their local college).
Contact
Email homeeducation@edinburgh.gov.uk to enquire about this and an officer will contact you to discuss home educating your child full time or as part of a flexi schooling arrangement.
For more information about private tuition in Edinburgh and the Lothians:
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