Thursday, March 26, 2009

Calderdale LA's Response to Questionnaire

Hmm. So despite the fact that Calderdale LA seem to think they have a perfect right to intrude to monitor and inspect as it is, they still want more powers of entry, more prescription as to what parents should be offering, more definitions of suitability.

The answer to question 43 also seems to be revealing. It appears to refer to the Elective Home Education Guidelines (which have been in place since Nov 2007) as a draft document. If there is anything that home educators would call for as a result of this review, it is that these guidelines be taken seriously by the LAs.

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Q1 Name of LA

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Q5 Which team(s) have the main responsibility for supporting and monitoring home educated children within the local authority and other agencies?

Educational Welfare team

Learning Services

Q6 List all teams / professionals involved in supporting home educating families

Family Services

Child and Family Mental Health team

Youth Offending team

Special Needs team

Vulnerable Children's Service

Connections

Q7 List all teams / professionals involved in monitoring home educating families

Learning Services

Family Services

Educational Welfare Team

Q8 Describe how you ensure collaboration and communication between these teams / individuals

The Educational Welfare team and Learning Services have established roles and procedures for communication between these teams

Q9 How many children are currently home educated in your local authority of primary age (Registered with LA)

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Q10 How many children are currently home educated in your local authority of primary age (Non-registered with LA)

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Q11 How many children are currently home educated in your local authority of secondary age (Registered with LA)

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Q12 How many children are currently home educated in your local authority of secondary age (Non-registered with LA)

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Q13 Total (Registered with LA)

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Q14 Total (Non-registered with LA)

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Q15 Are these figures accurate or based on estimates?

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Accurate

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Estimate

Q16 If accurate, where do you get this data from?

Learning Services and educational Welfare team databases

Q17 If accurate, how do you know the data is accurate?

The database is updated termly and paper copies are kept with reports of visits.

Q18 If estimated, what data have you used to arrive at this figure? (List all sources)

Q19 How confident is the local authority in the accuracy of this data?

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Very confident

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Fairly confident

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Don't know

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Not very confident

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Not at all confident

Q20 How often does the local authority get updated data? (List frequency for each source separately)

The educational welfare team refer pupils when necessary and schools are required to notify the EWT within two days of receiving a deregistration letter from parents.

Q21 What proportion (as a percentage) of your home educated population is statemented for SEN? (please state whether accurate or estimate)

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Accurate

Q22 What proportion (as a percentage) of your home educated population is non-statemented for SEN (please state whether accurate or estimate)

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Q23 What proportion (as a percentage) of your home educated population is from Gypsy, Roma and Traveller heritage (please state whether accurate or estimate)

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Q24 What proportion (as a percentage) of your home educated population is made up of other Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) groups

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Q25 Please list which BME groups.

Q26 Do you believe the local authority knows about all the home educated children in your area?

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Yes, we are confident we know about all home educated children in the area

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We think we know about the vast majority of home educated children in the area

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We probably do not know about a fair number of home educated children in the area

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We probably do not know about a significant proportion of home educated children in the area

Q27 Do you think that you will be better able to track children in your area in the near future? e.g. planned changes to your own systems, ContactPoint, other system improvements?

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yes

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no

Q28 Please use this space to add detail to the answer you have just given

Many home educating families do not enter the school system and are not obliged to inform the LA but Contact Point will identify those with no place of education.

Q29 How does the local authority ensure families know about their rights and responsibilities in relation to home education? (List all approaches used)

Web site information (To be reviewed)

Initial visit from the Educational Welfare team who supply information on EHE

Q30 What support does your local authority provide to home educating families? (List all forms of support offered)

Monitoring visits

Lists of local and national organisations for EHE

Lists of suggestions for enhancing curriculum provision

Provision of a room facility for half a day a week

Annual review for statemented children

Youth and community service support

Q31 How does the local authority let families know about the services provided to support them in home educating their children? (List all approaches used)

Initial visit by EWT

Annual visit by Learning Services representative (More frequent if required)

Q32 Following the initial assessment visit, are further monitoring visits made to a home educated child?

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Yes

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No

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Don't know

Q33 If yes, how often, on average, are these carried out?

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More than twice a year

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Twice a year

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Once a year

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Less than once a year

Q34 Please use this space to add detail to the answer you have just given

Visits would be more frequent if there was an identified need.

Q35 On average, how often is the child seen when a visit is made?

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Always, at each visit

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Usually, but not always

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Sometimes

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Never

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Depends on the child / circumstances

Q36 Please use this space to add detail to the answer you have just given

Sometimes the child is severely autistic and meeting them is not appropriate

Sometimes the child is emotionally or mentally scarred and has issues with authority so it may be necessary to meet parents away from the home.

Q37 If the child is seen, where is s/he usually seen?

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In the home

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At the home, but do not go inside

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Another venue

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Depends on the child / circumstances

Q38 Please use this space to add detail to the answer you have just given

Q39 If you are not permitted access to a child, is any further action taken?

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Yes

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No

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Don't know

Q40 If yes, what further steps are taken?

EWT team may be informed if this is deemed appropriate.

Q41 How is the suitability of the education provided to the child assessed? (Please describe

Through home visits and by using the authority's checklist and report pro-forma.

Q42 Is the local authority clear about what the definition of a 'suitable education' is?

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yes

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no

Q43 Please use this space to add detail to the answer you have just given

As defined in the draft guidelines for LAs paragraph 3.15

Q44 Does the local authority have systems in place to track the educational progress of home educated children?

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Yes

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No

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Don't know

Q45 Please use this space to add further detail to the answer you have just given

The LA monitors the provision but does not at present have any system for the assessment of pupils except for those on statements

Q46 Of the home educated children in your area of whom you have knowledge, what proportion (as a percentage) in your estimation is receiving a suitable, full time (20hrs a week) education? (Please describe)

93%

Q47 Does the local authority take any further steps if a home educated child's education was found to be unsuitable or not full time?

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Yes

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No

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Don't know

Q48 Please use this space to add further detail to the answer you have just given

Recommendations are made to parents to improve and develop provision but if they do not respond the case is referred back to EWT

Q49 Does the local authority face any challenges in assessing whether home educated children receive a suitable education?

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Yes

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No

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Don't know

Q50 If you answered yes to Q49, please describe the challenges and what you think could be done to overcome these

If parents ignore communications or do not allow visits and fail to provide detail of educational provision.

Q51 Thinking about your local area, in the last five years, how many cases have you come across that use the premise of home education as a 'cover' for child abuse, forced marriage or other aspects of child neglect?

None

Q52 Please use this space to add detail to the answer you have just given. Please include the number of Serious Case Reviews you know about that have a home education element.

None

Q53 Do you think the current system for safeguarding children who are educated at home is adequate?

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Yes

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No

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Don't know

Q54 Please use this space to add detail to the answer you have just given

TThe children who are not known to the LA because they have never attended school are not monitored.

Q55 Do you think that home educated children in your local authority are able to achieve the five Every Child Matters outcomes? Please say why you think that for each of the five outcomes


  • Be healthy - Yes -The home visits by Learning Services

  • Stay safe - Yes -The home visits by Learning Services

  • Enjoy and achieve - Yes -The home visits by Learning Services, links to Youth Service and monitoring of GCSE outcomes and tracking of NEETs.

  • Make a positive contribution - Yes -The home visits by Learning Services and monitoring of GCSE outcomes and tracking of NEETs.

  • Achieve economic well-being - Yes -The home visits by Learning Services and monitoring of GCSE outcomes and tracking of NEETs.

Q56 Do you think there should be any changes made to the current system for supporting home educating families?

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Yes

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No

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Don't know

Q57 Please use this space to add detail to the answer you have just given

Development of the LA website and the provision a more detailed parental guidance policy.

Q58 Do you think there should be any changes made to the current system for monitoring home educating families and ensuring that home educated children are able to achieve the five outcomes?

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Yes

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No

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Don't know

Q59 Please use this space to add detail to the answer you have just given

A review of policies and procedures is being undertaken to ensure appropriate provision and to more closely monitor the progress of individuals

Q60 Has the Director of Children's Services and the Lead Member for Children and Young People seen and agreed with the answers you have given above?

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DCS

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Lead member

6 comments:

  1. Anonymous8:18 am

    Wow these responses sure do show the LEAs don't understand the Law.

    The review really does need to target that.

    Elizabeth

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  2. Anonymous3:22 pm

    I don't think they give a damn about the law. They think they can change it perhaps.

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  3. Hmm. This is my LA. I think a meeting might be in order, don't you?! We're discussing it on the local list: I'd just like a name to go with the response. The body of officials tends to separate into separate little globules like quicksilver whenever it's poked. Dunno whether that's a typical LA characteristic, but I suspect it is.

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  4. "separate into separate..."?

    Doh, brain is mush today.

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  5. Lol..am actually relieved to hear you have days like that too, G!! I've been feeling very addled recently.

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  6. Me too! I blame review fatigue.

    ReplyDelete