Swindon's Response to the Indepth Questionnaire

Independent Review of Home Education

Rationale

Vulnerable children who are being home educated may pose an increased concern in terms of their safety, wellbeing and education. The independent review is seeking specific evidence on:

1. the prevalence of `vulnerable' children in your current EHE caseload;

2. the type of vulnerability you have encountered in the past and / or are experiencing currently.

Your views as to what measures could be taken to improve the safety, wellbeing and education of these children are also sought.

In relation to (i) above:

1. What proportion of your current EHE caseload is known to Social Care in the following capacities? Please include open and closed cases.

Type	Number	% of caseload
Section 17 enquiry	1	1.3%
Section 47 enquiry	0	0
Section 37 (care orders)	0	0
Children who are or have been subject to child protection plan (or previously on the child protection register)	0	0
Other (please specify)	6	7.8%
2 Poor at tenders when at school and also experienced bullying. Now closely monitored and parents value the support from the LA 4 Traveller children who are working with the LA specialised traveller liaison teacher
Total number of children	7	9%

2. What proportion of your current caseload do you estimate have safeguarding implications?

	Number	% of caseload
Total number of children	9	11.7%
Parent with mental health issues	1	1.3%
Child with mental health issues	3	3.9%
Parent with substance misuse issues	1	1.3%
Domestic violence	1	1.3%
Child abuse or neglect (current or previous)	0
Other family circumstances	0
Concerns but cannot determine due to inability to see the child	2	2.5%
Other (please describe)	0
Concerns about parental ability / capacity to undertake home education (not covered above). Please specify reason:	1	1.3%
Parent stated at last visit that they are struggling to home educate and we are supporting the parent so that the young person can return back to mainstream education

3. Request for case studies

In relation to (ii) above, please provide two or three anonymised case studies (more if you wish) describing cases where you have specific safeguarding concerns. Within your description please provide information detailing your specific concerns including any issues around obtaining relevant information about the child from the parent or child (including difficulties in gaining access to the child). Your views as to what measures could be taken to improve the safety, wellbeing and education of these children are also invited.

Additional information

4. In your estimation, what proportion of your current caseload is not receiving any education? We assume all are receiving some kind of education unless proved otherwise

5. In your estimation, what proportion are home educating to avoid prosecution for attendance issues? 5

6. What proportion of EHE youngsters became NEET (please use the latest data you have available and note the timeframe in your response).

From last years data: there were 3 unknown destinations

Do not include children who are disabled where there is no concern about parenting or quality of EHE.

Do not include cases that did not lead to further action.

2 20/05/2009

Blackpool

Blackpool

Reply re Freedom Of Information Request- Suitable Education

We currently have 64 children registered as Elective Home Education, the number you quote included those who have come to the end of the period for compulsory education and came off the register on the last Friday in June.

1. A `suitable' education is being provided in most cases

2. Where there are concerns these are usually as a result of not having met with the children and in one case, where the visiting person has not met with the family but has received evidence of work undertaken. It is not for the visiting officer to judge the `philosophy' of the education provision and under current guidelines there is no guide as to what constitutes `learning enough'. Under current guidelines a home educating family does not have to implement a `structured approach' nor do they have to follow the National Curriculum. These issues are not in themselves reasons for concern but would lead to closer monitoring to determine that what is being provided is suitable to the age, aptitude and ability of the child involved.

3. If it was considered that a `suitable' education was not being provided then recommendations would be made to the family to ameliorate provision and a period of time to implement. If after this time the provision was still deemed not suitable then further action would be taken which could include a School Attendance Order.

4. There are no Education Supervision Orders currently in court.

5. Cases would only be referred to Social Services if there were concerns regarding the child's safety and welfare and particularly if the child had not been seen.

F) We are a Children and Young Peoples' Department which incorporates the duties both for Elective Home Education support and Safeguarding, information is effectively and proactively shared across the Department to ensure compliance with the Every Child Matters Agenda and statutory Safeguarding responsibilities.

=======================================

RE: FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST- SUITABLE EDUCATION

Efforts are made to encourage the child to be present at the visit; in some cases it is the parents' wish that the child is not present.

There could be concern if the child has not been present at more than one visit and the provision, as outlined by the parents, may call for some improvement.

Providing written evidence cannot in itself provide evidence of a `suitable education' as education is a holistic process, therefore if there is no face to face contact with any family members, this could be a concern.

The venue for the meeting has very little bearing on whether there would be concerns raised, rather the reasoning behind the reluctance to accept a visit at home, although that is the family's right.

Each case is unique and is worked on the basis of the welfare, safety and best interests of the child concerned. The focus is on the provision of opportunities to give the child in question the skills necessary to achieve success in the future in whatever form that may be.

===========================

RE: Freedom of Information request- EHE department- Suitable Education.

In the absence of any guidance as to what constitutes a `suitable' education, the information is, therefore, based on the number of families who have to be visited more than once in a twelve month period.

Of our 63 electively home educated pupils 15 have received further follow up visits as a result of concerns regarding quality and appropriateness of provision.

If a parent decides not to accept a home visit this in itself is not a cause for concern. An alternative venue is offered and in most cases this is taken up. In the cases where parents do not wish to engage, the offer to submit evidence of the child's learning is made; this has been accepted in most cases. However, attempts are still made to engage the parents as a suitable provision is more than written work produced. The submission of a plan of education by the parents is not sufficient evidence of a suitable provision and further attempts would be made to engage with the family.

========================

Suitable Education FOI Results

Barking and Dagenham
Blackpool

Barking and Dagenham on Suitable Education

Request for information LBBD/ 38483

Your request for information about home tuition has now been considered
and the information is shown below.

A) I would like to know of these children how many are there where the
visiting person has concerns that a 'suitable' education is being
provided?

In most cases the education provided is regarded as 'suitable' in terms of the current rather imprecise legislation. In a small number elements of the provision are judged to need some improvement but not to the degree that the education is considered unsuitable overall. Where
parents are happy to work with officers monitoring the provision they make advice and support are offered in order to benefit the child.

B) I would also appreciate it if this information could be broken down into categories:
1) whether they feel that no education is taking place?
2) Whether they feel that the philosophy of education is inadequate -for example in the case of autonomous or child led learning, that particular child is not appearing to be learning 'enough'?
3) Whether there are concerns because the family have not implemented a structured
approached?
4) Or whether the fact that the national Curriculum is not being followed is causing concern?

Judgements are made in relation to current legislation which requires education to be both suitable and efficient. Judgements are made in relation to what the parent has previously described as his or her objectives for learning. The categories listed do not, therefore, apply.

C) If there are children in the above 4 categories, please indicate if further steps are being taken- for example, issuance of a School Attendance Order?

No Attendance Orders are currently being pursued.

D) Please also indicate if any Education Supervision Orders are currently in court for this population?

Not applicable.

E) Please can you confirm whether any children who fit into the above categories of concern about 'educational provision suitability' would also therefore be referred to Social Services?

See above. In the event of any concerns about a child's safety or well-being these would, of course, be referred immediately to Social Services.

F) Lastly is it possible in your Local Authority that Social Services are involved with a family but that the EHE department do not know of this involvement? (This involvement would be on an on-going basis rather than a one off referral which is found to be of no genuine concern).

Children's Services officers work closely together and we think it unlikely that Social Workers would not liaise either with a school, or officers of the School Improvement Service, who monitor Education Otherwise than at School.

Hampshire LA's Response to in-depth Questions

Independent Review of Home Education

Rationale

Vulnerable children who are being home educated may pose an increased concern in terms of their safety, wellbeing and education. The independent review is seeking specific evidence on:

i) the prevalence of vulnerable children in your current EHE caseload;
ii) the type of vulnerability you have encountered in the past and / or are experiencing currently.

Your views as to what measures could be taken to improve the safety, wellbeing and education of these children are also sought.

In relation to (i) above:

1. What proportion of your current EHE caseload is known to Social Care in the following capacities? Please include open and closed cases.

Answer: This is not something we can respond to quickly and will not be able to meet your deadlines. We will, however, continue to pursue this data.

Type
Number
% of caseload

Section 17 enquiry[1]
0
0

Section 47 enquiry[2]
0
0

Section 37 (care orders)
0
0

Children who are or have been subject to child protection plan (or previously on the child protection register)
0
0

Other (please specify)
0
0

Total number of children

2. What proportion of your current caseload do you estimate have safeguarding implications?

Answer: We have no basis on which to make an estimate.

Number
% of caseload

Total number of children

Parent with mental health issues

Child with mental health issues

Parent with substance misuse issues

Domestic violence

Child abuse or neglect (current or previous)

Other family circumstances

Concerns but cannot determine due to inability to see the child

Other (please describe)

Concerns about parental ability / capacity to undertake home education (not covered above). Please specify reason:

3. Request for case studies

In relation to (ii) above, please provide two or three anonymised case studies (more if you wish) describing cases where you have specific safeguarding concerns. Within your description please provide information detailing your specific concerns including any issues around obtaining relevant information about the child from the parent or child (including difficulties in gaining access to the child). Your views as to what measures could be taken to improve the safety, wellbeing and education of these children are also invited.

Answer: We are unable to provide case studies at this time.

Additional information

4. In your estimation, what proportion of your current caseload is not receiving any education? 4%

5. In your estimation, what proportion are home educating to avoid prosecution for attendance issues? 4%

6. What proportion of EHE youngsters became NEET (please use the latest data you have available and note the timeframe in your response).

Answer: We have yet to establish the protocols to enable us to make this judgement and therefore will be unable to provide an answer at this time. It is the first time such a request has been made.

[1] Do not include children who are disabled where there is no concern about parenting or quality of EHE.
[2] Do not include cases that did not lead to further action.

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Independent Review of Home Education in England

Thank you for taking the time to complete this questionnaire about processes for supporting and monitoring home education. You may find it helpful to read through the questionnaire before attempting to complete it. Completion of the questionnaire is entirely voluntary. Responses will be completely confidential and used only for the purposes of the independent review.

The Government is committed to ensuring that systems for keeping children safe are as robust as possible. As part of this continuing commitment, an independent review of home education will assess whether the right systems are in place for ensuring that home educated children have access to the five Every Child Matters outcomes. This includes whether Government should do more to support local authorities in discharging their duties in relation to home educated children. The full terms of reference for the review are available on-line at www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/ete/homeeducation

As organisations responsible for ensuring the safety, wellbeing and education of children and young people in your localities, we very much value your input into this review.

Please note, the Director of Children's Services and Lead Member for Children and Young People are asked to sign off the response to this questionnaire before submitting it.

Please return your completed questionnaire by Friday 6 February to homeeducation.review@dcsf.gsi.gov.uk

Or by post to:

Home Education Review
DCSF
Level 2
Sanctuary Buildings
Great Smith Street
London SW1P 3BT

Thank you for taking time to respond to these questions.

Section One
About your local authority
Name of LA
Hampshire County Council


Tel. No of main contact
E-mail of main contact


Would you be willing to take part in the next phase of the research in March (including in-depth interviews with key personnel in your organisation)?
Yes

1. Who is involved in supporting and monitoring home educated children within the local authority and other agencies?

Team with main responsibility -

List all teams / professionals involved

Support
Monitoring

1. Senior Advisor/Inspector Vulnerable Children & Young People

2. Inclusion Managers

3. Education Welfare Service

4. Standards; Improvement Branch and Educational Consultants

5. Health

6. Schools

7. Connexions

1. Strategic Leadership.
2. Liaise, correspond with parents, give advice, guidance and monitor regularly.
3. Assess home circumstances-safety.
4. Assess planned programme of education to be provided and review (usually annually).
5. Health will advise if they come into contact with family who are home educated and advise the LA. They will also advise the LA if a medical communication needs to be sent to educating at home families.
6. Schools will contact the LA if they have concerns about a family electing to home educate.
7. Connexions liaise with the LA about children of concern.


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

Once the LA has been advised that a parent wishes to home educate the LA will write to the family in an advisory capacity. The LA explains that the education provided must not only satisfy the requirements of the Education Act 1996 Section 7 but also must meet the child's physical, social, emotional and spiritual ability and aptitude. It must also address any special educational needs that they might have. This letter will be sent with an Information Booklet.

A referral will then be made to the Education Welfare Team (now integrated within our multi-disciplinary Locality Teams) who will carry out a "˜Home Circumstance" visit and subsequently provide a report of that visit forwarding a signed copy to the Education Inclusion Service. Where there is particular concern over a family electing to home educate a joint visit (Inclusion Manager & Education Welfare Officer) will be carried out.

The Education Inclusion Service will then write to the Inspector/Educational Consultant stating the priority of the visit. They will assess the planned educational programme and methods of delivery and provide a detailed report of that visit. A copy of the EWS report is forwarded to the Inspector/Educational Consultant prior to his visit.

All stages of the process are recorded on an Educating At Home database. The Inspector/Educational Consultant will usually recommend when further reviews should be carried out.

Copies of reports are forwarded to parents upon request.

Section Two

Data and Tracking

2. How many children are currently home educated in your local authority?

Registered with LA Non-registered children

Primary age
112 No Known

Secondary age
308 Not Known

Total
420

3. Are these figures accurate or based on estimates?

Accurate X

Where do you get this data from?

Schools/parents/health/Connexions

How do you know the data are accurate?

Once parents who elect to educate at home have been notified to the LA Education Welfare will confirm parents intention in their report.

We currently have no way of tracking children if they are not notified to the LA.

Estimate

What data have you used to arrive at this figure? (List all sources)

Each of the three areas in Hampshire have an Education Inclusion Database for children that have been notified to the LA by the above organisations.

Currently an Impulse based Social Inclusion Module is under development which it is hoped will capture a wider remit of those children who are home educated.


4. How confident are you in the accuracy of this data?

Very confident
Fairly confident X
Don't know
Not very confident
Not at all confident

5. How often does the local authority get updated data?

List frequency for each source separately

The Education Inclusion databases are reviewed regularly and all new children who are notified to this LA are recorded on it. In the future these pupils will be transferred to the Impulse Social Inclusion Module.

6. Thinking about your home educated population, what proportions have the following characteristics? Please say whether these figures are based on estimates or accurate data.

Characteristic Proportion
Delete as appropriate

Statement for SEN
7.6%
Accurate

Non-statemented SEN
Unknown

Gypsy, Roma, Traveller heritage
5.2%
Estimate

Other BME Group (please state below)

Plymouth Brethren
2.6%
Estimate


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

Yes, we are confident we know about all home educated children in the area
We think we know about the vast majority of home educated children in the area X

We probably do not know about a significant minority of home educated children in the area. However, we are confident that we know about those children who have been notified to the LA by parent, school or other source. We are uncertain of home educated children moving into area.

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

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

======================================

Hampshire's response to a FOI:

Your request for information

I refer to your request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 which was received on
30 June 2009. Attached is the formal response of Hampshire County Council (Notice of Determination). You requested:

I would like to request what information, views and statistics were provided by HCC to the Badman review into Elective Home Education, the results of which were submitted to the Sec of State Ed Balls earlier in July.

I would like to know what if any statistics are held by HCC as to the number of home educated children in the county, how many informed you by choice, how many are registered as being at risk and how this proportion compares with abuse in families whose children attend school. Additionally, for those families labelled as home educating, how many are illegal immigrants?

Children currently registered with Hampshire County Council as home-educated
363

Percentage that informed the Local Authority by choice
Approximately 97%

Number of home-educated children subject to a child protection plan
Under 10

Number of children educated in Hampshire schools
167,618

Number of children in Hampshire of mandatory school age and subject to a child protection plan
355

Number home-educated children who are illegal immigrants
The County Council does not record this information

Parents do not have to register a child as home educated, although they are encouraged to do so. They have to notify the school if they intend to withdraw their child to educate them at home and the school must then notify the local authority. As parents are not required to register home educated children (unless they are leaving a school’s rolls) there are no official statistics on the total number of home educated children in Hampshire.

The reason "under 10" is quoted for "number of home-educated children subject to a child protection plan" is because the DCSF do not publish any statistical breakdown of children's social care activity where the figure is less than 10. This is to comply with the Data Protection Act and prevent someone reading the information attempting to relate it to cases known to them. Hampshire County Council apply the same protocol when publishing any children's social care data.

The County Council's responses to the Independent Review of Home Education in England are attached.

===============================================

Update re CSF Inquiry into Badman Review

Full details now available on the DCSF website here.

UPDATE: Now that you've probably already sent your submission in, be careful not to blow it by showing it publicly. Details here.

I am sure that HE groups and individuals will get onto this soon. Am off to draft something now based on the information on how to do it, available here:

"Submitting written evidence to a select committee

This section provides guidance on preparing written evidence to a committee and submitting that evidence. It also discusses what happens to your written evidence once it has been submitted.

What information to include

As a general guideline, written evidence should consist of a self-contained memorandum
accompanied by a covering letter. Evidence should be presented as concisely as possible—
some committees ask that submitters observe a word or page limit.

The covering letter should contain the following :

• the name and contact details of the persons or organisation submitting the evidence
• any request to give oral evidence
• any request that the committee treat the whole, or part, of the written evidence as confidential, with reasons for the request. It will then be up to the committee to decide whether to agree to such a request.

The memorandum should contain the following information:

• an executive summary of the main points made in the submission
• a brief introduction to the submitter, perhaps explaining their area of expertise
• any factual information the submitter has to offer from which the committee might be able to draw conclusions, or which could be put to other witnesses for their reactions
• any recommendations for action by the Government or others which the submitter would like the committee to consider for inclusion in its report to the House.

You should be careful not to comment on matters currently before a court of law, or matters in respect of which court proceedings are imminent. If you anticipate such issues arising, you should discuss with the clerk of the committee how this might affect the written evidence you can submit.

How to format your evidence

Some points to note:

• Paragraphs should be numbered, to assist the committee in referring to the submission during oral evidence.
• If you wish to include supplementary material with your memorandum—for example, leaflets, or articles from periodicals—ensure your memorandum is nevertheless selfcontained, as committees are unlikely to publish such supplementary material.
• The committee will receive a photocopy of your memorandum. Consequently, even if your submission uses colour, it should still make sense when reproduced in black and white.
• If you are submitting your evidence electronically, your memorandum should be in Microsoft Word or rich text format.
• If you are submitting your evidence in hard copy avoid using any complicated binding.

How to submit your evidence

Evidence should be submitted to the committee secretariat prior to the deadline stated in
the press notice.

Committees prefer to receive evidence in electronic form. Attach your memorandum to an e-mail and send it to the committee’s mailbox—the address will be in the press notice announcing the inquiry, and is shown on the committee’s website.

Your memorandum can also be sent in hard copy. Send it to the committee secretariat, at the address given in the press notice. A committee is not obliged to accept your memorandum once it has been submitted as evidence, nor to publish any or all of the memorandum if it has been accepted.

What happens to your evidence, once submitted

Submitting evidence to Parliament is generally a public process. Your written evidence will become public either when the committee publishes it or at such time as you give oral evidence to a committee—whichever takes place first. If you wish to distribute or publish your evidence earlier, you will need the committee’s permission, for which purpose you should contact the Clerk of the committee. If you are given permission by the committee to publish your evidence separately, you should nonetheless be aware that you do so at your own risk.

Committees print much of the written evidence which they receive, although material published elsewhere is not usually reprinted. Most committees print the written evidence received at the same time as any report from the committee to the House is published, although some committees publish written evidence prior to hearing oral evidence, either on the internet or in hard copy.

Although a committee will generally publish most or all of the written evidence it receives, a committee may exercise its discretion not to publish evidence where a submission is very long or contains material to which it is inappropriate to give the protection of parliamentary privilege (see ‘Committees and the operation of parliamentaryprivilege (see ‘Committees and the operation of parliamentary privilege’, below)."

Norfolk's Response to LA Questionnaire

Independent Review of Home Education

Rationale

Vulnerable children who are being home educated may pose an increased concern in terms of their safety, wellbeing and education. The independent review is seeking specific evidence on:

1. the prevalence of `vulnerable' children in your current EHE caseload;

2. the type of vulnerability you have encountered in the past and / or are experiencing currently.

Your views as to what measures could be taken to improve the safety, wellbeing and education of these children are also sought.

In relation to (i) above:

1. What proportion of your current EHE caseload is known to Social Care in the following capacities? Please include open and closed cases.

Type	Number	% of caseload
Section 17 enquiry
Section 47 enquiry
Section 37 (care orders)
Children who are or have been subject to child protection plan (or previously on the child protection register)
Other (please specify)
Total number of children

2. What proportion of your current caseload do you estimate have safeguarding implications?

	Number	% of caseload
Total number of children	600	100%
Parent with mental health issues	30	5%
Child with mental health issues	20	3%
Parent with substance misuse issues	_	_
Domestic violence	3	0.5%
Child abuse or neglect (current or previous)	6	1%
Other family circumstances	3	0.5%
Concerns but cannot determine due to inability to see the child	20	3%
Other (please describe) Child missing education-2 Inappropriate approach being taken - 3	5	1%
Concerns about parental ability / capacity to undertake home education (not covered above). Please specify reason:	60	10%
Reasons include: Parents feeling pushed into home education by school. Parents unable to meet needs of an SEN child. Traveller parents who are uninterested in state education and/or illiterate. Concerns about abilities voiced by other professionals. Child out of parental control.

3. Request for case studies

In relation to (ii) above, please provide two or three anonymised case studies (more if you wish) describing cases where you have specific safeguarding concerns. Within your description please provide information detailing your specific concerns including any issues around obtaining relevant information about the child from the parent or child (including difficulties in gaining access to the child). Your views as to what measures could be taken to improve the safety, wellbeing and education of these children are also invited.

LUCY.

There had been an ongoing dispute between Lucy's parents regarding access arrangements for her father. He did not agree with his ex-wife's decision to withdraw Lucy from school and indicated that her mental health problems affected her suitability to home educate. Lucy's head teacher expressed similar concerns. Lucy's mother did not keep an arranged appointment with our service and responded to a subsequent appointment letter by emailing to say that it was not necessary to meet as the family were due to move and that Lucy would be returning to school. No address or school contact details were provided and there was no response to our request for these, prompting us to refer Lucy to CME. Meanwhile, Lucy's father continued to contact us by phone, demanding information for his planned court proceedings and becoming rude and abusive.

FAYE.

Faye's mother has mental and physical health problems; her elderly husband cannot fulfil the role of carer, so this has fallen to Faye. Faye's previous school did not inform our service at the time of her de-registration, so a considerable period of time elapsed before we became involved, during which time Faye had not received any education. There were various concerns about the appropriateness of home education due to Faye's home circumstances, along with her social isolation. Faye's mother refused an offer of support from Young Carers. Faye is obese and school phobic. She has regular hospital appointments relating to her obesity and associated problems and has been offered gastric band surgery when she is older. Faye's mother will not agree to any additional support, eg CAF, and has often been reluctant to meet with our service, cancelling various appointments at short notice. However, with support and encouragement over a period of three years, Faye's home education provision has improved.

COLIN.

Religious beliefs dominated Colin's family's approach to his home education and the resources which were available to him. His grandmother - a controlling, domineering, strict woman - took the main responsibility for his education, with Colin's father taking a secondary role. When Colin was asked about his views of home education during a visit to the family, he stated that he did not want to be home educated, that he was bored and lonely. An old-fashioned approach continued to be taken to Colin's home education provision, with our team's advice and support proving unacceptable to his grandmother.

Views on measures for improvement:

1. Access to social care and health records where relevant.

2. Where relevant, families should have to accept some measure of social care involvement.

3. More readily available access to local authority alternative educational provision. Currently, provision only exists for children who are on a school roll; schools are generally unwilling to accept a child onto their roll (eg if they have been previously home educated) if it involves funding them only for alternative provision. If such provision was more widely available, with less restricted criteria, children like Faye may not have had to have been withdrawn from school in the first place.

4. Parents/carers' ability to home educate should be assessed BEFORE de-registration takes place.

5. Proper, regular supervision should be available for EHE workers.

6. Home education should NOT be an option for young people for whom there are issues around school phobia, behaviour, special needs, truancy and threat of court proceedings.

Additional information

4. In your estimation, what proportion of your current caseload is not receiving any education?

25%

5. In your estimation, what proportion are home educating to avoid prosecution for attendance issues?

15%

6. What proportion of EHE youngsters became NEET (please use the latest data you have available and note the timeframe in your response)

No data available.

Do not include children who are disabled where there is no concern about parenting or quality of EHE.

Do not include cases that did not lead to further action.