Voice welcomes home education review
Tuesday, 20 January 2009 12:00 AM
Voice: the union for education professionals has welcomed, with reservations, the Government's revised guidance on children missing education and review of home education.
General Secretary Philip Parkin said: "Children who miss education are missing opportunities and jeopardising their future well-being and prosperity, so it is vital that all children receive appropriate and high quality education, whether that is in school or at home.
"However, I am concerned about the way the review has been announced. The revised guidance should have been issued following the review, not before it. If the review identifies further areas for reform, will the guidance have to be revised and reissued?
"There should be a duty on parents to identify where their children are being educated through some form of registration. If they don't do that, how can local authorities be expected to fulfil their duty to 'make arrangements to enable them to establish (so far as it is possible to do so) the identities of children residing in their area who are not receiving a suitable education'? As it stands, local authorities will be working with one hand tied behind their backs. If the authorities don't know where the children are, how can they establish if they are being educated suitably?
"I also believe that inspections by the local education authority should be compulsory, and parents should have to present the child and his or her work.
"There are many home educators who do an excellent job, but parents who are using the label of 'home education' to disguise absence of any form of structured education are those who give cause for concern.
"I am concerned about preventing abuses of the system where children slip through the net and end up not being educated at home or at school. Home education must not be misused as a cover for no education."
Notes
At the Voice (then PAT) 2004 Annual Conference, members voted in favour of the motion "Conference believes that the Government should consider upgrading procedures for monitoring Children Educated at Home by parental preference as a matter of urgency" (proposed by Kim Tomsett). Kim Tomsett's speech (pdf) (motion number 4)
www.voicetheunion.org.uk/homeeducation
ends
Contacts: pressoffice@voicetheunion.org.uk
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