Homeschool ‘register’ to help battle extremism

Parents who homeschool their children will be forced to sign a register or face possible prosecution, according to government proposals.

the Department for education plans to hold a register of all children not in mainstream schools in a bid to protect them from ‘dangerous influences’.

the move will help crack down on religious fundamentalists who send youngsters to secret schools where they are at risk of radicalisation.

It should also deter headteachers from ‘off-rolling’, whereby they illegally push disruptive pupils off their books by persuading parents to homeschool them instead.

the Dfe said the register would provide a ‘clear picture’ for the first time about where children are if they are not attending mainstream schools. estimates suggest almost 60,000 are being educated at home – a figure that is thought to be rising by about a quarter every year.

education secretary Damian Hinds said: ‘the term “home education” has now acquired a much broader meaning than it used to.

‘It is now a catch-all phrase, used to refer to all children not in a registered school.

‘so while this does include those actually getting a really good education at home, it also includes children who are not getting an education at all, or being educated in illegal schools where they are vulnerable to dangerous influences – the truth is, we just don’t know.

‘We have a duty to protect our young people and do our utmost to make sure they are prepared for life in modern Britain.’ Under the plans, it will be parents’ legal duty to put their children’s details on the register if they are not being taught in a state-funded or registered independent school.

they could be made to state what provisions they have in place for their child, such as being educated at home or at a religious school.

the consultation document, published today, is expected to ask for views on what penalties parents should face if they refuse to comply with registering their children.

this could include councils escalating to school attendance orders (saOs) that compel families to send their children to school. Parents who refuse to co-operate with saOs can be prosecuted.

Unregistered schools operate outside the supervision of Ofsted, the Dfe and local authorities.

Ofsted’s chief inspector, amanda spielman, said: ‘Ofsted has long had concerns about the increasing numbers of school-age children not attending a registered school, many of whom may not be receiving a high- quality education or being kept safe.

‘We are especially concerned about children off-rolled from schools and those in illegal schools. the new register will make it easier to detect and tackle these serious problems.’

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union naHt, said: ‘Home education is a perfectly valid choice for some families, and in the vast majority of cases children are safe, happy and still learning.

‘new regulations need to provide a proper safeguard for the tiny minority of instances where children may not be safe.’

the Dfe is also proposing a ‘legal duty’ for councils to provide assistance to parents who homeschool youngsters, such as helping to pay for exam costs.

‘Dangerous influences’