You are allowed to educate your child at home. This is known as elective home education (EHE) or sometimes ‘homeschooling’.
The law
By law, you must make sure your child gets a full-time education by the beginning of the term after their fifth birthday. They must get full-time education until they are no longer of compulsory school age. This is the last Friday in June of the year they turn 16.
Full-time does not mean that you must follow school hours and terms. Home education may take place outside of normal school hours.
You do not have to follow the national curriculum.
The education must be suitable for your child. A suitable education is one that is appropriate to your child's:
- Age
- Ability
- Aptitude
- Any special educational needs they may have
- Enable your child to make progress and prepare them for adult life
Help and advice
If you need any help and advice when considering home education, you can speak to one of our elective home education officers before starting EHE and withdrawing your child from school.
Please email ehe@blackpool.gov.uk and a member of the team will contact you. You should also read our elective home education policy and the and the statutory national guidance.
If your child attends a special school
You cannot remove your child from a school roll for home education, unless the local authority agrees. This is so that we can make sure that the provision of suitable education continues for your child
If your child has an EHCP
Children with an EHCP can be home educated and you will still have an annual review.
Once you have made the decision to home educate your child, the school and SEN officer will arrange an EHCP exit review within 8 weeks of your decision.
If your child is having difficulties at school
If your child has difficulties at school, it does not mean you have to take them out. You should talk about any issues with your child’s teacher, headteacher, or governors at the school.
If you think your child’s current school is not suitable, you should talk to us about what alternatives might be available before you make a decision to home educate your child.
A school should never pressure you to remove your child from the school roll to avoid a formal exclusion, to avoid a school attendance fine or because your child is having difficulty with learning or behaviour.
This practice - sometimes called off-rolling - is unacceptable. You should tell us immediately if this happens.