Elective Home Education
Parents/carers have the right to educate their children at home. Elective Home Education (EHE) is the term used by the Department for Education (DfE) to describe a parent’s or parents’ decision to provide education for their children at home instead of sending them to school. This is different to home tuition provided by a local authority (LA) or education provided by a LA other than at a school.
More about Elective Home Education (EHE)
This information is relevant to children on CP or CIN plans. All children in care are expected to attend an education setting.
​
Barnet Council acknowledges that parents can declare an intention to electively home educate at any time. However, where a child is made subject to a child protection plan, or is already subject to a child protection plan, or is a child in need, the council will take the following approach.
​
The conference chair (chair of the case conference reviewing the case) or relevant team manager will make clear that, if the parent/carer has already declared that they are electively home educating or states an intention to do so, the council will consider the possibility of increased risk of significant harm and the need for safeguarding interventions.
On receipt of a declaration to electively home educate, the social worker will update the Child and Family Assessment (the assessment made by Family Services on the case) and the Team Manager will chair a core group meeting or child in need review meeting to:
• Review and reflect any changes in the plan to safeguard the child.
• Assess risks to the child, to include health and well-being and record how the risk is increased as a result of continuing to or starting to educate the child at home.
• Assess the family’s EHE Outline Plan.
• Consult with education colleagues and the previous school.
• Amend the plan to reflect the necessary actions that need to be taken and by which professional, which may include the referral to the Fair Access Panel to identify a school place.
• Consider, for children in need, if a strategy meeting is necessary.
The Team Manager will also update the Child Protection Conference Chair.
​
Where education provision is not immediately available, or the risk assessment indicates that EHE is acceptable, the above professionals and allocated social worker will ensure that the plan will include increased home visits to regularly check that the child is safe whilst not in education and that annual visits from the EHE team will form part of any future agreement with the family should the case be ‘stepped down’