This information is to support parents or carers who choose to educate their children away from a school setting. We also explain here Camden Council’s ways of making sure that arrangements meet legal requirements.  

Legal Requirements

Education for all children in the United Kingdom is compulsory, but attendance at a school is not. This is provided suitable arrangements are in place. Section 7 of the Education Act 1996 states:

“it shall be the duty of the parent of every child of compulsory school age to cause him to receive efficient full time education suitable to his age, ability, and aptitude, [and to any special needs he may have] either by regular attendance at school or otherwise.”

To be considered efficient, alternative or home education doesn't need to be the same as that received at school. It must though convince a reasonable person that the education is appropriate for the child.

When a child has special educational needs, there is a legal requirement to make particular arrangements. Guidance will be given in the child’s Education Health  and Care Plan.

We advise parents to read this guidance and if you have any questions please contact us via [email protected]

Camden Elective Home Education Policy

Flowchart 1 Elective Home Education De-registration Process

Flowchart 2 Elective Home Education De-registration Special School and Mainstream School

Flowchart 3 LA -AO Concern with Home Education Provision existing

Flowchart 4 LA applies for Education Supervision Order

Educating your child at home

Local authorities have the same safeguarding responsibilities for children educated at home as for other children. They should be ready to use safeguarding powers appropriately, when warranted.

Child protection issues may arise in relation to elective home education and where appropriate referrals will be made to Children’s Safeguarding and Social Work (Social Services).  Referrals may be discussed with parents before they are made, except if it is felt that to do so would put the child at further risk of harm.

When there are concerns about the education provided and a parent does not engage with attempts to contact them within a calendar month from the first notification, the case is discussed with the Development Co-ordinator in the Pupil Attendance Service and or Children’s Safeguarding and Social Work (Social Services). Where appropriate a referral to social services will be made to follow up concerns. When there have been previous child protection concerns this referral may be made earlier after discussion with the Pupil Attendance Service and the duty social worker.

Camden Early Help is a way of getting extra support for families when they need help to find a solution to problems they may be facing. Parents can access programmes and workshops that work to build on the parent and child relationship positive communication, self-esteem and self-care.  This can also include behaviour management strategies and resilience building.

Home educated pupils are not automatically vulnerable but for those children who are Camden is committed to supporting them.

Where a child is made subject to a child protection plan or is currently subject to a child protection plan, or is child in need, the conference chair/ chair of the child in need meeting will need to re-considered the safeguarding plans in light of this information. The above professionals and allocated social worker will ensure that the plan may include increased home visits to regularly check that the child is safe and that meetings with the EHE team are at agreed and appropriate intervals will form part of any future agreement with the family.

For new home education children we will consider the following vulnerable groups and we will ask to meet with the parent and the child to ensure that the there is a suitable education plan in place.

Camden view the following groups as vulnerable:

• Children who are looked after or previously looked after by a local authority
• Children who are subject to a current Child Protection Plan or a Child in Need Plan
• Children who have been subject to a Child Protection Plan or a Child in Need plan in the last six months
• Children who had less than 90% attendance for the three terms before they started home education
• Children who have attended three or more schools in the last 12 months or who were known to have been without a school place for longer than half a term in the last 12 months.
• Children who have never attended a school.
• Children who had had one or more permanent exclusion within the last 12 months
• Children who had have more than three fixed term exclusions totalling more than 10 days within the last 12 months.
• Children who have an Education Health and Care Plan

Should a parent who is one of the above vulnerable groups not agree to meet with the Home Education Advisor then Camden will review the information available and take appropriate action if they feel the education is unsuitable.

For pupils in vulnerable groups and where appropriate we can offer additional advice and support to these families at more regular intervals.

For children who are looked after, subject to a Child Protection Plan or a Child in Need plan we will discuss the case with the family social worker and join any appropriate meetings to safeguard the child.

Please see additional guidance on Tutors and out of school information for parents.

Tutors leaflet to safeguarding

Please see additional guidance on keeping children and young people safe from radicalisation and extremism

Keeping Children and Young People Safe from Radicalisation and Extremism

Young Carers

If you would like some advice and support for young carers please see the Camden Care choices website

Coronavirus (COVID-19)

We understand that you may be concerned about the wellbeing of your child and other family members. This is especially if you have been shielding previously.

Government guidance is that it is:

‘vital that children and young people return to school and college, for their educational progress, for their wellbeing, and for their wider development. School attendance is mandatory from 8 March 2021

It also advises that you should talk to your child’s school about any alternative support that can be provided if:

• your child is unable to attend school because they are self-isolating
• have had symptoms or a positive test result themselves
• or are in close contact with someone who has coronavirus (COVID-19).

If you withdraw your child from school to home educate, their school place will not stay available. If at a later stage you wish your child to return to school, you will need to make a new school application.  There is no guarantee that you will be given a place back at your original school.  Your child could be placed on a waiting list.

If you would like to talk to someone about this before you make the decision to remove your child from school contact Camden by emailing [email protected]

If you decide to home educate

Write to the head teacher if you plan to take your child out of school. The school will pass your child’s details to Camden or your local authority.

Camden schools must inform the local authority where a child lives. This is the form they must complete: Off Roll Notification Form

Camden Council will then write to you to confirm that we have been told you are home educating. Camden will ask each home educator to complete an outline of education plan for their child/children, or you can send a report if you prefer.

EHE Outline Plan Form 2023-24

We will offer an appointment to meet with the Home Education Advisor. See Meeting Home Educators page.

Home visits

The Local Authority (LA) has a duty to ensure that all children receive education. To do this, we will offer a meeting with you. The meeting is usually at Pancras Square library, but we can meet elsewhere or at your home if you prefer. If you would like to, you can bring along a friend to the meeting.

Home Educators have found the meeting with our Home Education Advisor to be very helpful. Sometimes home educators choose not to meet with our Home Education Advisor. This is fine. You do not have to agree to the meeting. You can submit a report or evidence of the education provided for your child. We will contact you about every six months to check if we can be of any further help.

We can offer advice on teaching and learning, signpost you to resources to support your child’s education at home. We can put you in touch with other home education resources and groups. We can also explain how to access an exam centre for GCSE, apply for another school or further education course.

After the meeting / report received

We will contact you in a year’s time to arrange another meeting if the education is considered:

• efficient
• full time
• suitable to the age, ability and aptitude of your child.
• we take into account any special needs they may have.

Sometimes the education is considered broadly suitable, but with concerns about certain aspects. If this is the case, arrangements will be made to meet you again in approximately three to six months. The nature of these concerns will be clearly explained to you and appropriate advice and support offered.

In very rare circumstances, the quality of the education is considered failing to meet legal requirements. At this point Camden may decide to issue a School Attendance Order. Then we will assist you with arrangements for your child to be enrolled at a school.

You can find more information about this process in our Home Education policy on our Introduction page.

Camden Elective Home Education Policy

As a parent, you must make sure your child receives a full-time education from the age of 5. You don’t have to follow the national curriculum.

Some families follow their own “home-made” curriculum using the internet and a range of resources. Experience has shown though that planning may have to become more structured as the children get older. This is as they may start more formal qualifications and learning. This should not lessen the learning experience and the involvement of the parent.

The curriculum should be broadly based and include many of the features of a good education. This will enable your child to return to full time education in school if you choose to do so.

It is with this in mind that we make the following recommendations of what is a suitable education in Camden.

• Education should enable a child to participate fully in life in the UK. Education should not conflict with ‘Fundamental British Values’ as defined in DFE guidance for LAs.
• Suitable education is not simply a matter of academic learning but should involve socialisation. Contact with peers and the development of emotional resilience should be regarded as essential elements of equipping a child to his/her place in modern civilized society.
• No person shall be denied the right to education and this assumes effective teaching of literacy and numeracy.
• Education is suitable to a child’s ability and aptitude. It is reasonable to assume that this would entail making progress between reviews at a rate which appears to be in line with a child’s apparent ability.
• The environment in which education is being provided will be considered, in terms of noise and space, in assessing suitability.
• Education should promote the fulfilment of learning potential through the provision of some challenge to a child across a reasonably wide range of learning.

You can find more advice and guidance on Suggested ways of working for home education.

Suggested ways to working for Home Education

Camden provides a termly email newsletter for home educators with a range of curriculum resources and information. We also update our resources pages throughout the year.

There are a number of online resources that you can use, and groups you can get involved with to help you provide an education to your child. You can join local groups to meet with other parents who educate their children at home.

As with all resources, please explore them to see whether they suit your child and their learning style.

Elective Home Education Information

• Home Education Resources
• Home Education Books
• Suggested Ways of working for Home Education

Online Subject Resources

• Art Resources
• English Resources 2022
• Geography Resources
• History Resources
• ICT Resources
• Language Resources
• Maths Resources - Maths U see 2022
• Music Resources
• Online Learning Resources
• PE Resources
• Post 16 Resources
• RE Resources
• Science Resources
• SEN Resources

We also know that the internet is a great resource. There are many websites that offer advice. Please see information on:

How to use the internet

Online Safety

Emotional Wellbeing and Mental Health Support 

Please find below some resources designed to improve and plan your work

• Compare and Contrast
• Organising your work
• Critical Thinking
• 10 Top Tips for Parents to support children to read UK

Using theses styles of work would also help you to improve and plan your work.

Camden in line with DFE guidance has set some voluntary example minimum expectations for education in Maths and English / Reading and Writing for each Key stage – See Section 2.10 in parents guidance and 9.4 to 9.6 in LA guidance.  There is no requirement for you to follow these examples 

These are indications for parents and our advisor to get a better understanding of the education your child is receiving.

We recognise that children will be on journey in their education some child will be at expected level, some will be in advance of their key stage indicator, some may be working towards the indicator or some children due to their education needs maybe below the indicator. You may find that children can do some elements of the different indicators as well.

Knowing where your child is can be helpful for you in setting work for them, ensuring it is appropriate for them but can also help you know where they could be “stretched” or work needs to be reviewed.  It will also enable our home education advisor to offer a tailored set of advice for each child and make suggestions for parents so they can help support their child reach the minimum expectations where appropriate.

• Writing Key Stage 1
• Reading Key Stage 1 and 2
• Maths Key Stage 1
• Writing Key Stage 2
• Reading Key Stage 1 and 2
• Maths Key Stage 2
• Reading Key stage 3 and 4
• Maths Key Stage 3
• Science Key Stage 3 and 4
• Geography Key Stage 3 and 4
• History Key Stage 3 and 4
• Maths Key Stage 4

Flexi Schooling or “flexible school attendance” is an arrangement between the parent and the school. The child is registered at school and attends the school only part time. The rest of the time the child is taught at home. This can be a long-term arrangement or a short-term measure for a particular reason.

“Flexi-schooling” is a legal option provided the Head Teacher at the school concerned agrees to the arrangement. The child must follow the National Curriculum whilst at school, but not whilst being taught at home. Please use the Application Form to submit a request to your child’s school and arrange to meet with the Headteacher to discuss ths proposal. 

Support for Students Summer 2023:  Please see Gov.uk

For exams in Summer 2023

Camden has an exam centre that home educated pupils can access. If you would like to know more about this service please email [email protected]

Please let us know the subjects, exam boards and exam levels for example GCSE or A level.  

We will contact the exam centre to see if they are able to offer the exams and they will then let us know the approximate costs that you would have to pay.

The exam centre will charge the fees for the exams and depending on the time of year when you apply there may be additional late admin charges. 

If you no longer wish to continue to home educate your child you should contact our in-year admission team on 020 7974 1625