The number of home-schooled children rose by more than 13% in just a few months last year in England, where the government was urged on Friday to take action to better control the phenomenon.
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According to local authorities across England, around 86,200 children (of primary, middle or high school age) were being home-schooled at the start of 2023. A few months later, in April, there were 97,600.
Over one year, from September 2022 to July 2023, the increase is 20%.
This increasing success of homeschooling raises concerns that more and more children are not receiving a high-quality education or are not being adequately socialized.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, home schooling has become essential in many countries. However, observers in England note that the increase began several years before the outbreak of the epidemic, in early 2020.
“The numbers have skyrocketed over the last seven or eight years,” former children’s commissioner Anne Longfield, now chair of think tank The Center for Young Lives, told the BBC. She called on the government and local authorities to take the issue “more seriously”.
According to the Department of Education, about a quarter of homeschooling parents made this decision for “lifestyle” or “philosophical reasons.” Almost 10% indicate mental health problems.
Only 4% of parents mention Covid-related health concerns.
But for some families, homeschooling is “not a choice,” Anne Longfield said. As an example, she cited the case of children who cannot adapt to school and do not receive the support they need due to a lack of state resources.
“It can be a desperate decision, and these are the families we really need to focus on,” she said.
Budget cuts
The problem goes beyond homeschooling. According to figures released by the Department for Education on Thursday, 20% of children in England are permanently out of school and not receiving formal education at home.
In this case there are fewer than last year, but still more than before the pandemic.
Education in England is the responsibility of the British government, unlike in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland where it is managed by local governments.
The government in London has been talking about creating a mandatory national register for home-schooled children for years.
A Conservative MP proposed a bill on the issue in December.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Education said the project would be discussed “when the parliamentary calendar allows.”
“We are committed to ensuring that all children, particularly the most vulnerable in our society, are safe and have access to an excellent education,” the spokesperson added.
School leaders are calling for an increase in social workers and support staff, reports Anne Longfield, who complains about a “problem” with school funding.
“Children’s social care and mental health support have suffered budget cuts or failed to meet demand over the last decade,” said Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the Association of School Directors.
“We need to see more people on the ground and visit families to get to the bottom of the problem of children missing from schools,” he told The Guardian newspaper.