Home Education and the Law: Your Rights, Explained

Yes, it's legal, and it's your decision

This guide describes the law in England. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own separate systems, and the detail below does not transfer to them. If you live in one of those nations, read your own nation's official guidance before you act.

In England, the legal duty to educate a child sits with you, the parent, not with a school. Section 7 of the Education Act 1996 says a child must receive efficient, full-time education suitable to their age, ability, aptitude and any special educational needs, either by attending school "or otherwise".

That little phrase "or otherwise" is home education. You are choosing the "otherwise" route. You do not need to be a qualified teacher, and in the ordinary case you do not need anyone's permission.

Two exceptions are worth knowing from the start. If your child attends a special school under arrangements made by the local authority, you need the authority's consent before your child can come off the roll. And if a School Attendance Order is already in force, it stays binding until it is revoked, so the ordinary notice does not apply. Both are covered below.

What you actually have to do

The duty sounds heavy, but in practice it is broad. "Suitable" education is judged against the particular child in front of you (their age, ability, aptitude and any additional needs), not against a school's standards.

"Full-time" does not mean school hours or a set number of lessons a day. There is no minimum number of hours written in law. The honest short version is this:

• Provide an education that genuinely suits your child and helps them progress.
• Make sure it is real and ongoing: not nothing, and not a one-off.
• Not a legal duty, but worth doing: be ready to describe in your own words what learning is happening, in case the council makes informal enquiries.

What you do NOT have to do

This is the general position in England. Many families choose something far looser than school: learning through projects, real life, libraries, museums, nature and a child's own interests. The law allows that, as long as the education remains suitable for your child.

• Follow the National Curriculum.
• Keep to school hours, school terms or a fixed timetable.
• Deliver a "broad and balanced" curriculum the way a school must.
• Give formal, sit-down lessons or teach in subject blocks.
• Have any teaching qualification.
• Sit SATs or any other school-style tests.
• Ask the local authority for approval before you start.

Taking your child out of school (deregistration)

If your child is at an ordinary maintained school or academy, the process in England is straightforward. You give the school written notice specifying the day after which your child will no longer attend school and will instead receive education otherwise than at school.

Once that day has passed, the school must delete your child's name from the admission register under regulation 9(1)(f) of the School Attendance (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2024, provided the relevant legal conditions are met. That duty to delete sits with the school rather than with you, and it does not depend on the council agreeing. The school notifies the council, which is routine. Keep a dated copy of your notice.

There are two exceptions. If your child attends a special school under arrangements made by the local authority, you need the authority's consent first. And if a School Attendance Order is already in force, the ordinary notice will not remove your child from the named school: the order has to be revoked instead, which is a different legal route and is covered below.

Independent schools raise a separate question, and two things are easily confused. Leaving one does not need anyone's permission. What your contract with the school sets is the notice period and any fees in lieu, and that is a contractual matter rather than a matter of education law. Read your enrolment agreement alongside the deregistration step, not instead of it.

A practical note: the duty to provide a suitable education starts the moment your child leaves the register, so choose the date with that in mind.

The local authority: what it can and can't do

Councils in England have a duty to identify children in their area who are not receiving a suitable education. Where it appears appropriate, a council will make what are called "informal enquiries" to satisfy itself that a home-educated child is receiving one. A letter or call asking how things are going is normal, and it is not a sign you have done anything wrong.

Here is the part many parents don't realise. You are under no legal duty to meet the council, allow a home visit, or report in any particular format. You can choose to reply in writing instead: for example, a short summary of your approach, your child's interests and some examples of recent learning.

Parents are strongly encouraged to co-operate with those enquiries, and engaging calmly and constructively tends to make life easier. A friendly written account in your own words is usually enough to keep things low-key. You do not have to send photographs or samples of your child's work: departmental guidance for parents (paragraph 5.4) says you are under no legal obligation "to produce specific evidence", and an authority should not dismiss what you write simply because it is not in the form it would have preferred. If you would like something to draw on when that letter arrives, keeping a light record through the year (through an app like Flybrite, a notebook, or a simple folder) makes it easier to describe what your child has been doing.

School Attendance Orders, explained calmly

This is the step parents fear most, so let's be clear about what it is. A School Attendance Order is not a normal part of home educating, and most families never come anywhere near one.

It only enters the picture if the local authority forms the view that a child is not receiving a suitable education. Even then, it is not sudden. The authority must first serve a notice giving you a set period to satisfy it that suitable education is being provided.

What happens after you reply is the authority's decision, not a formality. If it is satisfied by what you send, it does not go on to make an order. If it is not satisfied, it can serve the order, and the order names a school your child must attend.

An order is legally binding until it is revoked, and not complying with it can carry criminal liability. While one is in force the ordinary deregistration notice does not apply, so this is a genuinely different legal route rather than another kind of deregistration. The way out is to ask the authority to revoke the order under section 442 of the Education Act 1996, on the basis that suitable education otherwise than at the named school has been arranged. If the authority refuses, the matter can be referred to the Secretary of State.

If you are at this stage, take specialist advice rather than relying on a general guide, and keep sending your child to the named school until the order is revoked.

Exams, SEND and money: the practical bits

Home-educated teenagers can and do take GCSEs. They usually sit as private candidates at an exam centre: often a college, a school that accepts external candidates, or a dedicated exam centre. Many families choose IGCSEs because several specifications have no coursework or controlled assessment, which is far easier to manage outside school. You pay the entry fees yourself, so plan ahead and book your centre early, as places fill up.

If your child has special educational needs, you keep the right to home educate. An EHC plan does not remove that right, and at a mainstream school a plan on its own does not add a consent requirement. The exception is a special school your child attends under arrangements made by the local authority, where the authority's consent is needed before your child's name is deleted from the admission register. Choosing home education does not automatically end an EHC plan either: while the plan remains in place, it continues to be reviewed through the statutory process. For SEND-specific questions, organisations such as IPSEA and SOS!SEN offer free, specialist information.

On funding, be realistic: in England there is no automatic government funding for home education. You meet the costs yourself. Some councils and charities offer limited help in certain situations, and exam centres, home-ed groups, libraries and museums can keep costs down, but go in expecting to budget for it.

• Book exam centres and IGCSE entries months ahead, as places are limited.
• Free libraries and many museums are quiet, everyday learning resources.
• Local home-ed groups share tutors, trips, kit and exam-centre tips.
• For SEND, start with IPSEA or SOS!SEN before making big decisions.

Where to check before you act

Law and guidance change, and your situation is your own. Treat this guide as a calm starting point, not legal advice.

Before you take a step that matters (deregistering, replying to the council, or planning exams), read the current guidance on gov.uk and your own local authority's pages. For special educational needs, IPSEA and SOS!SEN are trusted, specialist places to ask.

And if you are in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, find your nation's own official guidance, because the rules genuinely differ from England's.