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Home Education in England a briefing report from the UK Parliament House Commons Library

Source: UK Parliament House Commons Library published on this website Tuesday 19 July 2023 by Jill Powell

Number of home educated children

It is not known how many children are home educated in England. However, estimates are available for the number of registered home educated pupils. These estimates are likely to underestimate the total number of home educated pupils because registration with the local authority is voluntary.

In the Autumn 2022 school census the Department for Education collected information from local authorities about registered home educated pupils for the first time. After adjusting for non-responses there were an estimated 80,900 home educated pupils known to local authorities in England in October 2022, and around 86,200 in January 2023.

As this is the first time this data has been collected, we do not know whether this increase is due to seasonal variation or other reasons.

Third party surveys of registered home educated pupils are now several years out of date (as of October 2021 for the Association of Directors of Children’s Services, and March 2019 for the Office of the Schools Adjudicator). These estimates suggest that the number of registered home educated children have increased over time.

Responsibilities of those home schooling

Under the Education Act 1996, parents and guardians, including those who choose to home-educate their children, are responsible for ensuring that the education provided is efficient, full-time and suitable to the child’s age, ability, aptitude and any special educational needs they may have. They are not required to provide a broad and balanced curriculum and do not have to follow the National Curriculum. Home educating parents must be prepared to assume full financial responsibility, including the cost of any public examinations.

The DfE has published departmental guidance for parents (PDF) on home education.

The role of local authorities

The DfE has also published guidance for local authorities (PDF). Local authorities have no formal powers or duty to monitor the provision of home education. However, they do have duties to identify children not receiving a suitable education, and to intervene. As part of this, the Df recommends that authorities should contact people home educating on at least an annual basis, so they are aware of the suitability of the education being provided.

If it appears a child is not receiving a suitable education, intervention could include issuing a school attendance order, although the Government encourages authorities to address the issue informally before serving a notice.

Local authorities also have powers relating to safeguarding, which may be used if it appears that a lack of suitable education is likely to impair a child’s development.

Plans for a register of children educated outside of school

In April 2019, the Government published a consultation on proposed legislation concerning children not in school. The consultation closed on 24 June 2019.

The consultation sought views on proposals to create four new legal duties effecting schools, local authorities, parents and guardians:

A duty on local authorities to keep a register of children of compulsory school age who are not registered at a state-funded or registered independent school.
A duty on parents to provide information to their local authority if their child should be on the register.
A duty on education settings attended by children on the register, as part of or in conjunction with their home schooling, to respond to enquiries from local authorities about the education provided to individual children.
A duty on local authorities to support home educated families if the families request it.

The Government’s response to the consultation was published in February 2022. It set out the Government’s continued intention to legislate for a register of children not in school, and that the Government would engage further with local authorities and the home educating sector in developing its proposals.

In May 2022, the Government published a Schools Bill which included provisions for a home schooling register. These provisions, and others in the Bill, proved controversial. The wide-ranging Bill was abandoned in December 2022, although the Education Secretary has said legislating for a register remains a priority.

Education is a devolved issue; this briefing covers the position in England only. Read the full report

Ofsted launches consultation for inspecting supported accommodation

Source: Ofsted published on this website Monday 10 July 2023 by Jill Powell

The consultation will provide the sector with the opportunity to share its views on how supported accommodation should be inspected.

The consultation runs from 10 July to 8 September 2023 and will inform Ofsted arrangements for inspections starting in April 2024. Ofsted began accepting applications to register providers of supported accommodation in April 2023, when regulations came into force. Regulation and inspection will provide essential oversight and assess whether children in supported accommodation are safe and well supported.

The consultation is an opportunity for providers, children, care leavers and the wider sector to give their views on proposals relating to inspection outcomes, the notice Ofsted give for inspections and the main features of effective supported accommodation.

Inspection outcomes

For the first round of inspections, Ofsted propose that there should be 3 possible outcomes for inspections of supported accommodation:

Consistently strong service delivery leads to typically positive experiences and progress for children. Where improvements are needed, leaders and managers take timely and effective action.

Inconsistent quality of service delivery adversely affects children’s experiences and limits their progress. Leaders and managers must make improvements.

Serious or widespread weaknesses lead to significant concerns about the experiences and progress of children. Leaders and managers must take urgent action to address failings.

This proposal reflects the unique context and wide scope of the supported accommodation, providing a nuanced statement of quality across extremely diverse provision.

As this is a newly regulated sector that does not yet have an established benchmark for excellence, there is no outcome that identifies exceptional practice.

Ofsted will use the learning from the first round of inspections to inform longer-term inspection arrangements in the future, including how we make judgements.

Notice of inspection

Ofsted propose to give 2 working days’ notice of inspection to providers. This is the minimum notice required to deliver effective and efficient inspections and is consistent with the notice that we give for other ‘provider-level’ social care inspections.

Main features of effective supported accommodation

Ofsted's inspections of supported accommodation providers will lead to outcomes that consider the following areas of evidence:

overall experiences and progress of children
how well children are helped and protected
the effectiveness of leaders and managers

To help shape the final evaluation criteria, Ofsted want to hear views on the main features of effective supported accommodation. These views, in addition to existing research and the views of care-experienced community, will help make sure inspections focus on what makes the most difference to children living in supported accommodation.

Read the consultation proposals and have your say.

If you need an alternative format, please email eyregulatoryandsocialcare@ofsted.gov.uk.

10 quotes that inspire us to stand up to hate crime

Source: Crimestoppers published on this site Monday 6 March 2023 by Jill Powell

What is hate crime?

‘Hate crimes’ are simply crimes that are hostile and prejudiced in their manner, when targeting a person merely as a result of their: disability, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, sexual orientation and transgender identity.

Here are some statistics to indicate exactly how problematic this issue is:

In 2018/19, there were 103,379 hate crimes recorded by the police in England and Wales, an increase of 10% compared with 2017/18 (94,121 offences).

The majority of hate crimes were race hate crimes, accounting for around three-quarters of offences (76%; 78,991 offences). These increased by 11%
between 2017/18 and 2018/19.

Sexual orientation hate crimes increased by 25 % (to 14,491 offences).

Religious hate crimes increased by 3% (to 8,566 offences).

Disability hate crimes increased by 14 % (to 8,256 offences).

Finally, transgender identity hate crimes increased by 37% (to 2,333 offences).

(Home Office, 2019)

10 quotes that inspire putting an end to hate crime

Many notable figures throughout history have spoken out against hate crime. Here are ten quotes from well known personalities, ranging from Martin Luther King to John Lennon, which encourage us to put an end to hate crime.

1. “Darkness cannot drive darkness; Light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; Love can do that.”
– Martin Luther King (1963)

2. “No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.”
– Nelson Mandela (1994)

3. “Misunderstanding arising from ignorance breeds fear, and fear remains the greatest enemy of peace.”
– Lester B. Pearson

4. “Why is it that, as a culture, we are more comfortable seeing two men holding guns than holding hands?”
– Ernest Gaine

5. “In the practice of tolerance, one’s enemy is the best teacher.”
– The Dalai Lama

6. “Sometimes I wonder if I’m as famous for my wheelchair and disabilities as I am for my discoveries.”
– Stephen Hawking

7. “Attacking people with disabilities is the lowest display of power I can think of.”
– Morgan Freeman

8. “Don’t hate what you don’t understand.”
– John Lennon

9. “You cannot hate other people without hating yourself.”
– Oprah Winfrey

10. "Where there is love there is life.”
– Mahatma Gandhi

Pensioner who directed live streamed child sex abuse jailed

Source: National Crime Agency published on this website Tuesday 16 may 20203 by Jill PowellA former coach driver who made more than 600 payments to direct and live stream the sexual abuse of children has been sentenced to eight years.

Bernard Grace, 72, from Wythenshawe, Manchester, was investigated by National Crime Agency officers after intelligence suggested he had made a number of electronic money transfers to a woman in the Philippines. NCA investigators established that Grace, who used to transport children as part of his job, was paying people in the Philippines in exchange for live streaming of sexual abuse.

Searches of Grace’s home when he was arrested in March 2021 resulted in the seizure of a laptop. Enquires into GRACE’s financial activity showed he had made payments totalling over £20,000 to various women between January 2015 and March 2021.The laptop was forensically examined and 23 Skype chats between Grace and Filipino women were found where he offered to make, or had made, payments. These included a payment to a woman under investigation in the Philippines for sex trafficking offences. When interviewed, Grace admitted making the payments..

Grace was charged with 11 counts of arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence and two counts of making an indecent image of a child.He pleaded guilty during a previous hearing at Manchester Crown Court and was sentenced at the same court on Friday (12 May).

NCA Operations Manager Graham Clare said:

“Bernard Grace was an unrelenting offender, whose actions led to several children being abused in the most horrific and depraved manner for his own sexual gratification. He may have thought he’d avoid detection by arranging for abuse to take place against vulnerable children on the other side of the globe, but the NCA has the capabilities to investigate online and internationally. We work with overseas partners to tackle the abhorrent abuse of children, and actively target offenders who pay for it to be live streamed. There is no bigger priority for us than protecting children, wherever they may be.”

The World Cup: ‘There is no excuse for domestic abuse’

Source: Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) published on this site Tuesday 22 November 2022 by Jill Powell

There is no excuse for domestic abuse’ the Crown Prosecution Service has said as cases are expected to rise during the World Cup.

Stark figures published last year by the National Centre for Domestic Violence uncovered the shocking reality that incidents of domestic abuse increase following England games.

Data showed reported incidents increased by 26 percent if England play, 38 percent if England lose, and 11 percent the next day, win or lose.

This is of huge concern for the Crown Prosecution Service as reports of domestic abuse continue to rise, with the CPS determined to do all it can to bring perpetrators of this abhorrent crime to justice and provide protection for victims.

Kate Brown, CPS Domestic Abuse lead, said: “There is no excuse for domestic abuse.

“Watching football should be a time when people can enjoy and share their passion for their favourite team, but sadly, the game is marred by this tragic reality.

“There is no hiding behind football as a reason for such cowardly and cruel abuse - and we are determined to see dangerous abusers prosecuted.

“Domestic abuse in its many forms is life-changing, and we understand the trauma of reporting someone. I want to encourage victims to report, safe in the knowledge they will be listened to and supported throughout the criminal justice process.”

With cases expected to rise, specially trained prosecutors are on hand to advise police and make charging decisions during the World Cup through our out-of-hours charging service CPS Direct.

At peak times, prosecutors working in the CPS Direct team can receive up to 70 to 80 calls an hour for charging decisions, with the festive period continuing to be one of the busier periods and cases of domestic abuse expected to rise.

Domestic abuse remains a high priority for the CPS, with extensive work continuing to better understand and improve how cases are handled, which has seen a high charge rate in cases of domestic abuse.

To shift the focus from the victim and better support them, prosecutors and police take a suspect-centric approach to build stronger cases. This requires looking at the behaviours of the suspect before, during and after the alleged incident.

Our work is supported by specific training on domestic abuse and evidence-led prosecutions – allowing prosecutors to take forward a case without the victim needing to give evidence - and instead building a case using further evidence such as body-worn video and witness statements.

Douglas Mackay, CPS Football lead, added: “We all have a responsibility to make football an environment everyone can enjoy safely and without fear.

“It is deeply saddening that reports of this abuse rise during a time when fans should be showing their love for the game and supporting their nations in the biggest international tournament in football.

“Domestic abuse is never acceptable. There is no excuse, reason, or motive for someone to inflict cruelty, abuse, and violence on the people in their lives.

“The CPS is playing a crucial role in tackling football-related crimes and working with partners to make our national sport inclusive, safe to watch, and play in.”

The CPS updated legal guidance on Restraining Orders will help prosecutors take all the necessary and appropriate steps to ensure victims are protected from further harm - https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/restraining-orders.