About home education
Most parents send their children to school to receive an education. But you have the right to educate your child at home if you prefer. This is also known as elective home education (EHE).
Elective home education does not:
- give your child priority over children in school if you decide to apply for a school place
- necessarily address the causes of problems your child experiences at school
Elective home education is different to any home tuition we organise for your child, for example, if they have special educational needs or disabilities (SEND).
Find out about support with your child's learning if they have SEND
Your responsibilities
As a parent or carer, you have a legal responsibility to make sure your child receives an education suitable for their:
- age
- ability
- aptitude
- SEND needs
If you decide to educate your child at home, you will:
- take on full responsibility for all aspects of your child’s education
- not receive a curriculum or other resources from us
- not receive support from a school
How to educate your child at home
What you’ll need to do
To make sure your child receives a suitable education, you need to:
- have the time to support and supervise your child’s education on a daily basis, or arrange for another appropriate adult to do that
- provide an education that takes up a significant proportion of your child’s time, although this does not need to follow standard school hours, days or terms
- research and plan how you’ll provide the education your child needs
- pay for everything you need, such as online learning programmes, books and exam fees
Withdrawing your child from school
If your child attends school but you want to home educate them instead, you should:
- discuss your decision with the school to make sure it’s in your child’s best interests
- write to the headteacher clearly stating that you plan to home educate your child and request that they’re removed from the school register
- know that the school will automatically refer you to our Elective Home Education Officer
If you want to stop educating your child at home
If you've been educating your child at home but now want them to attend school, you can apply for a school place. You can do this even if you want to apply for a school place during the school year (in year school admission).
Contact us for support
We will:
- register your child as being educated at home
- discuss your plans for home education with you
- offer advice and guidance
- review the education you provide
- take action if home education is not working out, or there’s no evidence that you’re providing a suitable education
We do not provide:
- funding to support home education
- teachers
- laptops or other equipment
- registration with exam boards or a place to take exams
Email us at elective-home-education@royalgreenwich.gov.uk
More information
Find out more in our Elective Home Education Guide