If you are thinking about home education, it is completely normal to feel unsure about what the law allows, what the local authority can ask for and what you are actually required to provide. The information online does not always help. Legal duties, government guidance and individual council policies are often presented as though they carry the same weight, when they do not.
The first thing to know is reassuringly simple: home education is legal throughout the UK. Education is compulsory, but attendance at school is not the only lawful way to provide it. Parents can fulfil their responsibility by ensuring their child receives an appropriate education outside school.
However, education is devolved. That means the rules are not identical in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. This guide explains the current position in each nation, including registration, local-authority contact, home visits, SEND and the future changes contained in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026.
This article discusses elective home education: education chosen and arranged by a parent. It is different from a school sending work home, temporary remote learning, alternative provision or local-authority-arranged Education Otherwise Than At School, often shortened to EOTAS.
Is Home Education Legal in the UK?
Yes. Home education is a lawful form of education in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Across the UK, the central responsibility rests with the parent: a child of compulsory school age must receive an education suited to them, either through school attendance or by another lawful means.
This is why the phrase “education is compulsory, school is not” is so widely used in the home education community. It does not mean parents have no legal responsibilities. It means that school is one way of meeting the duty to educate, rather than the only way.
Home Education Law Across the UK at a Glance
- England: Section 7 of the Education Act 1996 requires an efficient, suitable, full-time education. Most parents do not need permission to home educate, although important exceptions apply.
- Wales: Section 7 of the Education Act 1996 also applies, with the education tailored to the child’s age, ability, aptitude and additional learning needs. Current Welsh guidance gives local authorities a more active role in seeking assurance.
- Scotland: Sections 30, 35 and 37 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 are central. Consent is usually required before withdrawing a child who attends a public school, but consent is not required simply to hold the choice to home educate.
- Northern Ireland: Article 45 of the Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order 1986 requires an efficient, suitable, full-time education, provided through school attendance or otherwise.
Home Education Law, Government Guidance and Council Policy: What Is the Difference?
One of the most useful things a parent can learn is that legislation, guidance and local policy are not interchangeable.
- Legislation is the law. Acts, Orders and Regulations create legal duties and powers.
- Statutory guidance is guidance that a public body must have regard to when carrying out a particular legal function. It matters, but it does not automatically turn every recommendation into a legal duty on parents.
- Non-statutory guidance explains recommended practice. It can be influential without having the same status as legislation.
- Local policies explain how an authority intends to work. A council cannot create a new legal power or parental duty simply by putting it in its own policy or form.
If a school or local authority tells you that you “must” do something, it is reasonable to ask whether the requirement comes from legislation, statutory guidance or local policy. That is not being difficult. It is asking for the basis of the request so that everyone can work from the same accurate information.
What Education Must Home-Educating Parents Provide?
The wording varies slightly across the nations, but the central legal test is broadly similar. Parents must provide an education that is efficient, suitable and full-time, taking account of the individual child.
What Does “Efficient Education” Mean?
Case law has described an efficient education as one that achieves what it sets out to achieve. This does not require a parent to recreate a classroom. It does mean there should be genuine education taking place, rather than only an intention to begin at some point in the future.
What Does “Suitable Education” Mean?
Suitable education is individual. It should be appropriate to the child’s age, ability and aptitude and should account for their special educational needs, additional learning needs or additional support needs, depending on the nation in which they live.
The law does not provide a neat national checklist that every home-educated child must complete. Case law and guidance indicate that education should prepare a child for life in modern society, support them to fulfil their potential and avoid closing off their future options. A suitable education for one child may therefore look very different from a suitable education for another.
What Does “Full-Time Education” Mean at Home?
There is no fixed statutory number of home-education hours that applies across the UK. School hours are not automatically the correct measure because one-to-one learning can work differently and education may be woven through projects, conversations, reading, travel, practical activity and everyday life.
Full-time should not be confused with completing worksheets from 9am until 3pm. Equally, flexibility does not remove the responsibility to provide an education with enough depth, consistency and progression to be suitable for the child.
Do Home Educators Have to Follow the National Curriculum?
No. Home-educated children are not legally required to follow the National Curriculum for England, the Curriculum for Wales, Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence or the Northern Ireland Curriculum. Families may use parts of these curricula if they find them helpful, but they can also take an autonomous, child-led, project-based, structured or blended approach.
Do Parents Need Teaching Qualifications, Timetables or Formal Lessons?
Parents do not ordinarily need teaching qualifications to home educate. There is no general requirement to reproduce school terms, school hours, age-related school targets, formal lessons or school-style assessment. You can teach directly, use tutors and groups, access online provision and learn through experiences. The parent remains responsible for ensuring that the overall education is suitable.
Do Home-Educated Children Have to Take GCSEs?
No. There is no general legal requirement for a home-educated child to sit GCSEs, SATs or other public examinations. Many families choose GCSEs, IGCSEs, functional skills, vocational qualifications, portfolios or alternative routes according to the child’s goals. Parents commonly need to arrange and pay for private-candidate examinations unless local support is available.
Home Education Law in England
What Is the Legal Basis for Home Education in England?
Section 7 of the Education Act 1996 places the duty on the parent to ensure that a child of compulsory school age receives an efficient, suitable, full-time education, either through regular attendance at school or otherwise. The word “otherwise” is the legal doorway through which elective home education sits.
Do You Need Permission or Have to Register in England?
Under the current rules, most parents do not need local-authority permission to home educate. If a child has never been registered at school, there is currently no general legal duty on the parent to register them as home educated or notify the local authority. This is due to change when the relevant parts of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 are commenced, but those provisions were not yet in force when this article was checked.
If a child attends a mainstream school, the parent should notify the school in writing that the child will no longer attend after a specified date and will receive education otherwise than at school. The school then removes the child from its admission register when the legal criteria are met and tells the local authority.
For the full practical process, see How to Deregister Your Child from School.
When Is Permission Required in England?
- If a child attends a special school under arrangements made by the local authority, local-authority consent is required before the child can be removed from the roll.
- If a child is attending a school named in a School Attendance Order, the order must be revoked or changed before deregistration can take effect.
- An EHC plan does not itself create a permission requirement where the child attends a mainstream school, although the plan and provision still need to be considered.
What Powers Does the Local Authority Have in England?
English local authorities do not currently have a general statutory duty to routinely monitor every home education arrangement. They do, however, have duties to try to identify children who are not receiving a suitable education and to act where it appears that the section 7 duty is not being met.
A local authority can make informal enquiries and ask a parent for information about the education being provided. There is no prescribed national form that every parent must complete. Evidence might be provided through a written educational report, examples, photographs, discussion or another format that explains what the child is learning and how the provision meets their needs.
Do You Have to Accept a Home Visit in England?
Under the current framework, the local authority does not have an automatic right to enter the family home solely because a child is home educated. A parent can decline a home visit or suggest another way of providing information.
However, declining a visit should not be confused with ignoring reasonable enquiries altogether. If an authority cannot obtain enough information to judge whether a suitable education is being provided, it may conclude that formal action is necessary. A clear written response is often the most straightforward way to protect both the child’s education and the family’s boundaries.
What Is a School Attendance Order in England?
If it appears that a child is not receiving a suitable education, the local authority can begin the process under section 437 of the Education Act 1996. A formal notice gives the parent an opportunity to satisfy the authority that suitable education is being provided. If the authority remains unsatisfied and considers that the child should attend school, it may issue a School Attendance Order naming a school.
A School Attendance Order is a formal legal step, not the same thing as an initial email or annual enquiry. If you receive a section 437 notice or an order, respond promptly and consider obtaining independent legal advice.
Home Education Law for Children with SEND or an EHC Plan in England
Children with SEND can be home educated. Where a child has an EHC plan, the local authority must continue to review it. If the authority is satisfied that the parent’s own arrangements are suitable, it may be relieved of the duty to secure the special educational provision itself, but it does not simply stop maintaining or reviewing the plan because the child is home educated.
This is different from local-authority-arranged EOTAS. With EOTAS, the local authority remains responsible for arranging the provision in the EHC plan. With elective home education, the parent has chosen to take responsibility for the education.
Home Education Law in Wales
What Is the Legal Basis for Home Education in Wales?
Section 7 of the Education Act 1996 applies in Wales. Parents must provide an efficient, suitable, full-time education that accounts for the child’s age, ability, aptitude and any additional learning needs they may have.
Do You Need Permission or Have to Register in Wales?
Under the current rules, parents do not generally need local-authority permission to home educate a child who is not registered at a special school under local-authority arrangements. A parent withdrawing a child from school should notify the school in writing. The school removes the child from the admissions register and informs the local authority.
Parents whose child has never attended school are not currently subject to a general mandatory home-education register. The future children-not-in-school registration provisions in the 2026 Act were not yet in force when this article was checked.
Can a Welsh Local Authority Ask to Meet Your Child?
Welsh statutory guidance expects local authorities to take active steps to satisfy themselves that a suitable education is being provided. It says authorities should see and communicate with the child where this is needed to assess the provision. The parental handbook also makes clear that a meeting does not have to take place at home and that parents and children who are competent to decide may decline.
The practical message is similar to England but the Welsh guidance is more explicit about meeting the child: a family can propose a neutral venue or provide information in another appropriate form. If the authority still lacks enough evidence to assess suitability, it may move towards the School Attendance Order process.
Home Education Law for Children with ALN or an IDP in Wales
A child with additional learning needs can be home educated. If the local authority decides that a home-educated child has ALN, it must prepare and maintain an Individual Development Plan where the statutory criteria are met. It must secure the additional learning provision described in the plan, although in some circumstances the parent’s own suitable arrangements may provide some or all of it. The IDP remains subject to review.
If the child is registered at a special school under arrangements made by the local authority, the school cannot remove the child’s name until local-authority agreement has been obtained.
Home Education Law in Scotland
What Is the Legal Basis for Home Education in Scotland?
Section 30 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 places the duty on parents to provide an efficient education suited to the child’s age, ability and aptitude. Sections 35 and 37 cover withdrawal from public school and action where an authority is not satisfied about the education.
Do You Need Permission to Home Educate in Scotland?
Consent is not required simply to believe in or choose home education. However, if a child has attended a public school, the parent will usually need the local authority’s consent before withdrawing them from that school. The authority must not unreasonably withhold consent.
Consent is generally not required where the child has never attended a public school, has never attended one in that authority’s area, is leaving an independent school, has finished primary school but not started secondary school, attended a school that has closed or is not yet of school age.
What Information Can a Scottish Local Authority Request?
When seeking consent to withdraw, parents will normally be asked for an outline of the proposed education. The authority should focus on whether the provision is likely to be efficient and suitable, not on whether it copies school or whether officials agree with the family’s philosophy.
Scottish guidance recommends annual contact with families known to be home educating, but it is not itself a statutory requirement. Information can be shared through conversation, written or electronic material, or another suitable method.
Do You Have to Accept a Home Visit in Scotland?
The authority does not have an automatic right of access to the home or child as part of ordinary annual contact. Refusing access is not, by itself, evidence that the education is unsuitable. Families may offer a digital meeting, neutral venue, report, samples or other information.
If the authority has specific, demonstrable concerns that cannot be resolved through alternative evidence, it can explain those concerns and request access. If it still cannot obtain enough information, it may serve a formal notice under section 37. That notice gives the parent between seven and fourteen days to provide information in person or in writing. An attendance order may follow if the authority remains unsatisfied.
Home Education and Additional Support Needs in Scotland
Children with additional support needs can be home educated. The planned provision should account for those needs. The extent of continuing local-authority support depends on the child’s circumstances and the relevant additional-support legislation; choosing elective home education can affect provision previously delivered through school, so it is sensible to clarify proposed support in writing before withdrawal.
Home Education Law in Northern Ireland
What Is the Legal Basis for Home Education in Northern Ireland?
Article 45 of the Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order 1986 places the responsibility on the parent to ensure that a child receives an efficient, suitable, full-time education, either through school attendance or otherwise.
Do You Need Permission or Have to Register in Northern Ireland?
If a child has never attended school, there is currently no legal requirement for the parent to contact the Education Authority, although families can contact its Elective Home Education Team for information and support.
If a child attends school, the parent should send the principal a signed and dated letter confirming the intention to home educate and the date on which home education will begin. The Education Authority’s guidance says the school cannot legally prevent or delay deregistration once it has been formally notified.
What Can the Education Authority Ask For in Northern Ireland?
The Education Authority maintains records received from schools and offers annual contact about support and guidance. If a concern is raised about the suitability of the education, it can make enquiries and ask the family for information. Its guidance says parents are not legally required to answer an informal request, but also explains that non-response may lead to a formal notice or School Attendance Order process.
Information may be shared in the family’s preferred format. It might include an educational report, examples of learning, projects, photographs, journals or plans. The legal question remains whether the child is receiving a suitable education, not whether the family has reproduced the Northern Ireland Curriculum.
Home Education Law for Children with SEN or a Statement in Northern Ireland
A child can be home educated whether or not they have SEN, a statement or a history of attending special school. The deregistration process is the same, although parents are encouraged to engage with the relevant statementing officer.
Where a statement remains in place, the Education Authority continues to maintain and review it annually. It must arrange the specified special educational provision unless the parent has made suitable arrangements. A combination of parental and Education Authority provision may sometimes be appropriate.
Can a School Pressure a Parent to Home Educate?
No parent should be pushed into elective home education so that a school can avoid providing support, managing attendance properly, carrying out a lawful exclusion or arranging suitable provision. This practice is often described as off-rolling.
Home education should be a voluntary and informed parental decision. If school staff suggest that deregistration is the only option because of attendance, behaviour, anxiety, SEND or academic performance, ask for that advice in writing. You can also request a meeting about the support and lawful alternatives available before making any decision.
If you are still deciding, read What Should I Consider Before Deregistering My Child? before sending a withdrawal letter.
Is Home Education a Safeguarding Concern?
Home education is not, by itself, evidence of abuse, neglect or a safeguarding risk. The same safeguarding law that protects all children continues to apply, and professionals must act if they have a genuine welfare concern. But the simple fact that a parent has lawfully chosen home education should not automatically be treated as a child-protection issue.
It is also important not to collapse two separate questions into one. An authority may be satisfied that a child is safe but still need information about education, or it may have a safeguarding concern unrelated to the quality of learning. Each concern should be identified clearly and addressed under the appropriate legal framework.
Do Home Educators Have to Prove Their Child Is Learning?
Parents carry the legal responsibility for providing the education. Local authorities and the Education Authority have intervention duties when it appears that this responsibility is not being met. In practice, this means families may be asked for enough information to show that the education is real, current and suitable.
That does not necessarily mean submitting workbooks, following a council template or allowing a home visit. Depending on the nation and circumstances, useful evidence could include:
- a short explanation of your educational approach
- examples of recent learning, interests and projects
- resources, groups, visits and experiences the child accesses
- how literacy, numeracy, communication and wider development are supported
- how the provision responds to SEND, ALN or additional support needs
- how learning has developed or changed over time
A home-education report does not have to make family life look like a school inspection. Its purpose is to explain the education in a way that is accurate, child-centred and understandable.
Proposed Changes to Home Education Law in 2026
What Does the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 Change?
The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026. It contains a future framework for children-not-in-school registers in England and Wales, duties to supply information and changes to the School Attendance Order process. It also contains additional checks before some children in specified safeguarding circumstances can be removed from school.
Are the New Home Education Registration Rules Already in Force?
No. When this article was checked on 5 August 2026, the relevant children-not-in-school and home-education provisions had not yet been commenced in England or Wales. The Act is on the statute book, but the practical duties do not apply until the relevant government brings them into force through commencement regulations. Further regulations and guidance will also supply important operational detail.
For now, families should follow the current law described in this article. Be cautious with webpages claiming that every home educator must already register under the 2026 Act or that new visit powers are already operating. We will update this guide when the commencement position changes.
What Is Not Changing Under the 2026 Act?
The future measures do not abolish home education. They do not require families to reproduce school at home or follow a national curriculum. The underlying parental duty to provide a suitable education remains central. What will change is the level of registration, information sharing and oversight once the relevant provisions begin.
Frequently Asked Questions About Home Education Law in the UK
Is Homeschooling Legal in the UK?
Yes. Homeschooling and home education are commonly used to mean the same thing. The UK home education community often prefers “home education” because learning does not have to mean recreating school at home.
Can I Home Educate My Child Without Being a Teacher?
Yes. Parents do not ordinarily need teaching qualifications. You need to ensure that the education is suitable for your child, but you can draw on tutors, groups, online courses, community resources and other people where helpful.
Can I Home Educate Only One of My Children?
Yes. The decision and legal duty are considered for each child individually. One child can attend school while another is home educated, and siblings can follow very different approaches according to their needs.
Can My Child Attend Groups or Learn Outside the Home?
Yes. Home education does not have to happen solely in the family home. Children can learn through groups, libraries, museums, sports, tutors, online courses, community projects, outdoor experiences and travel. Parents remain responsible for the overall education and for making appropriate safeguarding decisions about providers.
Is Flexi-Schooling a Legal Right?
No. Flexi-schooling is an agreed arrangement in which a child remains registered at school but attends part-time and is educated at home for the remainder. Parents can request it, but the school normally decides whether to agree. It is legally and practically different from full-time elective home education.
Can My Child Return to School Later?
Yes, but the former place is not normally held open. A parent can apply for a school place through the usual admissions process, and the child may be offered a different school if the preferred one is full.
Can the Council Force a Home-Educated Child to Attend School?
Only through the relevant legal process. If the authority is not satisfied that suitable education is being provided, it can use formal notice and attendance-order procedures. It cannot lawfully convert an ordinary request or disagreement into a requirement to attend school without following the applicable process.
Do I Need to Keep Attendance Records or Mark Work?
There is currently no general UK-wide rule requiring an elective home educator to keep a school-style attendance register or mark every piece of work. Keeping light records may be helpful for your own planning and for explaining the education, but they do not need to turn family learning into school administration.
Understanding Your Home Education Rights and Responsibilities
The law gives families real freedom to build education around the child. That freedom sits alongside a real responsibility: the child must receive an education that is suitable for who they are and that develops over time.
You do not need to ask permission for every learning choice, recreate a classroom or perform school for an official. You do need to understand the rules that apply in your nation, respond sensibly if legitimate concerns are raised and be able to explain the education you are providing.
If you have recently left school, our guide I’ve Deregistered My Child from School… Now What? can help you work out what comes next. You may also want to explore What Is Deschooling?, browse our free home education resources or join The Home Ed Collective for support from a community that understands both the wobbles and the wins.
Sources
This article was checked against the following legislation and guidance on 5 August 2026:
- Education Act 1996, section 7
- Education Act 1996, sections 436A and 437
- Department for Education: Elective home education guidance
- Department for Education: Children missing education statutory guidance
- School Attendance (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2024
- Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026
- House of Commons Library: Home education in England, 10 June 2026
- Education Otherwise: Information for professionals
- Welsh Government: Elective home education statutory guidance
- Welsh Government: Home education handbook for home educators
- Welsh Government: Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 and elective home education
- Scottish Government: Home education guidance, 2025
- Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order 1986, article 45
- Education Authority Northern Ireland: Guidelines for Elective Home Education
- Education Authority Northern Ireland: Educating your child at home
Legal note: This article provides general information about home education law and is not a substitute for legal advice about an individual case. Laws and commencement dates can change. Check the latest national guidance or seek independent advice if your child is subject to an attendance order, court order, child-protection process or a disputed special-school withdrawal.