Good news for home educators

The government here has been reviewing the law regarding home education and considering whether to impose new regulations. Given the general trend in Europe - both France and Ireland have already introduced restrictive homeschooling laws - and that the current government has turned over-regulation into an art form, I was pessimistic about the outcome. Consultation documents suggested that various changes would be made, including compulsory registration for home educated children, more intrusive powers of inspection, and possibly the imposition of the National Curriculum on homeschoolers.

The new guidelines were issued today and to say I am pleasantly surprised is an understatement. No change! Everything remains as it was, and better still, the guidelines clarify the limits of the role of education authorities with respect to homeschooling families. This should make it harder for them to overstep their legal bounds. Those of us who form the silent majority of home educators here owe a big debt to those pressure groups who have worked hard to influence these guidelines. Good job!

Read the BBC News report here.