Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill

Written evidence submitted by Nikki Twigg to The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill Committee (CWSB75)

Introduction

I am writing to you today with regards to the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill. I am interested in this bill because we were left with no choice but to take our child out of the school system because that system failed her and could not support her needs. Having read the CWS Bill, I am very concerned about some of the proposals and how they will impact us.

Executive summary

In this submission I will cover the following;

· Background- how our family came to home educate

· Areas of concern- a look at the main areas of concern in this Bill from the perspective of a home educator. These concerns include

· Concern 1

· Concern 2

· Concern 3

· Concern 4

· Concern 5

· Concern 6

· Concern 7

· Concern 8

· Summary and recommendations for further action

Background

The school system failed our daughter to the point where we had no choice but to take her out of the toxic environment that she was experiencing.  She suffered a significant amount of trauma due to the regimental conditioning style of education, bullying, and lack of understanding from staff members during her time in school. The school failed to follow safeguarding policies and she was physically injured, procedures were not followed and I wasn't even made aware. School was not a safe place for our child, not only that, she was bullied and belittled by school staff, to the point that it completely destroyed her confidence in her own abilities. No child (or adult for that matter) should suffer such extremities and be expected to stay in an environment that is detrimental to not only their learning, but also their wellbeing and it was in her best interests that we removed her from that. 

Having home educated her for two years, she is now thriving in an environment where she feels safe, her views are respected and she is encouraged to learn and engage in a larger variety of interests and activities that were not available to her at school. Children and young people need to grow up knowing their strengths, with confidence, self-esteem and compassion because healthy children grow into healthy adults, and home education has allowed us the space to facilitate this for our daughter.

Areas of Concern Surrounding the Bill

Concern 1-

The wider context and underlying motivations for this Bill have come about after the tragic death of Sara Sharif and it has been unfairly linked to the home education community, fostering harmful misconceptions and negative narratives. Public commentary, media reports, and official statements have perpetuated the idea that home education played a role in this horrific tragedy, overshadowing the systematic failures in child protection that ultimately led to her death. This narrative not only misrepresents Sara’s situation, but also unfairly stigmatises thousands of families who choose home education as a safe, and positive educational path for their children. It would be beneficial to raise the point that the bill does nothing to identify children being harmed or hidden, but it infringes on the freedom to educate in a way that suits a child best. There is no evidence of home education being used to drop off radar to then be abused. 

Concern 2-

There is no research-based evidence that suggests that home education is a problem.

Concern 3- 

What steps are being taken to ensure that all children currently in school are receiving "a suitable education"? If children's needs were being met within the system, fewer families would choose to home educate.

Concern 4- 

Where is the legal backing for interfering with private family life without reasonable cause?

Concern 5-

Children are the responsibility of the parents, they are not "state owned commodities" s.9 of the 1996 Education Act stipulates "children should be educated in accordance with parents’ wishes rather than the states".

Concern 6- Refers to Section 24.

The Local Authority (LA) must refuse to deregister from special school if they decide it is not in the best interests of the child. This on the surface seems reasonable, however it puts a lot of trust in the LA, it does not allow for the voice of the parent let alone the voice of the child. It does not allow consideration of what the parent has put in place to meet the child's needs. The current system is already misused by schools and LA’s, the proposed wording allows this to go much further, resulting in children being forced to stay on school roll even when school cannot meet needs, or is not a safe space, or even because the parent no longer wants the child to attend school because they want to home educate (home education is often a willing family choice). Expecting the LA to take on responsibility for deciding if something is in the best interests of a child takes away parental rights.

Concern 7- Refers to Section 25 - failing to provide information on the register means facing a prison sentence. This is invasive and not respectful of most home education styles and does not respect a child's right to privacy.  There is no requirement for a home education register at all as LAs already have a register. The proposed register does not include children missing education, so will do nothing to protect those children.  Children deregistered from school are already known to the LA, already on their registers. The LA can make enquiries about the education and can serve a notice 437(1) and ultimately SAO if concerns about the education are known, they can also refer to children’s services (social workers) if they have safeguarding concerns. If children are currently lost or fall in cracks then that is a failure of professionals to use existing legislation. 

Concern 8- Refers to- 436C part 1

The details required from home educators is excessive.

a) and b) is information the school already passes on to the LA on deregistration. 

d) is not quantifiable in hours as home education is flexible

e) is absolutely not possible for the majority of home educators, and will mean many styles of home education will not be possible as they can not provide this level of detail. Part (iv) or e) will affect home educating individuals who arrange drop off sessions for children at an activity/event, they would probably stop organising valuable events.

To summarise, home education starts when a child is born into a family. Parents teach and guide their children through those early years and it is a continuous, life long journey through to adulthood.  Even if a family chooses to send their children to school, the parents are still the main educators in a child’s life and this bill appears to undermine parental rights, and knowing what's best for our own children. While the bill proposes to protect children, the proposed measures are likely to compromise children's privacy and learning experiences, does not sufficiently protect children's best interests, and could ultimately cause significant harm to those very children it aims to support and protect. The bill fails to address fundamental issues that already exist within the school system. I strongly suggest that there is a consultation with the home education community and a consultation with experts Dr. Naomi Fisher, Michael Charles and Jen Hodge. 

January 2025