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* If you have a school-age child, you must see that (s)he is educated.
* You can delegate this duty to a school, or you can carry it out yourself.
* In any case, the education provided must be efficient and full-time.
* It must be suitable to the child's age, ability and aptitude.
* If your child has special educational needs, it must cater for them.
What exactly does this mean? Nowhere in the 1944 Act or in subsequent
legislation is the term education defined. Most of the other terminology in
section 36 is not defined either. For many of these expressions our only
source of guidance is an appeal case which was brought to Worcester Crown
Court in 1981 (Harrison & Harrison v Stevenson).
In this case the judge defined education as 'the development of mental
powers and character and the acquisition of knowledge through the imparting
of skills and learning by systematic instruction'. He went on to describe an
efficient system of education as one which 'achieves that which it sets out
to achieve'.

Finally, he defined education as suitable if it is such as.

To prepare the children for life in modern civilised society; and
To enable them to achieve their full potential.

This definition is a very general one and could encompass a variety of
educational styles and methods. Education Otherwise defends the right of
families to take direct responsibility for their children's education
regardless of the particular approach they wish to adopt. But for all its
broadness, the judge's definition does set limits.

There are some parents who, for whatever reason, see home education as a
means of separating their children from society at large. In taking this
view they may fail to meet the first of these criteria, and EO would find it
difficult to support them in any conflict with the authorities.

With respect to the second criterion, critics sometimes claim that children
are denied opportunities by being kept away from school. But many parents
choose to educate their children at home precisely because they feel they
are giving them more freedom, not less, to become everything they are
capable of becoming, and thereby to improve the quality of society for
everyone.

The term's school age, full-time and special educational needs will be
discussed below. Apart from this, the important thing to know is that this
is all there is to be said about your duty. Provided your child is not a
registered pupil at a school you are bound by no other constraints. In
particular:

You don't need permission to educate 'otherwise'.
You don't have to tell the LEA (but see page 42 on this point).
You don't have to have premises equipped to any particular standard.
You don't have to be a qualified teacher.
You don't have to cover the same syllabus as the school.
You don't have to follow the national curriculum (see page 77).
You don't have to plan your curriculum in advance at all.
You don't have to keep to school hours, days or terms.
You don't need a fixed timetable.
You don't have to give formal school-type lessons in a classroom.

You may well choose to do any or all of these things, but you don't have to.
You need to be able to show, if required, that you are serious about
home-based education and that you are offering your child a reasonably wide
range of appropriate opportunities (some of which may well be declined!). If
your child is happy, healthy, and is responding well to what you are
providing, the chances are that your educational arrangements are
'suitable'. If (s)he is bored, resistant, frustrated or badly behaved, you
may need to think again.

Withdrawing your child from school in England and Wales
The registration of pupils is provided for by the Education (Pupil
Registration) Regulations 1995 (S.I. 1995/2089). Under regulation 9(1)(c), a
'school-age' pupil's name is to be deleted from the admission register if:

... he has ceased to attend the school and the proprietor has received
written notification from the parent that the pupil is receiving education
otherwise than at school.

This means you need to write to the head explaining clearly that you are
educating the child at home. The head must then take the child's name off
the register, and is also obliged (under regulation 13(3)) to inform the LEA
within two weeks. Once the head gets your letter, your duty to secure
regular attendance comes to an end (although you can still be prosecuted for
any periods of non-attendance, which took place before that). Of course you
have a continuing obligation to provide education, and you can now expect
the LEA to ask you about your arrangements.

Providing evidence of education
Some LEAs are more demanding than others. Many merely wish to reassure
themselves that you are sane and reasonable and are attempting to provide
some kind of coherent education rather than neglecting your children or
making use of their labour. Others may take a much closer interest in your
arrangements. Often they may make specific demands, either by word of mouth
or in writing.

As a parent you must see that your child is properly educated, and the LEA
may ask you to show that you are doing this. Any more specific demand it may
make is unlikely in itself to have the force of law. Sometimes you may have
no difficulty in complying; but if you aren't happy the LEA is not entitled
to insist. Your best course is to treat such demands as suggestions only. If
you don't like them, you should explain why and propose a constructive
alternative. The main thing is to keep a productive dialogue going without
being unduly obstructive.