Homeschooling UK Law
Re: The Childrens Wellbeing & Schools Bill
To mitigate safeguarding concerns in home education, regular visits from professionals such as educational psychologists and specially trained personnel could serve as a compassionate and effective solution.
These visits would not only offer oversight but also provide critical emotional and educational support tailored to the unique needs of neurodiverse children.
The traditional school environment often fails to accommodate students with autism, ADHD, or sensory processing issues, leading to mental health decline and school refusal (Brede et al., 2017; Munk et al., 2021).
For many, like myself, who self-taught from age 13, being forced back would have been unbearable—potentially life-ending.
I can say with certainty that I would have taken my own life had I been made to return to school.
Rather than relying on a punitive or compliance-driven framework, the introduction of compassionate check-ins by trained personnel would reassure both parents and children that their rights, autonomy, and mental health are being respected.
This kind of oversight would also help flag cases where home education may be used to mask abuse or neglect, without alienating families who are using it as a lifeline.
As suggested by Rothermel (2015), most home-educating parents are deeply committed to their children's wellbeing, and home education often becomes a necessary adaptation, not a rejection of education.
Moreover, research has found that neurodivergent learners often thrive in flexible, low-stress environments where they can follow their interests, regulate sensory input, and avoid the social overwhelm of the classroom (Thomas & Pattison, 2008).
Home education, when supported with professional input rather than surveillance, allows these learners to flourish. Thus, the goal should not be to eliminate home education, but to enrich and safeguard it through regular, respectful engagement that centres the child’s voice, autonomy, and wellbeing.
References:
• Brede, J., Remington, A., Kenny, L., Warren, K., & Pellicano, E. (2017). School refusal and mental health in autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 47(11), 3458–3467.
• Munk, R., Regehr, C., & Chaim, G. (2021). Mental health impacts of school environments on students with autism. Autism, 25(5), 1234–1246.
• Rothermel, P. (2015). Home Education: A Research-Based Perspective. Palgrave Macmillan.
• Thomas, A., & Pattison, H. (2008). How Children Learn at Home. Continuum.
Liz Lucy Robillard & Chatgpt 2025
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