Deregistration from mainstream school

The process of deregistration from mainstream school in England is simple and immediate (even with an EHCP). Ensure you understand what Home Education entails and what the Local Authorities duties are before you deregister by reading through all of our site.

• You MUST send a deregistration letter or email to school. It must state that you no longer need the school place as you are taking responsibility for your child’s education by Home Educating. Our template ensures it is worded correctly, there is no need to add any more to it. Letters can be hand written or typed, and only need one parents signature.

• Get a postal receipt, ask for a receipt from school or an email acknowledgment. This is so they can not claim to have not received your deregistration.

• You are not obliged to give any notice. You can take the letter or send the email in as you pick your child up on their last day, or on the morning of the first day they don’t attend. Giving notice can lead to the school talking to your child without your agreement, or to make claims that are not true.

• Please be aware that once you have sent the deregistration letter your legal duty is complete. You are not obliged to chase the school up for confirmation or to inform the LA that you now home educate.

• Home Education must take place from day one. To understand what this means please read our What to do first section and our styles pages.

• Many schools will not acknowledge or respond to your letter. Do not panic, it is bad mannered but very normal.

• The school MUST remove the child’s name immediately use our failure to deregister letter if they attempt to delay.

• The school will pass your details to the EHE team at the LA.

• Sometimes schools do not understand Home Education and may try to convince you it is a bad idea.  Some may say things like ‘it will be detrimental to the child’, or that it ‘is illegal’.  Please feel confident that it is legal and in most cases it will not harm your child’s development. 

• You are not obliged to discuss your decision with the school. There are no legal requirements or reasons to meet with school if you are confident in your decision to Home Educate.

• Being in a mainstream school with an EHCP does not affect the deregistration process. Though some schools will try to tell you otherwise.

• If your child attends a special unit attached a mainstream school you should deregister with the mainstream dereg letter.

• Deregistering usually triggers an EHCP review, this is normal. You do not have to allow the EHE person to be present at reviews. See our SEN pages for more info.

• If your child has never been enrolled in a school you need not inform anyone of your decision.

• If your child is due to start/already enrolled in Nursery or Reception you must inform the school that you do not need the place any more, you are not obliged to inform them as to why.

• If your child is under 5 years old and registered at a school, you should inform the school you no longer require the place. No reason is needed except that your child is not of compulsory school age and you have decided not to utilise the place.

• If your child attends a fee paying school you do not have to deregister, you do however have to inform the school the date the child will stop attending (make sure you are in-line with any contract/agreement you have agreed with regards to fees).

• If the school refuse to remove your child’s name then they are breaking the law.  You have fulfilled your legal duty by sending the deregistration letter, but if you wish to you can send our failure to deregister letter explaining the law to them.

• If you are considering deregistering a teenager, please read this page.

• Ensure you have read through all of our website (look at the menu) so that you understand what Home Education is and isn’t. Remember you do not have to create school at home, you are responsible for ALL of the education, including costs and sourcing materials exams, and that the role of the LA is not one of support or advice, instead their duty is to identify children missing from education (read our dealing with the LA pages for more info).

• Remember to join local and national Home Education groups on Facebook.

   

   

Special School consent request

It is important to remember that the process to deregister from special school requires consent.

• You NEED consent for your child's name to be removed from special school.

• Consent is not needed if the child is in mainstream with an EHCP, please follow the mainstream deregistration process.

• It is recommended that in your deregistration letter you describe how Home Education will cater for their special needs. Referring to section B in their EHCP is helpful. You are likely to need to go into quite a bit of detail, this is because LAs have a duty to provide for any special needs that you can not, such as SALT or Occupational Therapy.

• Your child must continue to attend until consent is given to deregister, if your child is too ill to attend then we advise you seek a doctors note.

• You are not likely to continue to receive support such as a laptop, or other aids, you will become financially responsible for your child’s education.

• Depending on your child’s needs, it can be possible to be allocated a personal budget through the LA, this is usually only done if the LA agree there are no suitable school places available.

• Our SEN page explains more.