EHE is not CME

The Children’s Unhappiness Bill (as nicknamed by me), is known by the Government and officially as the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. Reading and rereading through the bill and accompanying documents. This is not about a child’s right to education. It appears to be about punitive, intrusive measures being implemented for a minority group. Without starting from a solid or robust evidence base that would necessitate the measures. There appears to be no attempt to understand the group or the disproportionate and unreasonable impact this bill would have.

When you electively home educate under existing legislation as the parent, you must ensure your child receives a full-time efficient education suitable to your individual child’s age, ability, aptitude, and Sen. This is set out in s7 Education Act 1996. If your child’s education does not meet that standard, then your child is in the scope of CME (Children Missing Education), not EHE (Electively Home Educated).

If your child is CME not EHE then there is statutory guidance that Local authorities should already follow. There are measures already in current law SAO (School Attendance Order) process and ESO (Education Supervision order) processes that a Local authority can and should take. The DFE (Department for Education) collect data around this, we know this data does not accurately reflect children who are CME as the DFE and Local Authorities have also provided this information in the public domain, and we have carried out FOI where the responses implied some local authorities did not understand the difference between CME, EHE and s437(1) notices and SAO.

The findings in this DFE document Improving support for children missing education, Analysis report for the call for evidence, December 2024 clearly demonstrated that those Local Authorities and Schools that accept the current statutory definition of CME in the majority  “believe that there are already adequate processes in place to safeguard children not included in the definition (e.g., EHE children) and that expanding the definition would place greater burden on local authorities and schools. These respondents preferred to see the current definition applied more consistently.”  pg8

New legislation is not required to achieve consistency, try better communication and training. That could be done, reasonably quickly and at a low cost to the public purse with an almost immediate positive impact for children.

Children missing education are not a consideration for the CNIS register element of the BILL, and we know this because at page 6 of the DFE’s Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, policy summary notes, December 2024 it states “Create a safer and higher quality education system for every child by introducing Children Not In School registers to help ensure no child falls through the gaps when educated not in school.” If you read the bill the register will not assist any child who is not in school and is CME. It puts in place excessive unworkable oversight around children who are suitably educated.

Michelle Zaher                      21/12/24                                                                                                 Educational Freedom