It may come to the attention of Staffordshire County Council (Local Authority, LA) from a variety of sources that a young person may be being educated at home. If so, the LA will make informal enquiries of parents and carers. The LA has a statutory responsibility to ensure that all children have access to universal services and must act if it appears that children of compulsory school age in its area are not being suitably educated. It is also responsible for the provision of sufficient school places for those who might require them, and for the enforcement of regular attendance when children are registered at a school, all of which make it important that the LA is aware of all children of compulsory school age in the area.
What are Staffordshire County Council's beliefs?
We believe that:
- Education should enable young people to develop their full potential.
- To be efficient, education should have some recognisable plan, method or approach, that is to say it should be clear and systematic in what it sets out to achieve, and what it actually does achieve.
- Suitable education is a range of skills, experiences and knowledge that young people need to prepare them for life in the community of which they are a part and the wider modern society.
We believe that there should be a variety of learning opportunities available to children. A flexible approach to options, resources and support may be needed at different times to enable young people to develop their potential. Parents and carers should develop clear aims with their children, and there should be means of reviewing progress. When you are asked for information about your child(ren)'s education, the authority would always prefer to meet with you. However, if you do not wish to meet either at your home or any other mutually convenient venue, information can be provided in any way that allows the authority to reach a conclusion about your provision, for example:
- Reports and diaries
- Examples of work
- Plans and programmes of work
- Testimonials
- Evidence of achievements and progress made