Debating again

[Earthmother]

I don't know if this is the right thread to post this on, but apparently they are discussing Home Ed again today.


Thursday 19 November

New law Announced 2 weeks Before Response to Consultation

Yesterday at Westminster the Queen delivered a ceremonial speech outlining the new areas of legislation which the Government wishes to introduce before the General Election early next Summer.

Home education was not specifically mentioned in the Queen's Speech, but the Queen referred indirectly to the Children and Families Bill, saying:

"Legislation will be brought forward to introduce guarantees for pupils and parents to raise educational standards"

More detailed information about the Children and Families Bill can be found on the parliament website page here and includes the following:

"The Bill will introduce a new home educators' registration system"

The first of five days of parliamentary debate will cover education today on Thursday 19 November. Education will be debated in the House of Lords on 26 November.

The Government consultation on proposals for registration and monitoring closed on 19 October. It has just been announced that the Government hopes to publish a response to the consultation by the end of November.

The usual procedure would be to issue draft proposals, launch a 3 month public consultation process giving stakeholders and other interested parties an opportunity to comment on the draft proposals, digest the consultation responses and then make a formal statement of intention to proceed within 12 weeks of the consultation closing.

The parliamentary web page on the new Children and Families Bill refers to the Badman Review of home education. The Government announced a Select Committee Inquiry into the conduct of the Badman Review and the Committee is expected to give an indication of its findings within the next few weeks.

[Ali Admin]

From page 22 of The Government’s Draft Legislative Programme – Summary of consultation.

37. While some local authorities thought improving monitoring arrangements for children educated at home was important, over 200 people had concerns. They felt that it was expensive and inappropriate for the Government to intervene and especially to interview children without their parents being present. They also pointed out that the Department for Children, Schools and Families was still consulting on the Review of Home Education in England and were concerned that there would not be sufficient time to take responses into account in the Bill.

Government response: A public consultation on a proposed system of registration and monitoring of home educated children closed on 19 October after an extended 18 week period.1 Over 5,000 replies were received and the Government hopes to publish a response by the end of November. The consultation responses and any report from the Children, Schools and Families Parliamentary Select Committee will be used to help set out the detail of regulations and statutory guidance.

The decision to legislate for a registration and monitoring scheme for home educated children was taken because the Badman Review confirmed that the current system is not working and that the Government cannot be sure that all home educated children are receiving a suitable education and are safe and well.

In framing primary legislation, the Government has taken into account the concerns raised by home educators about interviewing children without their parents being present. Where there is good cooperation between local authorities and parents, it will be rare for a local authority officer to need to see a child without its parents being present. However, the Government also believes it is right that local authorities should be able to seek confirmation direct from a child that he or she is receiving a suitable education, where there are doubts over the evidence provided by parents.

Despite the Badman Review having been shown to be an absolute sham full of made up statistics and, frankly, lies, they will still do what they were planning all along.

Labour motto: never let evidence get in the way of predetermined policy.

[pendlewitch]

"Where there is good cooperation between local authorities and parents, it will be rare for a local authority officer to need to see a child without its parents being present."

And there is the bully boy phrase that sets out how the game will be played. Twisted bastards.

[Elaine Kirk]

'its'
Nobody who works for an outfit that refers to children as 'its' will come anywhere near my child.

And again they are forgetting Our homes, Our Families , Our Privacy.
They can bugler off!