Education Law Solicitors

Everything you face, we face with you

34,000 children work from home

Sir Martyn Oliver, the head of Ofsted, has raised alarms over the growing trend of children attending school on a part-time basis, with some schools allowing flexible learning arrangements that let children learn from home for part of the week.

In his first annual report as Ofsted’s chief inspector, Sir Martyn expressed concerns that, following the pandemic, traditional family routines had been disrupted and full-time schooling was increasingly viewed as optional. He noted that many schools have adopted “flexi-schooling” policies, allowing parents to home-educate their children for part of the week. While Ofsted does not know the exact number of children impacted, it is estimated that at least 34,000 children are currently on part-time timetables.

These arrangements, which typically allow children to attend school for only a few days each week, raise concerns. Initially used for children recovering from illness or “school refusal,” part-time timetables are now becoming more common, which Sir Martyn argues is problematic.

According to Sir Martyn, there is no way for Ofsted to ensure that children are receiving proper education on the days they are not in school, since inspections are limited to the school site. He expressed worry that children missing education with the headteacher’s approval, without a clear end to the arrangement, is unacceptable.

In addition to the part-time students, Sir Martyn highlighted that 47,000 children are being educated off-site, and 92,000 are officially home-schooled. He also pointed to the growing use of a hybrid of online and in-person learning for children with special educational needs or behavioral issues. He raised concern that, along with the increase in home-schooling and children attending unregistered schools, a significant number of children are now experiencing non-traditional educational patterns.

Sir Martyn linked this shift to changes in family dynamics post-pandemic, noting that with working from home becoming more common for many parents, school attendance is now seen with less urgency. This shift in attitude is reflected in the increasing absentee rates, particularly on Fridays, when children are more likely to skip school.

He also pressed the government to fulfill its promise to create a register for children missing from classrooms, pointing out the lack of comprehensive national data on children not attending school full-time and their educational arrangements. Furthermore, he raised alarms about the escalating absenteeism rates across the country, which have almost doubled since the pandemic began.

Last year, over 19% of pupils were classified as “persistently absent,” meaning they missed at least one day every two weeks, compared to 11% the year before the pandemic. Additionally, 158,000 pupils were deemed “severely absent,” missing at least half of the school year.

Sir Martyn warned that these trends signaled “a broader disruption and fragmentation of education” that poses a serious concern for the country. He stressed that no matter how skilled teachers are, children will not benefit from education if they are not attending school.

As part of a new inspection framework, Ofsted will begin measuring absenteeism rates starting next year, following an overhaul of the watchdog’s operations. Meanwhile, the Labour Party has called for an immediate end to one-word Ofsted ratings, which were scrapped in September by Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson. This change means parents will no longer receive an overall rating of “outstanding,” “good,” “requires improvement,” or “inadequate” for schools.

in News