Barnsley home education cuts 'unlawful'

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A BBC Yorkshire investigation has found the council has one of the highest rates of home education in the country, and aims to cut numbers by 30% over the next two years. A top education lawyer has branded Barnsley council's plan to cut the number of children who are home educated as "unlawful". Education lawyer Michael Charles say the target could restrict the legal right that parents have to choose to educate their children at home. Whilst parents who are home educating in Barnsley are worried their children might be pushed back into school against their best interests. Barnsley parent Christa talks of her experience of home educating her children. The BBC contacted Barnsley Council who said: "This isn't a target that requires parents to do anything differently. It's our own target to change how schools and the council work together to make sure that there's a school environment that meets children's needs. "We acknowledge that one of the concerns parents are raising is about not being able to find suitable school places. This is the problem that we are trying to address. "We absolutely acknowledge parents' right to choose to educate their children at home. All we want to do is make sure that we've done everything possible to prevent families feeling that home education is their only option." Hannah Kitching, leader of Barnsley Council's Liberal Democrat opposition group, said the Labour-run local authority would be "better off focusing their efforts" on improving SEND provision so parents were not "backed into that corner" of having to home-educate. She added she had sympathy for both parents and council education staff who were operating in a system that "desperately needed" reform.