An estimated 115,542 children were being home educated at some point during the 2020/21 academic year, up 34 per cent on the previous year, according to a survey by the Association of Directors of Children’s Services.
It is calling on the Government to bring forward its planned mandatory register of all electively home-educated children – something the LGA also supports.
Councils also need powers to enter the homes of, or otherwise see, children to establish if they are receiving a suitable education.
And they need the resources to better identify children not receiving a suitable education and to intervene if they are being taught in unsuitable or dangerous environments, according to the LGA.
Cllr Anntoinette Bramble, Chair of the LGA’s Children and Young People Board: “Although most parents and carers provide a good home education, we are concerned that the pandemic has led to increasing numbers of children receiving education outside the classroom and missing out on the benefits that a school environment brings, such as safeguarding and learning and socialising with other children.
“While parents, carers, councils and schools all have responsibilities to ensure that children receive suitable education, some significant gaps in legislation mean that it is possible for children to slip through the net and be exposed to serious risks by not being in full-time education.”