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A spokesperson for the leading Home Education charity, Education Otherwise reacted with dismay at the confusion in the Serious Case Review into the death of Khyra Ishaq.
Fiona Nicholson, Trustee of Education Otherwise said, "Like all parents I am horrified at the death of Khyra Ishaq. However, due to the confusion caused by Birmingham City Council I need to make it clear that the charity Education Otherwise has no role in the assessment of home education. Birmingham City Council used the same name for their internal department and this has not been made clear in the serious case review or any publicity."
Annette Taberner, Trustee of Education Otherwise has written to the Select Committee and to Birmingham Council highlighting a number of errors in the Serious Case Review, which should have been corrected before the final draft was agreed in April.
Ian Matthews, Media Spokesperson said, "Despite the agreement of the courts in March, Birmingham City Council are still persisting in causing confusion in the media by using the name Education Otherwise. Criticism intended for Birmingham council in the Serious Case Review appears instead to be directed at the home education support charity. We will be advised by our lawyers on how to proceed."
See full press release document for footnote references. printer friendly version tell a friendTuesday 29 JuneContactPoint: Government Knew Risks in 2008Following a number of security breaches with official databases in 2007, including the Child Benefit records, the Government commissioned Deloitte to carry out a risk assessment. When the report was delivered it identified a number of serious risk areas. The Government then refused to release anything beyond the Executive Summary.
As the BBC reported at the time, Minister Kevin Brennan said:
"The main body of the report necessarily includes information about the security arrangements for ContactPoint. "We will not, therefore, publish the full report in order to minimise the kind of security risk our procedures are designed to prevent."
"We will not, therefore, publish the full report in order to minimise the kind of security risk our procedures are designed to prevent."
The Coalition Government has announced that ContactPoint will be scrapped. printer friendly version tell a friendThursday 17 JuneDepartment for Education website statement on college funding
"Funding may be available where a local authority provides significant financial support for a home educated young person in two specific circumstances. These are, first, where the young person has SEN and secondly where the young person attends further education college to take GCSEs or other courses. Where significant financial support is being provided, the LA can claim funding from the Department through the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG)."
"This report is past its sell-by date. Ofsted's recommendations are out of synch with the direction and priorities of the new Coalition Government. " "It might be better for the local authorities to get their own house in order rather than being granted extra powers." "It is extremely worrying that the authors of this report are so clearly wrong about the law on home education and that they have passed the wrong message to local authorities"
"It might be better for the local authorities to get their own house in order rather than being granted extra powers."
"It is extremely worrying that the authors of this report are so clearly wrong about the law on home education and that they have passed the wrong message to local authorities"
The Ofsted Report can be found here. printer friendly version tell a friendWednesday 16 JuneCollege Funding: Please write to your MPEducation Otherwise has been advised that the quickest way to clarify the issue of LA refunds for college places is for constituency MPs to take the matter up with the Minister.
Home educators and other interested parties can contact their local constituency MP via They Work For You or by making an appointment at the local constituency surgery.
If you don't know the surgery times, you can usually find out by putting your MP's name into google.
While it is always better to add some personal touches to your letter, it could include some variant on the following:
Dear MP I am a home educating parent. If a home educated young person under the age of 16 secures a place at the local FE college, can the local authority claim back funding for college tuition fees? The Education Otherwise website has references to previous Government statements, where civil servants stated that it was not possible to issue a statement until after the Election. See http://www.education-otherwise.org/funding.htm. I look forward to hearing from you
I am a home educating parent.
If a home educated young person under the age of 16 secures a place at the local FE college, can the local authority claim back funding for college tuition fees?
The Education Otherwise website has references to previous Government statements, where civil servants stated that it was not possible to issue a statement until after the Election. See http://www.education-otherwise.org/funding.htm.
I look forward to hearing from you
Iris Harrison'sHE Diary
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