Badman’s attack on Home Education
The long awaited results of Graham Badman’s so-called independent review into Home Education were published last week.
As expected, they contained a lot of unsubstantiated allegations about Home Educators. The government is really cranked up the Media hype machine now to prove that HOME EDUCATION= CHILD ABUSE and that children are not safe with their parents.
It appears that there is a “substantial higher number” of children Home Educating families are known to Social Services than children who are in school.
Well, you can see where that comes from, especially when you consider that we had both Social Services and the Child Abuse department of the Police set on us over a pen pal letter!
In light of the review, the recommendations of which have been immediately accepted by Ed Balls and his Education department, it is hardly surprising that so few councils were willing to release the details of their answers to the 60 questions. Clearly the answers were full of libelous, twisted lies and distortions.
Badman has proposed amongst other things that:
All Home Educating families should be subject to annual registration, that all families have to provide a learning plan as well as be subject to annual inspections and that LAs have the power to determine whether or not a parent is suitable to home educate their child.
Probably the most contentious are the self-appointed powers to enter your home (with 2 weeks notice), which you supposedly cannot refuse and “interview” your child about their safety, education and welfare- without an adult being present!
There have been a lot of angry reactions to this, as was to be expected.
There is a very funny blog written on this subject!
Hilarious!
http://www.grahambadman.blogspot.com
There are a lot of people who are choosing to simply say NO to this intrusion of privacy and erosion of civil liberties.
My approach is that all of this silly nonsense comes under Acts and Statutes and the most important thing to remember is that, according to Black’s Law Dictionary, “A Statute is a piece of legislation given the force of law, by the CONSENT of the governed” and I don’t consent to be governed by it!
We have certainly not heard the last of this matter!
JUST SAY NO!
Amanda Goldston
