By RUTH LOGNONNE ruth.lognonne@hexham-courant.co.uk

Published at 09:40, Friday, 04 December 2009

PARENTS who educate their children at home are under fire from wide-reaching Government legislation.

And Hexham’s MP Peter Atkinson has lent his support to a petition opposing the new moves.

Some 150 families have opted to home educate in Northumberland, with more than half a dozen of those living in Tynedale.

Deborah Barrass, who coordinated Hexham’s petition, said: “Home educating is a huge movement as more and more children are coming out of school for one reason or another.

“A lot of people think we are criticising the school system, but that’s simply not the case.

“It works well for some families and not for others – all we want is to retain the right to choose what’s best for our children.”

The controversial Badman Report recommends that parents would, in effect, have to apply annually for a licence to teach their own children.

One area causing major concern is that the proposed legislation gives local education authorities the right to interview children alone without their parents present.

This week, nearly 400 MPs from across the country, including Mr Atkinson, delivered a petition to central Government with signatures opposing the Bill.

If the regulation comes to pass, any parent wishing to home educate would be required annually to ask the local authority for permission, allow council officers into their homes and submit and adhere to detailed education plans which the authority would have to approve.

Mrs Barrass is concerned that the Bill constitutes a move to introduce the National Curriculum and full state control by the back door.

She said: “It seems the state wants to control every aspect of what people do, but some of these children have experienced serious problems in school, such as bullying, and may now face the constant fear of being made to return.”

Lord Lucas, of Crudwell and Dingwall, speaking in the House of Lords last week, said: “This part of the Bill is ill thought-out and unjustified, and I hope very much that we will delete it.”

The petitions will be formally presented to Parliament on Tuesday.

Published by http://www.hexhamcourant.co.uk