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We will help improve the learning opportunities for the many children who suffer from school anxiety. It is far more common than people think. The DfE estimates that 111,700 children were in home education in 2024 and we believe that a large proportion of those had found school to be a place which was causing them mental health problems.

Both Richard and Molly experienced this during their school years and you can hear them discussing it, and be amazed at what happened to Richard in particular, in this extract from a longer podcast they did in October 2023 that can found in the "education" sector of our website.



Their experiences are one of the major reasons that they both feel so passionately about this part of the Owlbut's World of Learning website. Those children, like Molly and Richard, who find the school environment too stressful for them to cope with still need the opportunity to learn. For them, home education removes a possible mental health issue which could go on to cause problems in later life. It is a human fact that some of us find certain things difficult to cope with that the majority of people find easy.

Sadly, the recent government position seems to be that the only answer to children missing school is to get them back, at any cost, and provide counselling, mentoring and things like attendance hubs.

However, you do not solve a problem by forcing people to go through the very experience that is causing them the problem. You find a way, and provide specific support, for avoiding that problem if possible. There are situations in life that we, as humans, find difficult. If it is essential, then we need to find a way to get through it. But if it is not essential then we need to help people to get around it; to find an alternative.

Maybe, in the similar way suggested by Robert Frost in his much analysed poem "The Road Not Taken", we can chose to conquer or avoid when we are confronted with such a choice and, just to make it clear as the government seem to try to say otherwise, there is a choice about a child's education. Not whether they should receive one but how it should be given.

If those children being home educated are happy and having a good educational experience, managing to socialise in some way, then we should not look on this as some scare story but applaud that fact and support these parents.

And by supporting our work that is exactly what you will be doing because while home educators have access to resources for the basic subjects of Maths, English and Science, they have far less material or indeed ideas for subjects such as history and geography and nature. These subjects can be far more fun to learn, especially if the learners realise some of the learning material is actually on their own door-step, or to be more precise not far from their own doorstep. You can actually see a river flow, visit an ancient monument and simply wander, with open-eyes and some guidance, through a forest or wood, field or meadow, within a small distance of most homes.

Home education can work, does work and should be encouraged to work for those for whom it provides a way to get around a obstacle to enjoy their personal learning journey. Please help us to provide this help.