Education other than at school

Under the Education Act (1996), local authorities have a duty to ensure the suitable education of all compulsory school aged children. For the majority of children and young people, this will take place in school.

Section 19 of the Education Act (1996) imposes a duty on local authorities to make arrangements for the provision of suitable education at school or otherwise than at school for those children of compulsory school age who for reason of illness, exclusion from school or otherwise, may not for any period receive a suitable education unless such arrangements are made for them.

This statement sets out the City of York Council's (CYC) position on the conditions of use of Education Other Than At School (EOTAS). This includes the criteria for a child or young person be educated other than at school or college and to describe the arrangements that will be made by CYC when a child or young person has been agreed for an EOTAS programme of education.

CYC is strongly committed to the principle that almost all children and young people should receive education by being in a school, educated by teachers and supported by social networks within the school community. CYC believes it's vital that children and young people are part of a setting that is inspected by Ofsted and has Quality Assurance measures in place, and that only in exceptional circumstances may not be appropriate.

Children not attending school

All parent carers have a legal responsibility to ensure that their children receive an efficient full-time education, suitable to their age, aptitude and ability and considering any Special Educational Needs (SEN) they may have. This can be achieved by regular attendance at a school or otherwise.

The definition of ‘otherwise’ includes, children attending a Pupil Referral Service (PRS) having been permanently excluded from school, children who cannot attend school due to medical needs, Elective Home Education (EHE) and Flexi-Schooling.

Elective Home Education and Flexi-Schooling are different to EOTAS. EHE is when a parent chooses to provide education for their child at home instead of sending them to school full time. Flexi-schooling is an arrangement between a head teacher and a family where the child or young person attends a school part of the time and is educated at home or through other means for the remainder of their time.

In some circumstances, children and young people cannot attend school full-time due to medical needs and there is medical evidence in place to support this. These children and young people will be eligible for support from CYC’s Medical Needs Tuition Service (MNTS) who will enhance the education provided by the child or young person’s school. The school has a statutory duty to make arrangements for children with medical needs to ensure they can access education. The MNTS will work with the school to ensure that the provision in place is appropriate for the child/young person’s needs. The health professionals, school and MNTS will work together to support reintegration as soon as the child/young person is able.

The meaning of EOTAS

EOTAS means the education or special educational provision for children or young people is being provided outside of a formal education setting. It can only be agreed in conjunction with the local authority via an Education Health Care (EHC) needs assessment, a reassessment of needs or at an annual review.

It means the child or young person would not be on roll at a school or post-16 institution and the special educational provision could happen at home or another setting, which is not a registered educational setting.

Some examples of EOTAS are as follows:

online schooling
home tuition
other tuition centres
hospital schooling
therapies such as Speech and Language, Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy