Children Not in School Training Lead - Home Education Experience

The appointment is available for 12 months with the potential to extend to 2 years based on business need.

The post holder will join the Department for Educations Elective Home Education team to support the implementation of the Children Not in School measures in the Childrens Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026. They will have a lead role in designing, developing and delivering a training package for local authority Elective Home Education teams to assist them in carrying out their new duties under the Act, including:

• Registration of Children Not in School
• Considering registered childrens home and other learning environments and sensitively carrying out home visits
• Providing support to home educating families
• Where required, making decisions as to whether children can be removed from school for home education.

We are keen to build a team that brings both local authority operational expertise and Elective Home Education lived experience into the heart of this work. We are particularly keen to hear from candidates that have good involvement in the wider home education community for example, through the running of parent forums or local authority community engagement initiatives.

Post holder will lead on:

• Designing a national training offer for local authorities on implementing the Children Not in School measures in the Childrens Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026
• Ensuring training content is practical, proportionate and grounded in real-world experience (including considerations for how LA practice should be adapted for families that have experience of SEND, domestic abuse, etc).
• Translating legislation and statutory guidance into clear operational practice
• Working with policy officials, lawyers, delivery teams, and external stakeholders in the creation of training content
• Developing a plan for the delivery of training in the run-up to and immediate aftermath of implementation
• Contributing to thinking on delivery of and updates to training post-implementation

We recognise that applicants may have gained relevant experience in different ways. We welcome examples drawn from professional roles, voluntary work, or lived experience where these demonstrate the essential criteria.

Essential Criteria

You must:

• Be currently or formerly involved in Elective Home Education, for example as:
  • A parent or guardian, or
  • Another family member with a substantial role in the childs education
• Demonstratable experience of providing Elective Home Education
• Have the ability to understand legislation, statutory guidance or policy proposals and explain what they mean in practice for families and children
• Be able to work constructively and confidentially with a wide range of stakeholders, including local authority professionals and EHE families, especially where views or experience differ
• Have strong written and verbal communication skills

Desirable Criteria

• Experience of designing, contributing to, or delivering learning materials, guidance, or support resources for families or professionals (this may include community-led guidance or voluntary training for example)
• An in-depth understanding of the diversity of the home education community and different approaches to home education (for example, through parent forums or direct community involvement)
• Understanding of how related policy areas interact with Elective Home Education, such as Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), domestic abuse, safeguarding, and Children Missing Education, and the practical impact these can have on children and families
• An understanding of how safeguarding and childrens social care systems can affect children who are educated outside school

Desirable criteria will only be assessed at interview, in the event of a tie break situation, to make an informed decision.