Graham outside Westminster
A total of 74 MPs from across the three main parties are set to present more than 120 petitions containing thousands of signatures to Parliament tonight (Tuesday) opposing Government plans to bring in strict registration and monitoring of home educated children, thanks to Beverley and Holderness MP Graham Stuart .
The mass presentation will break the record for the number of petitions presented to Parliament on a single issue on any one day. The previous record was 44 petitions presented on 28 March 2006 against cuts and closures to community hospitals.
Graham, a member of the Children, Schools and Families Select Committee, will lead the mass presentation of petitions in the House of Commons said: “These petitions show the extent of opposition across the country to proposals which will give local authorities the power to harass families who educate their children at home, even when there is no suspicion they have done anything wrong.
“On the basis of a rushed study and flimsy evidence, the Government is proposing to spend tens of millions of pounds going into the homes of home-educating families and subjecting them to inspections and a licensing regime.”
And he added: “In recent years other countries turned their backs on this approach. Inspections in New Zealand over a number of years showed 95 per cent of home educated children received education at least as good as that provided in mainstream schools and they dropped their programme this year.”
When it came to fears over the safety of children in home educating families, Graham said: “Child safety is of paramount importance, but why register and inspect home educated children and not everyone else?
“Children under the age of five are the most vulnerable but no one seriously thinks local authority inspectors should enter every home to check up on them and their families. Contrary to Government assertions there is no evidence home educated children are at greater risk and, without compelling justification, the proposed invasion of family life by the state cannot be justified.”
He added: “Instead of another bloated Government database and army of inspectors we need to concentrate limited resources on identifying and protecting the most vulnerable.”
The petition hand-over was expected to take place at 10.15pm in the House of Commons.
Thank you so much, Mr Stuart, for your efforts on behalf of home-educators in the UK. I have been home-educating for 12 years, since my oldest daughter, now 20, was just 8 years old. We chose to home-educate in the first instance because we felt that our daughter was being let down by the “one size fits all” approach that schools are bound to offer. Happily, we have been able to ensure that our children have all been able to receive an education that is suitable for them.
I am sorry to say that it seems we have been let down by our MP, Mr Jim Cunningham, in trusting him to present our petition, but perhaps he may use another opportunity to present. It was truly a joy to watch the presentation, and to feel part of such a historic occasion. Home-educators across the country have much to thank you for.
With gratitude,
Juliet English
Many thanks for organising our parliamentary petition and tonight’s mass presentation. It’s a ray of hope at the end of a very depressing year.
Dear Graham
Many thanks for your assistance in ensuring that the voices of our community were heard in Parlaiment today. Our children were delighted to watch the coverage and see the support for home education after many months of battling to make sure their voices are heard.
Your support and that of other supportive MPs is very much appreciated.
Annette
Thanks once again Graham, it was a stirring sight to see a record being smashed and a blow for freedom and family being struck!
Congratulations Graham and many thanks for all of your hard work on the behalf of home educators.
Thank you for your energetic & enthusiastic support – the presentation of petitions was a cheering sight.
Thank you for what you are trying to do – sort out a government that thinks they are above ordinary people.
Thank you very much, Mr. Stuart for your help and support. It was such a pleasure watching the petition being handed over yesterday evening. I was moved to tears a number of times by the way some of you presented the petition. On behalf of my children, my husband and all other home educators, thank you, thank you, thank you.
Kind regards,
Whatever else you go on to achieve, you will always be remembered for the courageous stand you have taken up for us as home educators. I am grateful to your constituents for sharing you with the varied bunch that we are, particularly as our MP refuses to empathise with EHE. Watching Parliament TV was most exciting! As a politically aware family we are thankful that we still (barely) live in this country and want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for the courage of Wilberforce spoken with passion. And now we must catch our train to enjoy a day out ice-skating with fellow home educators!
Thank you so much, my eldest son and I cheered you all on watching the petitions being handed over last night. Fantastic! It has really cheered us up – keep fighting on, we all appreciate it so much!
Thankyou for co-ordinating the petitions against the Badman report and the governments plan to implement them. Our MP, Shailesh Vara, unfortunately wasn’t there, and I hope to read in Hansard that he has presented the petition from our constituency at a later date. We are a geographically diverse consituency, and attend home educating groups predominantly in a variety of adjacent constituencies rather than in a unified group, but our co-ordinator was valiantly trying to reach all areas.
Another who was moved to tears. I watched the whole thing.
Thank you for doing what you can to stop this attack of the DCSF and the Labour Administration on our civil liberties, on the institution of the family, and on the mental, physical and educational wellbeing of our unschooled children.
Mr Stuart,
Thank you so much for all your hard work on behalf of us home educators. We are thrilled at the number of petitions presented and all the energy you have put into the mass presentation. As well as parents, many children are very grateful for your help in allowing them to be educated at home, without harrassment from the government.
Keep on standing up for what is right.
Melanie
Thank you very much for co-ordinating the mass petition in response to the Badman report.
It was so encouraging to see such a large number of MP’s in the House to present our petitions.
This was great. Thankyou for organising this. My children and I have thoroughly enjoyed getting involved and have been learning about politics as well.
Thank you from my daughter and I for enabling our voices to be heard. So often it can feel like we’re on our own opposing this unnecessary intrusion, by co-ordinating this petition you have reminded us we have friends and supporters all over the country.
Thank you for organising last night’s presentation on behalf of home educators across the nation, doing what I thought MPs were supposed to do – standing up for people who are just trying to do the best for their children, ergo the nation’s future.
Thank you for doing this. My own MP also presented a petition, and we as a family are really grateful for the hard work you, Mark Field and Lord Lucas have put into helping us. As a home educator, I meet lots of other home educators and all of them work hard to ensure their children are well educated – better than schools. They meet the individual needs of their children’s learning in ways that schools never could.
The Badman report’s recommendations would shatter thousands of lives if implemented.
Anyway, thank you again. Your efforts are appreciated by many all over the country.
Huge thanks for supporting us; last night in Parliament was wonderful television – we laughed and cried to see that our concerns have made it to the house – thanks to you.
Mr Stuart
My family would like to express their gratitude to you in representing a community that seeks to keep the dignity of children, respects their needs at all times and offers them a wonderful experience in learning as they go through childhood. It was truly amazing to watch the support of so many MPs on what proved to be a historic night and whilst my MP did not attend he has shown his support to us in a recent visit to our home. Once again thank you and please keep going to stop these unfair proposals.
More thanks, for helping to amplify our voices.
Thank you for your support and hard work in organising this – the number gathered was impressive!
On behalf of my three Home Educated children, and their many friends in Surrey and Hampshire I would like to thank you for the lead you have taken in this matter. The happiness, health and quality of education of many of our children is at stake. Please keep up the fight, and see these crazy proposals off. Thank you again.
Really enjoyed watching the mass presentation Graham. Many thanks for your efforts from an East Yorkshire home ed family.
Thank you for organising the presention. It was amazing to watch! My children and I really appreciate the time and effort you and other MP’s are putting into our fight to stop the recommendations.
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