Poor SEND support and mental health concerns are fuelling an increase in pupils opting for home education, according to new government figures.
Statistics published by the Department for Education (DfE) show a 13% rise in the last year of elective home education (EHE), from 111,700 in 2024 to 126,000 last October, when figures were collected
Overall, almost 176,000 children were being home educated at some point during the 2024-25 school year, an increase of 15% on the year before.
Mental health was the most cited reason for EHE during the autumn term 2025, up from 14% for the corresponding period the previous year. General school dissatisfaction was the reason given by 8%, and SEND dissatisfaction by 4%, a rise of one percentage point on the previous year.
Children missing education
Alongside the report on EHE, the government published figures on children missing education (CME) who are defined as being out of school but not learning at home.
The figures show that 34,700 children missed education on census day in autumn 2025, down from 39,200 the previous year. The number missing education at some point in the academic year also fell slightly from 149,900 in 2023-24 to 143,500 in 2024-25.
After years of underfunding under previous governments, more investment is needed in vital community services
However, the DfE explained that “as a relatively new data collection, changes over time are likely to be in part due to improvements in data quality and recording practices”.
Better community services
Responding to the figures, headteachers called on the government to accelerate plans for a register of children who are not in school, with a single unique identifier for each child.
On home education, Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT), said there were likely to be “complex reasons” why numbers were rising, including “more awareness among parents and carers of the choice available to home educate their child”.
He added: “It is striking how mental health remains the reason most frequently identified, and the increase in the proportion of pupils being educated at home for this reason highlights the need for further investment in community mental health services.
“It is vital to ensure that families have made the choice to home educate for the right reasons, have the right support they need to provide a great education for their child, and know where to go for help if they need it.”
Whiteman said a register of children not in school was needed to prevent children from “becoming lost outside the system, with neither school nor council knowing their whereabouts or whether they are safe”.
He added: “After years of underfunding under previous governments, more investment is needed in vital community services, including children’s social care and mental health, and as part of the government’s promised SEND reforms – to ensure families get the help they need, including support to ensure their children can engage in education and learn in the right setting.”
