Parents in Barnsley are understandably alarmed by what they see as the local education authority’s plans to act against their children’s best interests. So, like Christa and Kerry, millions of parents have joined the home education movement. For them, it is a preferred and sometimes the only viable option as most regular schools failed to provide the required support to special needs kids.
Six years ago, Christa made the radical decision to home-educate her daughter, Ruth. At the time, Ruth was only 9 years old and counterweighted by heavy mental health obstacles. The family moved from Hampshire in 2020, intending to move Ruth back into mainstream education. However, 14 schools informed Christa that they could not accommodate Ruth’s specific needs after her autism diagnosis in 2019 and the multiple health conditions she faces.
Ruth receives crucial support through her Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). This legally binding document sets out all of the support she requires as a child with special educational needs. Christa described Barnsley Council’s attitude towards her daughter’s education as “discriminatory.” She insisted that if returned on a full-time basis to traditional schools it would “break” her daughters.
“They should be able to be educated wherever makes them safest,” – Christa.
Kerry, another mom in the special ed gauntlet for your kid, had these battles with her son Kyle. Kyle’s wait time for his autism test was more than three years. As he moved into secondary school, his behavior issues escalated requiring daily detentions. Kerry has previously said that she felt she had “no choice” but to home-school Kyle.
“I wanted him to be in a school but in a setting that would be able to meet Kyle’s needs,” – Kerry.
New data shows that home education as a phenomenon has become increasingly prevalent across England. By October 2025 it was 126,000 children home-educated—up by more than 14,000 on the previous year. In Barnsley for example, 822 pupils are currently being home educated. That astounding number comes from a total school population that is well over 36,000. Homeschooling is booming right now. The number of children waiting for specialist placements across the patch has shockingly ballooned from 55 to 121 between July 2024 and July 2025.
Barnsley Council has admitted it is under “urgent and growing pressure” on its special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision. The council blamed increasing demand as a reason for an acute lack of local placements.
SEND campaigner James Swallow-Gaunt condemned the council’s new enforcement initiatives to cut home education access as “malicious, regressive and envious of power”. He claimed that parents today encounter even more obstacles if they want to remove their kids from regular schooling. This challenge is compounded by a new goal to reduce home-educated students by 30%.
“That’s intimidating. That’s a horrendous thing to go through,” – James Swallow-Gaunt.
Education guru and lawyer extraordinaire Michael Charles is deeply concerned. He described Barnsley Council’s s172 policy as “unequivocally unlawful” and “fundamentally wrong,” indicating it is highly susceptible to legal challenge.
The National Autistic Society welcomed the news, but lamented that the families of Christa’s and Kerry’s quality are still not getting the support they deserve. As pressure mounts on educational resources, parents continue to advocate for their children’s right to receive appropriate education tailored to their unique needs.
