Member

Let me explore what that might mean. The primary relationship that children should have in respect of their well-being, development, nurturing, education and, indeed, safety should be with their parents and not the state. Historically, we have said that parents will look to the state for schooling, but it is an option rather than a requirement. There is a danger in some of the debate around home-schooling that families and parents are being undermined, particularly by the register of children not in school. It seems to be making parents answerable to local authorities for the most intimate of details and can understandably be seen as intrusive and disproportionate. Almost by default, it treats home-schoolers as a suspect category—a risky cohort. Even the Minister’s emphasis today on safety might give that impression. I would like some clarification of this, because I genuinely do not understand the catch-all nature of some of the provisions in the Bill.