The number of children being educated at home in North Yorkshire has risen sharply, a council report has found.
North Yorkshire Council’s annual schools update has also revealed an increase in the number of pupils being suspended and permanently excluded from the county’s schools.
At the end of the 23/24 academic year, there were 1,303 children recorded as electively home-educated in North Yorkshire — an increase of 350 on the previous year.
The figures have been released amid growing disquiet nationally about the number of children being home-educated, with the children’s commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza saying last year that she was “deeply concerned” by the figures, adding that home education was a last resort for children whose needs were not met by schools.
The report noted that the government planned to introduce a national register in England to help account for all home-educated children.
The council study also found that 3,114 pupils were suspended from the county’s schools in 2023/24, with 9,960 suspensions issued in total.
The number of pupils suspended in 2018/19 was 2,149 with around 4,000 fewer total suspensions.
Permanent exclusions have also increased from 87 in 2018/19 to 122 last year, and just 132 in total over the three years from 2019/20 to 2021/2022.
The report said the issue of increasing suspensions was discussed at the Education Matters conference held in Harrogate last year, with the council’s response including outreach support for schools through special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) locality hub teams offering outreach services for children at risk of suspension or permanent exclusion.
On the issue of finances, the report noted that 24 local authority-maintained schools in the county — 18 primary and nursery schools, four secondaries and two special schools — had a budget deficit in March 2024.
The total deficit for the 24 schools was £5.3m.
This number was forecast to rise to 30 schools in deficit by the end of the current financial year.
North Yorkshire secondary schools are placed 142 out of 151 local authorities in terms of funding level per pupil.
On average, a school in North Yorkshire will receive £6,326 per pupil in 2024/25 compared to a national average of £6,879.
The funding for North Yorkshire primary schools is more favourable with a position of 34 out of 151 local authorities in terms of the funding level per pupil.
For primary schools, a school in the county will receive on average £5,381 per pupil compared to a national average of £5,281.
The report noted:
“North Yorkshire has a number of schools that, geographically, are vital in serving their local communities.
“Inadequate sparsity funding and general financial pressures for smaller, rural secondary schools, continues to be a significant concern.
“North Yorkshire Council continues to lobby the Department for Education and local MPs for higher levels of funding for the small, rural secondary schools.”
On provision for pupils with SEND, the report said the council continued to work with mainstream schools to ensure the majority of the students could be educated within their local communities.
The council has an agreed £20.5m capital programme to develop more specialist places for children across the county.
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