Deregistering From School in England: How It Works

The right you are exercising

Section 7 of the Education Act 1996 places the duty to educate on parents, not schools: your child must receive an efficient, full-time education suitable to their age, ability and aptitude, and to any special educational needs — "either by regular attendance at school or otherwise". Choosing "otherwise" is not opting out of education; it is choosing a different lawful way of meeting the same duty.

For a child at an ordinary mainstream school, you do not need anyone's permission to make that choice, you do not have to give reasons, and you do not have to attend a meeting first — though schools will often offer one, and there is no harm in going if you want to.

How deregistration actually works

The current mechanics sit in the School Attendance (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2024. Under regulation 9(1)(f), a mainstream school's proprietor must delete a compulsory-school-age pupil's name after the parent has stated in writing that the child will no longer attend after a specified day and will instead receive education otherwise than at school, once that day has passed. A school attendance order is an exception.

In practice that means:

1. Write to the head teacher — a letter or an email both count as written notification. Say clearly that your child is receiving education otherwise than at school from a stated date, and ask for their name to be deleted from the admission register. Our deregistration letter template has exact wording you can print and fill in.
2. Keep a copy, and note the date you sent it.
3. Once the date in your notice has passed, the school must delete your child's name from the register and tell the local authority it has done so. Deletion under regulation 9(1)(f) is a duty when its conditions are met, not a discretionary decision by the school.
4. From your stated date, your child no longer attends and the attendance rules stop applying to them at that school.

There is no notice period and no form. You do not need to wait for a reply before your child stops attending, though a written acknowledgement from the school is worth asking for, and chasing, because it protects you from any later confusion about attendance.

The two situations where it is different

• Special schools. If your child attends a special school under arrangements made by the local authority, the school cannot remove their name without the local authority's consent. You ask the local authority first; if it refuses and you disagree, you can ask the Secretary of State to direct otherwise. This applies to the placement route, not to your child having special educational needs in general — a child with an EHCP at a mainstream school can be deregistered by the normal letter.
• School attendance orders. If a school attendance order is in force naming a school your child must attend, you cannot simply deregister; you must ask the local authority to revoke the order (and can appeal to the Secretary of State if it refuses). This only affects the small number of families already subject to an order.

What happens after you deregister

The school tells the local authority, and at some point — days or months later — the authority will usually contact you. This is normal, not a sign you did anything wrong. Local authorities may make informal enquiries to satisfy themselves that a suitable education is being provided.

You are not required to follow a set format, use a curriculum, or admit visitors to your home, but it is sensible to respond: a short written description of your approach, with some examples of what your child does, is the usual reply. If an authority formed the view that no suitable education was happening and the concern was not resolved, it could begin the school attendance order process — engaging early and calmly is how families keep things straightforward.

If you want somewhere to start with the education itself, our guide to home educating for free covers free resources for every year group, and the printable checklists map what schools cover each year so you can borrow as much or as little structure as you like.

Do I have to register my child for home education? Checked 8 August 2026

As at 8 August 2026, there is no separate national application that every parent in England must make to register a child for home education. If your child is at a mainstream school, your written notice goes to the school and the school must inform the local authority after removing the child from its admission register. If your child has never been enrolled, the current national rules do not impose a general registration application, although you may choose to tell your council and it may contact you under its existing education duties.

The important exceptions already in force remain: obtain local-authority consent before withdrawing a child who attends a special school under local-authority arrangements, and deal with any school attendance order before trying to deregister. The current GOV.UK home-education page summarises both exceptions.

The Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 provides for compulsory Children Not in School registers, but those measures were not yet in force on 8 August 2026. When they commence, a parent whose child becomes eligible for the register will have 15 days to tell the local authority and provide the information they hold, including the child's and parents' details, who provides the education, estimated time taught by parents and other people, and details of any qualifying outside provider. Separate consent rules will cover children subject to a section 47 child-protection enquiry, children on a child-protection plan or who were on one in the previous five years, and children attending specified special schools.

Section 78 of the Act requires commencement regulations for sections not started automatically, and the Department for Education's 30 April 2026 letter told local authorities to keep following the existing law and guidance until implementation. Because this position will change, check GOV.UK's current guidance on the day you act.

For the register question on its own — whether the 2026 Act's duties have started, and why your council may already hold your details — see do I need to register to home educate in England?, which tracks the commencement position and is checked against the legislation each time it is reviewed.