The Coronavirus pandemic saw a drastic change in how we live our lives including how and where we work. However, the pandemic also had a significant impact on the day-to-day lives of children, the biggest of which is their schooling.
During the first lockdown, only children of key workers were permitted to attend school. All other children were, for some time, being home schooled. Once restrictions began to ease, children returned to school but were subject to Government guidelines and a very different environment.
Paul Richardson, who specialises in children matters and arrangements for children, noticed an increase in enquiries from parents about their children’s schooling. Paul says:
“Certainly, when Government guidelines began to change and children started to return to school, we noticed an increase in enquiries being made about schooling. The fact many children were home schooled for some time led to some parents feeling that their children were performing better at home and that home schooling was the way forward for them. On the other hand, we also saw the other side of the coin where one parent felt the children were better off in mainstream school and should return to school immediately. This led to issues arising where the parents simply could not agree on the issue of schooling and the question being asked, do I have a say in where and how my children should be schooled.”
What rights do parents have in decisions for children’s school?
A mother automatically has parental responsibility. If parents of children are married at the time of their birth, subsequently marry after birth, or if the father is named on the birth certificate, then a father would also have parental responsibility.
An unmarried father not named on the birth certificate would need to obtain parental responsibility by agreement with the mother, by filing a Parental Responsibility Agreement at Court, or in the absence of agreement, would need to make a formal application to the Court to obtain parental responsibility.
Having parental responsibility would mean that both parents have an equal say in all of the important decisions in their children’s lives such as medical treatment, decisions in respect of the care of the children, and also their schooling.
Therefore, if a parent has parental responsibility they need to be consulted about their children’s schooling, and also, they have a say in how and where their children are schooled.
What happens if I do not agree with the way in which my children are schooled?
Where parents with parental responsibility cannot agree on how or where their children are schooled, they should seek legal advice. This is because they both have a legal to exercise their parental responsibility and to be involved in such a decision.
Examples of where disagreements arise in respect of schooling are where one parent may wish to home school the children, whilst the other parent believes they should be in mainstream education, or where they simply cannot agree on which school their children should attend, whether that be simply down to location, or if one parent is not happy with the Ofsted rating of the school proposed by the other parent.
In the event that parents are unable to agree upon the schooling of their children, the issue would need to be determined by the Court. This would involve an application to the Court for what is called a “Specific Issue Order”, to determine what schools the children should attend, or the way in which the children are schooled. Within these proceedings, the parents would be expected to provide all details of the proposed schools, or schooling methods, and also provide a written statement in support of their proposals. The Court would then consider the parties’ statements, and also potentially at a contested hearing, the parents would give evidence before the Court to support their position. In the absence of agreement still being reached, the Court will then make a decision and Order where and how the children are to be schooled.
Paul adds:
“as such decisions are critical to children’s educational development I would advise any parent facing a potential dispute regarding their children’s school to seek legal advice as soon as possible. This is because Local Authorities may have certain deadlines for applications to be submitted, and also the issue of each parent’s locality to schools and their catchment areas could be a key determining factor. These are issues that need to be clarified at the earliest opportunity so that before proceeding to make an application to the Court and incur the costs of doing so, a full case analysis and the prospects of success can be considered. Also, the issue of where children attend school could also have an impact upon the wider arrangements for them, such as with whom they live with, how much time they spend with each parent and travel arrangements, etc. These are issues that are often overlooked and so seeking legal advice is important so that advice can be given on all options and the wider implications.”
How can Nelsons help?
Melanie Bridgen (Partner) deals with children’s matters on a daily basis. For further information on the issues in this article or any other issues concerning children please do not hesitate to contact Melanie or another member of our Family Law team in Derby, Leicester, or Nottingham on 0800 024 1976 or via our online form.
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