Every parent deserves the freedom to choose the best education for their children. In Victoria, over 2600 families choose to home educate their children. Reasons vary from a lifestyle choice to negative school experiences including unmet special needs, bullying and abuse.

Home Education has been around for over 30 years and Victoria is home to a great many home educated alumni who are a testament to the fact this form of education is successful.

The Victorian draft Education Regulations:

• force children who are struggling, self-harming, suicidal, being bullied, or anxious to stay in the school environment for 28 days or more while permission is sought to remove them, or parents face fines of $155.46 per day;
• impinge on Human Rights;
• give bureaucrats with no knowledge of home education unlimited powers to review home educators and make decisions affecting their registration;
• were drafted without consultation with significant stakeholders; and
• will put a significant and unacceptable financial and psychological burden on home educating families.

 We the undersigned request:

1. that you take action immediately to roll over the existing Victorian regulations on home education while you conduct widespread consultation sessions to inform the development of new regulations;
2. that any assessment of home education be informed by the research on home education; and
3. that assessors be appointed in consultation with the home education community.

For more information on the changes proposed see what changes are proposed.

Victorian residents, please also print and sign the paper petitions to the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly, which can be tabled in Parliament.