Home Education Association, Inc.
HEA
Home Education Association, Inc. www.hea.edu.au
19 October 2025
Dear Reviewers
The Home Education Association (HEA) welcomes the opportunity to contribute to the Review of the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (DDA).
The HEA is a volunteer-run registered charity with 25 years experience and is the national peak body for home educators. We operate across all Australian States and Territories and have a national perspective on the regulation of homeschooling. The HEA has a long history of working cooperatively with Government regulators to achieve incremental improvement.
Our submission focuses on a critical dimension of educational equality: the right of families of children with disability to choose home education when other schooling options cannot meet their child’s needs.
Home education is a legally recognised educational pathway in every Australian jurisdiction. Thousands of families — including many caring for children with disabilities, eurodivergence or chronic illness — rely on home education to ensure their child’s wellbeing, access to learning, and participation in education on an equal basis.
While the DDA and the Disability Standards for Education 2005 emphasise inclusive education, in practice many children with disability experience persistent barriers within school settings:
- failure to provide necessary adjustments,
- school refusal or placement refusal,
- exclusionary discipline practices, and
- environments that compromise the child’s health or mental wellbeing.
For these families, home education is not a rejection of inclusion — it is an exercise of inclusion, ensuring that children with disabilities, and their families, have the agency to ensure that they can learn safely, meaningfully, and with dignity.
HEA urges the Review to recognise that educational equality includes the right to access a setting that genuinely meets the child’s individual needs. This includes supporting home education as a legitimate, inclusive, and protected form of educational access for children with disability.
Key Recommendations
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- Recognise home education as a legitimate form of educational access under the DDA.
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- Clarify in DDA guidance that family choice and educational diversity are consistent with equality and inclusion.
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- Address systemic barriers - regulatory, financial, and social - faced by families who home educate due to disability-related needs.
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- Ensure equitable access to supports and therapies for home-educated children with disability.
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- Promote hybrid and flexible models of education, integrating home and school learning where suitable.
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- Improve data collection and policy development concerning children with disability in home education.
Home education ensures that children whose needs cannot be met in mainstream or specialist schools are not denied their right to education. Recognising and supporting this choice is consistent with the purpose and spirit of the DDA - to promote equality, dignity, and participation for all Australians.
Following are attachments that outline our key recommendations in more detail, a summary of how home education is supported by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and a summary of international examples of home education and disability rights.
We hope that our submission will demonstrate the importance of protecting the rights of parents of children with disabilities to be able to access home education in order to best meet the needs of their child.
The HEA would be _— to be involved in further conversation on this subject. Feel free
to contact us at
Yours sincerely
Janelle Barnes Vice President Home Education Association Ltd
Attachment 1
Executive Summary
The Home Education Association (HEA) welcomes the opportunity to contribute to the Review of the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) (“DDA”).
HEA represents thousands of home-educating families across Australia, including many who educate children with disabilities or additional learning needs. Our submission focuses on one critical aspect of ensuring equality of access to education — the right of families to choose home education when other schooling options do not meet their child’s needs.
While the DDA and the Disability Standards for Education 2005 rightly emphasise inclusive education, in practice many children with disability continue to experience exclusion, unmet needs, or harm in school settings. For these families, home education can be the only viable pathway to ensure the child’s right to access education safely, equitably, and meaningfully.
We urge the Review to explicitly recognise home education as a legitimate and necessary option within the inclusive education spectrum and to recommend reforms that support families who choose it.
1. Background and Context
HEA is the national peak body representing Australian home-educating families. Home education is a legally recognised educational option in all Australian jurisdictions, regulated through registration with state or territory education departments.
A significant proportion of home-educating families do so because their children’s needs were not met in mainstream or specialist schools. Many of these children have disabilities, neurodivergence, medical conditions, or other learning differences that make traditional schooling inaccessible or unsuitable - despite the best efforts of schools and teachers.
The DDA Review’s Issues Paper (August 2025) acknowledges that discrimination in education remains a serious and systemic issue. Families of children with disability continue to encounter exclusionary practices, lack of reasonable adjustments, bullying, school refusal, and placement refusal.
In this context, the DDA’s promise of access to education “on the same basis” must be interpreted to include access to an educational setting that genuinely meets the child’s needs. For some children, that means home education.
Attachment 1
2. The Importance of Educational Choice for Children with Disability
2.1 Equity through flexibility
True equity in education is not achieved by requiring every child to attend the same setting, but by ensuring that every child can learn and thrive in an environment suited to their individual needs. For many children with disability, the flexibility of home education allows:
- A calm, sensory-safe environment
- Tailored pacing and curriculum adjustments
- Integration of therapies and medical routines
- Reduced anxiety and behavioural escalation
- Consistent one-on-one support from a trusted adult
- Supported and positive social engagement with peers
These are all forms of “reasonable adjustment” in practice - even when schools are unable to provide them.
2.2 Upholding dignity and participation
Home education enables children who have faced rejection or trauma in school environments to re-engage with learning in a way that restores their dignity, confidence, and wellbeing. Parents report that their children’s mental health and engagement with learning often improve markedly once removed from unsuitable school settings.
3. Lived Experience: Case Examples
Case Example 1 - “L” (Autism and Anxiety)
“L”, aged 10, was enrolled in four different schools over three years. Despite diagnoses of autism and generalised anxiety disorder, he was regularly suspended for “meltdowns” triggered by noise and unstructured environments. After beginning home education, “L’s” parents structured his day with visual schedules and sensory breaks. Within months, his anxiety reduced, and he was learning again at his own pace.
Case Example 2 — “E” (Chronic Illness)
“E”, aged 14, lives with a complex autoimmune condition requiring frequent hospital visits and unpredictable fatigue. Mainstream schooling could not accommodate her fluctuating attendance. Home education enabled her to study flexibly between treatments and to continue her secondary education successfully.
Case Example 3 — “N” (ADHD and Learning Differences)
“N”, aged 12, was struggling academically and socially. His parents were told that no additional classroom support was available. Through home education, “N” accesses online literacy programs and one-on-one tutoring tailored to his learning profile. He is now
thriving.
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Attachment 1
4. Barriers Faced by Families
Families choosing home education for children with disability often encounter significant systemic barriers:
- Regulatory inflexibility - Registration processes that fail to accommodate individual learning or therapy plans.
- Loss of access to support services - Once a child leaves school, families may lose access to allied health or disability supports tied to the school system.
- Financial strain - Parents often forgo income and receive limited funding assistance compared to school-based education.
- Stigma and misunderstanding - Some education authorities or community members perceive home education as “withdrawal” rather than a legitimate educational choice.
- Lack of clear policy recognition - The DDA and its Standards do not currently reference home education, leaving families uncertain about their rights.
These barriers can amount to indirect discrimination, as they disproportionately impact children with disability whose families must home educate due to unmet needs in schools.
5. Recommendations
- Recommendation 1: Recognise home education as a legitimate form of educational access under the DDA.
- Recommendation 2: Ensure DDA guidance acknowledges family choice and educational diversity.
- Recommendation 3: Address regulatory and systemic barriers to home education for children with disability.
- Recommendation 4: Maintain access to support and services for home-educated children with disability and their families.
- Recommendation 5: Promote and support hybrid and flexible education models.
- Recommendation 6: Improve data and policy development.
6. Conclusion
Home education plays an essential role in ensuring that children with disability are not denied access to education when mainstream or specialist schools cannot meet their needs. Far from undermining inclusion, it upholds the DDA’s intent by ensuring participation, safety, dignity, and equality.
The Home Education Association respectfully urges the Review to:
- Recognise home education as part of the inclusive education continuum;
- Remove barriers faced by families of children with disability who choose this path; and
- Promote frameworks that ensure every child can access an education that truly meets their needs.
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Attachment 2
Rights of Children with Disabilities
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), particularly Article 24, affirms the right of persons with disabilities to inclusive education.
While the CRPD emphasizes inclusion within the general education system, it also recognizes the importance of individual autonomy and the need for reasonable accommodations to ensure effective education.
This framework supports the right of parents to choose the most suitable educational setting for their children, including home education, when it aligns with the child’s best interests.
Key Provisions Supporting Parental Choice in Education
- Right to Education Without Discrimination
Article 24(1) of the CRPD acknowledges the right of persons with disabilities to education without discrimination and on the basis of equal opportunity. This foundational principle underscores the importance of providing various educational options to accommodate the diverse needs of children with disabilities.
- Individualized Support Measures
Article 24(2)(e) mandates that States Parties ensure the provision of effective individualized support measures in environments that maximize academic and social development. This provision implies that when the general education system cannot adequately support a child’s needs, alternative educational settings, such as home education, should be considered to provide the necessary support.
- Reasonable Accommodation
Article 24(2)(c) requires States Parties to provide reasonable accommodation of the individual’s requirements. When mainstream educational settings are unable to make such accommodations, home education can serve as a reasonable alternative to ensure the child’s right to education is upheld.
- Parental Involvement and Decision-Making
The CRPD emphasizes the autonomy of persons with disabilities and the importance of involving them in decision-making processes. This extends to parents, who are recognized as key decision-makers in determining the most appropriate educational setting for their children.
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Attachment 2
Implications for Home Education
While the CRPD advocates for inclusive education within the general system, it also acknowledges that inclusion is a process that requires adaptation and flexibility. In situations where the general education system fails to provide the necessary support, home education becomes a viable option to ensure the child’s right to education is not compromised. Therefore, the CRPD indirectly supports the right of parents to choose home education when it is deemed to be in the best interest of the child.
Conclusion
The CRPD’s emphasis on non-discrimination, individualized support, reasonable accommodation, and parental involvement collectively support the right of parents to choose the most appropriate educational setting for their children, including home education. This approach ensures that children with disabilities receive an education that respects their dignity, meets their individual needs, and promotes their full participation in society.
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Attachment 3
Summary of International Trends and Implications
Internationally, approaches to home education and disability rights reveal a consistent pattern: where families are legally empowered to choose home education, it often functions as a vital safety net when mainstream schools cannot provide appropriate adjustments or safe environments for children with disability.
In countries such as the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, New Zealand, and Ireland, home education is recognised in law and commonly exercised by families seeking flexible, individualised education.
These systems generally uphold the principle of parental choice but frequently fail to ensure equitable access to disability-related supports once a child is home-educated.
Conversely, jurisdictions like Germany and Sweden maintain compulsory school attendance as a matter of public policy, limiting parental autonomy and relying entirely on schools to provide inclusion — a model that can leave families without recourse when systems fail.
In emerging contexts such as Brazil, Japan, and South Africa, regulatory frameworks are evolving, with varying degrees of recognition for home education and uneven access to supports.
Across all regions, the trend is clear: inclusive education must encompass genuine choice.
Protecting the right to home educate - alongside improving school inclusion - ensures that children with disability are not left without educational access when institutional settings cannot meet their needs.
For Australia, embedding this recognition within the Disability Discrimination Act would affirm both the right to an inclusive education and the right to an education setting that respects the child’s individual circumstances, aligning national practice with global principles of equality, dignity, and participation.
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International Comparative Table – Home Education and Disability Rights
This table summarises how a range of jurisdictions approach home education and disability supports, highlighting when families of children with disabilities can lawfully and practically choose home education when school settings do not meet their needs. It includes notes on legal status, access to supports, and key policy implications.
| Country / Region | Legal status of homeschooling | How disability supports are handled for home-educated students | Key notes / implications |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (England & Wales) | Elective home education is lawful; parents may withdraw children and educate at home. Local authorities have duties to ensure a suitable education. | EHCPs (Education, Health and Care Plans) can sometimes name ‘education otherwise than at school’, allowing limited support continuation for home-educated children. Support access varies by local authority. | Home education is accepted and common for children with SEN, though families face complex dealings with local authorities.¹ |
| United States | Homeschooling is legal across all states but regulated individually. Oversight ranges from minimal to substantial. | Federal IDEA protections (IEP/FAPE) apply to public school placements; homeschooling families usually lose automatic service entitlements, though some states provide partial services. | Legal and accessible, but disability-related supports depend heavily on state policy.² |
| Canada | Permitted in all provinces/territories with registration and oversight rules varying widely. | Provincial education laws prohibit discrimination, but access to special education supports for homeschoolers is inconsistent and often limited. | Parents can choose home education when schools fail, but provincial variation limits consistency.³ |
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Attachment 4
New Zealand Home education is legal via Learning Support system encourages Home education recognised as exemption from school inclusion but recognises home legitimate where necessary for attendance. Parents must education as valid where school settings health or disability reasons.⁴ submit an education plan for fail. Some supports remain available. approval.
Ireland Home education allowed under SEN supports focus on schools; limited Families of children with disabilities constitutional and statutory assistance available for home-educated may homeschool, but access to provisions ensuring suitable students. education.
South Africa Legal under the Schools Act National policy supports parental choice; Recognised right to home educate; with registration and provincial supports vary by province and access to services depends on oversight required. administrative capacity. provincial resources.⁹
Sources
- ¹ UK Department for Education, ‘Elective Home Education: Guidance for Parents’ (2019); National Autistic Society (UK) resources.
- ² U.S. Department of Education, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part B; Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) summaries.
- ³ Canadian Provincial Education Acts (e.g., Alberta, Ontario) and Canadian Home Education Resources (2023).
- ⁴ New Zealand Ministry of Education, ‘Home Education Exemption’ and Learning Support guidance (2024).
- ⁵ Education (Welfare) Act 2000 (Ireland) and Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004.
- ⁹ South African Schools Act (No. 84 of 1996) and National Policy on Home Education (2018).
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