I would like to request information relating to unaccredited online schools. For the purposes of this request, 'unaccredited online schools' refers to online education providers that offer full-time education to pupils of compulsory school age which have NOT been accredited under the Department for Education's Online Education Accreditation Scheme. I am aware that the Online Education Accreditation Scheme was only launched in the 2022/2023 academic year so all online school providers prior to 2022/2023 will have been unaccredited.

1. The total number of children the council has funded to attend unaccredited online schools in each of the past eight academic years (2017/2018 through to 2024/2025 inclusive). Within each academic year, please break down the total by:
a) Sex, i.e. how many of these children are male and how many are female.
b) Age or 'Key Stage' year.
c) Ethnicity.
d) The proportion of these children that qualify/qualified for free school meals (but not including infant free school meals).
e) The proportion of these children that have/had special educational needs.
Where required, the SEND Team use accredited online schools. Whilst our records do not enable us to go back through the past academic years to identify if previous Officers that are no longer in the Council’s employment agreed to unaccredited online schools, it is unlikely given the range of accredited providers available.

2. The total amount the council has spent on this attendance at unaccredited online schools in each of the past eight academic years (2017/2018 through to 2024/2025 inclusive).
It is expected that this would be not applicable, although as above, our records do not enable us to go back through 8 academic years.

3. The mean cost per placement in an unaccredited online school in each of the past eight academic years (2017/2018 through to 2024/2025 inclusive).
Please see above.

4. The median cost per placement in an unaccredited online school in each of the past eight academic years (2017/2018 through to 2024/2025 inclusive).
Please see above.

5. The names of the unaccredited online school providers, or the top five most used unaccredited online school providers in each of the past eight academic years (2017/2018 through to 2024/2025 inclusive).
These cannot be identified as the SEND Team uses accredited online schools.