New Hampshire Homebound Instruction for Students with IEPs: What You're Entitled To

When a child with an IEP cannot attend school because of a medical condition, acute mental health crisis, or disability-related need, the school district's obligation to provide a Free Appropriate Public Education does not pause. The setting changes — but the entitlement does not. Understanding what New Hampshire law requires for homebound instruction, and how to request it effectively, is essential for parents navigating extended absences.

What Homebound Instruction Is

Homebound instruction — sometimes called home and hospital education — is the provision of educational services to a student who is medically or physically unable to attend school in a regular setting for an extended period. In New Hampshire, this can occur in the student's home, in a hospital setting, or in another location outside the school building.

For students with IEPs, homebound instruction is not a separate classification or program category — it is a change in the setting where IEP services are delivered. The district remains obligated to implement the services specified in the IEP. The question is how those services are adapted to the homebound context.

When Homebound Instruction Applies

New Hampshire does not have a specific state statute defining the precise threshold for when homebound instruction becomes required. Generally, a student with an IEP who will be absent from school for more than ten consecutive days due to a health or disability-related condition should trigger a conversation with the IEP team about alternative service delivery.

Common situations where homebound instruction is appropriate:

• Hospitalization for a medical condition or mental health crisis
• Recovery from surgery or serious illness that requires extended rest at home
• A psychiatric or behavioral crisis where the school environment itself is triggering significant harm and the student cannot attend
• A medical condition (e.g., severe anxiety with school refusal, extreme chronic illness) that makes sustained school attendance physically impossible

The key phrase in each case is that the inability to attend is health-related and documented. Homebound instruction is not a general alternative for parents who prefer home education — it is an emergency service delivery mechanism for students whose disability or health condition prevents them from attending.

What the District Is Required to Provide

For a student with an IEP, the district must continue to provide the special education and related services specified in the IEP during homebound periods. This is not discretionary. Ceasing IEP services because the student is not physically in the building is a failure to implement the IEP — a FAPE denial.

The specific services required depend on what is in the IEP:

• Specialized instruction (academic tutoring aligned with IEP goals) must continue
• Related services such as speech-language therapy, occupational therapy, or counseling must continue or be rescheduled to make up missed sessions
• Accommodations listed in the IEP must be implemented in the homebound setting

The format changes — one-to-one instruction rather than group instruction, telehealth for related services rather than in-person visits — but the obligation to provide the educational benefit the IEP was designed to deliver remains.

If the district cannot staff homebound instruction directly, it must contract with someone who can. Staffing shortages do not excuse service gaps for a student with an IEP who is medically unable to attend school.

How to Request Homebound Instruction

Step 1: Document the medical necessity. Obtain written documentation from the treating physician, mental health professional, or hospital stating that the student is unable to attend school and the expected duration of the inability. Be specific about what conditions prevent attendance.

Step 2: Notify the district in writing. Send a written notification to the Director of Special Education — not just the principal — explaining the situation, providing the medical documentation, and requesting an IEP team meeting to discuss homebound service delivery. State explicitly that you are requesting continuation of IEP services in the homebound setting.

Step 3: Convene the IEP team. The team should meet to discuss how the existing IEP services will be delivered in the homebound context. The outcome should be a documented agreement — either a formal IEP amendment or a written plan — specifying who will provide homebound instruction, what services will be delivered, how frequently, and how progress will be tracked.

Step 4: Track what is and is not being provided. Maintain a log of each homebound session: date, provider, duration, what was covered. If sessions are missed or not delivered, document those gaps. Missed sessions during homebound instruction may create a compensatory education claim.

Telehealth and Remote Services

Following the expansion of remote service delivery during the COVID-19 pandemic, many New Hampshire districts now have telehealth capabilities for related services like speech-language therapy and occupational therapy. If in-person homebound visits are not feasible for a related service, telehealth delivery is an acceptable alternative for many students — provided the format is appropriate for the student's disability profile.

For students with significant sensory, behavioral, or communication challenges, telehealth may not be appropriate. The IEP team should make this determination based on the individual student's ability to benefit from the remote format, not simply as a cost-saving default.

Extended Periods: When Homebound Instruction Becomes the Placement Question

If homebound instruction extends for a significant period, the IEP team should consider whether the homebound setting is still the appropriate placement under the LRE analysis, or whether a more structured alternative is needed. Options may include:

• Increased in-person homebound hours as the student stabilizes
• A gradual return-to-school plan with a phased reintegration schedule
• Evaluation for a therapeutic day school or residential program if the mental health crisis is severe enough that neither homebound nor the current school placement can provide FAPE

For students whose school refusal is itself a disability-related behavior — which is common in students with severe anxiety, ASD, or PTSD — the district cannot simply suspend services because the student won't come to school. If the disability is causing the absence, the district must address the disability. That may mean an FBA, a revised behavior intervention plan, or a change in placement.

What Happens to IEP Services During Short Absences

Standard, short-term absences (a few days for illness) generally do not trigger homebound instruction requirements. The district is not required to provide make-up services for every missed day. However, if a student with an IEP misses a significant number of speech therapy sessions due to repeated brief illnesses, the team should discuss whether any compensatory sessions are appropriate.

For absences related to suspension, different rules apply. A student with a disability who is suspended cannot simply be sent home without services during a long-term suspension (more than 10 days) — the district must continue providing services that allow the student to continue to participate in the general education curriculum and to progress toward meeting IEP goals.

The New Hampshire IEP & 504 Blueprint covers the homebound instruction request process in detail, including the written request template for the Director of Special Education and guidance on tracking missed services during homebound periods to build a compensatory education record.

See more United States guides →