Parents who want to educate their children at home will now get a much quicker decision from local authorities following new guidance from the Scottish Government.

In the past, families have complained that it can take many months - and in one case a year - for councils to agree to a request to home educate.

However, the new official guidance has ruled that decisions must be made within a six-week period, with the understanding that it could be much shorter than that.

"The aim should be to issue a decision within six weeks of the receipt of the original application. The majority of applications can and will be dealt with well within this timescale," the new home education guidance states.

Last night, the new timescale was welcomed by the Schoolhouse Home Education Association, which is a charity which represents home educators.

Alison Preuss, a spokeswoman for Schoolhouse, said: "It has been a significant concern that councils can drag their heels for months to reach a decision and that makes it a very harrowing process for families, particularly where a child is being bullied.

"Hopefully, the new guidance will resolve that issue."

Figures published in 2006 show there were 580 children receiving home education after being removed from a local authority school in Scotland. A further 126 were being taught at home having never been to a local authority school.