Love Island Star Olivia Bowen Chooses Homeschooling After School Admission Disappointment
Reality television personality Olivia Bowen has made the significant decision to homeschool her three-year-old son Abel after he failed to secure a place at any of their preferred primary schools. The announcement came on Thursday, a milestone day for parents across the United Kingdom receiving school allocation emails.
Emotional Instagram Announcement to Millions of Followers
Sharing her disappointment with her three million Instagram followers, the 32-year-old Love Island star posted: 'Looks like I'm home schooling. I will not send my child to a school I don't want him in.' In a series of follow-up videos, Olivia elaborated on her difficult position, expressing solidarity with other parents facing similar circumstances.
'I feel like there are going to be a lot of parents in my boat this morning,' she explained. 'The whole school admissions thing just feels so... I don't even have the words, it just seems so not right.'
Longstanding Essex Residence and School System Concerns
Olivia, who shares Abel and eight-month-old daughter Siena with husband Alex Bowen (whom she met on the hit ITV show in 2016), emphasized that her family's deep roots in their Essex community should have carried more weight in the admissions process.
'I have lived in this area for almost 30 years and there's so many houses being built in this area and the school system just doesn't support the amount of houses,' she told followers. The reality star resides in a sprawling rural Essex home she helped build from the ground up, having lived in the same region since childhood.
Despite acknowledging there are 'really, really good schools' in their area, Olivia revealed they're 'all full.' She expressed particular frustration about distance criteria affecting their application to a preferred school in a more built-up area.
Rejecting Her Own Former Primary School
In a surprising twist, Abel was offered a place at Olivia's own former primary school, but she has firmly decided against accepting it. 'There's one school that I really, really didn't want him to go to because I went to it, there's just a number of reasons,' she explained. 'And that's the one he got, obviously!'
The television personality emphasized the gravity of her decision, stating: 'We're really lucky that the area we're in there's some really, really good schools but they're all full. So we are in a bit of a situation at the moment. I will not send him there.'
Considering Seven Years of Education
Olivia framed her homeschooling decision within the context of long-term educational commitment. 'We were considering homeschooling. There was really only one school I wanted him to go to,' she said. 'I'm not going to send my son to somewhere nearly every day of his life for seven years if I don't want him to go there.'
Despite her disappointment, the reality star has initiated the formal appeals process while sending support to other parents navigating similar challenges. 'It's a lot but we can only do what we think is right,' she concluded.
Property Portfolio and Spanish Considerations
The Bowens maintain an extensive property portfolio alongside their Essex home, including two properties in Wolverhampton, two in Lancashire, and a Spanish residence. Olivia recently revealed ongoing considerations about potentially relocating their family to Spain, though she expressed uncertainty about making a permanent move given current global circumstances.
In an Instagram Stories post last month, she wrote: 'Everyday I wake up thinking about moving our life to Spain for the kids (and for us obviously). I wake up thinking about homeschooling too. With Abel due to start school this year, a lot doesn't sit right.'
She acknowledged the complexity of their decision-making process, questioning whether her desire to move stems from genuine lifestyle preferences or represents 'trying to escape the feeling of constant worry about the world.'
Renovation Background and Future Plans
Olivia and Alex moved into their current Essex home in 2024 after a ten-month building and renovation project, having purchased the plot for £250,000 in June 2023. This followed their first major renovation project during the pandemic, when Olivia enrolled in an interior design course to properly transform a £1 million dream home she had admired since childhood.
Regarding potential relocation, Olivia shared that the family plans to 'start the journey' this year with extensive research into areas, visas, and schools in Spain. 'The ideal would be to have a smaller house here to come back to when we wanted & have our main life in Spain,' she revealed, noting overwhelming encouragement from followers regarding the potential move.
As primary school admission season continues across Britain, Olivia Bowen's very public decision highlights the emotional complexities and difficult choices facing many families within the current educational system.
