Nationwide "Let's Submit a Petition" Campaign / With Usage Rights for AI Support for Local Government Budget Petitions! / Towards Creating Support Systems for Families with School Refusal

NPO Tayo na Manabi Project (Representative Director: Chisato Ikoma), in cooperation with NPO Kyoryoku Academy and practitioners from regional networks, will hold the "Let's Submit a Petition Together" Campaign from July 1 to September 30, 2026.

This campaign is an initiative where private activities supporting children and young people with school refusal and their families, such as free schools, alternative schools, parent support groups, and community spaces, will request the creation and expansion of support systems from their local governments.

The campaign period is from July 1 to September 30, 2026.

In the field supporting children and families with school refusal, challenges that cannot be supported by the field alone are growing, including operating costs for continuing activities, financial burdens on families using services, staff wages, and consultation expenses.

Furthermore, for families using these services, financial burdens such as fees for free schools, transportation costs, and lunch expenses are significant challenges.

A survey conducted by NPO Tayo na Manabi Project in 2023 revealed that nearly 40% of guardians responded that their household income decreased due to school refusal, while 95% of guardians experienced an increase in expenses.

"I want my child to attend a place that suits them, but I have to give up due to financial reasons," and "Amidst rising prices, the burden of lunch costs is also high" are heartbreaking voices being heard from families across the country.

Moreover, there are disparities in the support systems and information provision available depending on the region. Although our organization appealed to the national government, and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology issued a "Information Provision Format for Guardians" and notifications in fiscal year 2023, there are still many cases where families with school refusal cannot connect with the necessary information and support.

Therefore, we decided to hold this campaign with the cooperation of Mr. Akira Matsubara (Representative Director of NPO Kyoryoku Academy), who has been promoting NPO legislation, leaders of regional networks who have achieved cooperation and submitted petitions to local governments in various areas, and the Cross-Party Parliamentary Federation for Diversification of Learning.

What is important in this campaign is not to criticize the administration or unilaterally impose demands.

It is about organizing the realities of each region and the voices of guardians and organizations, and delivering information that can be used for decision-making towards creating systems, while engaging in dialogue with government officials and parliamentarians.

We aim to create petitions tailored to the situation in each region, begin consultations, share the points and issues raised by the administration, and connect them to systemization for the next fiscal year and beyond.

For civic groups, participation in the campaign is completely free. Participants will also receive access to a consultation chat room for information exchange among participants and usage rights for the petition support AI.

July 3: Online Information Session on "How to Proceed with Petition Activities" to be Held

As a kickoff for the campaign, we will hold the following online information session.

Date and Time: July 3, 2026 (Fri) 19:30 - 21:00

Method: Online (Zoom)

Participation Fee: Free

Archived Streaming: Available

The information session will cover the campaign overview, how to proceed with petition activities, how to create petitions, how to use the petition support AI and templates, and how to start consultations with government officials and parliamentarians.

For those who cannot attend, we plan to share recordings and materials as much as possible.

Participation Application & Details

Please apply from the following page.

https://www.tayounamanabi.com/single-post/2606campaign-youbousyo

Organizers

Initiating Organization: NPO Tayo na Manabi Project

Cooperating Organizations: NPO Kyoryoku Academy, Regional Network Organizations in various areas, Cross-Party Parliamentary Federation for Diversification of Learning

Media Inquiries & Contact

NPO Tayo na Manabi Project

[email protected]

To realize a society where children with school refusal can choose learning and environments that suit them, a system that supports them with the entire community is necessary.

This campaign will deliver the voices of each region to the administration and lead to the creation of new systems to support children and families.