Service Families

You may have heard of the Armed Forces Covenant:

The armed forces covenant sets out the relationship between the nation, the government and the armed forces. It recognises that the whole nation has a moral obligation to members of the armed forces and their families and it establishes how they should expect to be treated. The Covenant states that the children of service personnel should have the same standard of, and access to, education (including early years services) as any other UK citizen in the area in which they live. (SEND Code of Practice April 2015)

The SEND Code of Practice (COP) states:

‘All those with statutory responsibilities towards Service children with SEND should ensure that the impact of their policies, administrative processes and patterns of provision do not disadvantage such children because of their Service-related lifestyle’ (COP 10.55).

This means that the LA should consider the impact on your child of having an enlisted parent when they assess them for services.

Additionally, Please also note ‘When carrying out an assessment of a Service child’s needs or making an Education, Health and Care (EHCP), local authorities must seek advice from CEAS, acting on behalf of the Secretary of State for Defence’ (COP 10.57)

If your child is receiving SEND support in a school and you have to move, In respect of Service children, schools and other education providers should:

‘Ensure that mechanisms are in place to enable effective and timely receipt and dispatch of all relevant records for Service children with SEND moving between schools in the UK and overseas, to enable effective planning’ (COP 10.56).

This means that if your child has SEND but no EHCP and you move, their previous school is required to transfer your child’s school records within 15 school days of your child no longer being registered at that school. However, when transfer arrangements are made in advance, it is good practice for the information to be provided in time for the new school to plan ahead for your child’s needs, such as arranging the teaching methods, equipment or special help that is detailed in your child’s existing Individual Learning Plan.

All special needs records and documents for your child should be transferred to the new school, including any detailed background information gathered by the Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCo), copies of

• Individual Learning Plans
• Advice of any specialist teachers
• Advice from other professionals such as Educational Psychologists, Occupational or Speech and Language Therapists working with your child.

It is likely that the new school would want to review your child’s Individual Education Plan as soon as possible; to fully understand your child’s special educational needs and the help they need in order to provide and meet those needs.

You may wish to request a copy of your child’s SEND records if you are moving overseas as your child’s previous school will not be able to transfer records out of England. This will ensure that any new school has the information they need to provide the right support to your child as soon as they arrive.

If your child has an EHCP and you move LA, The legal requirement for the new LA to start making the provision in the EHCP is set out in Regulation 15 of the Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014.

This will not happen automatically. Under the law, it happens either on the day of the move or within 15 working days of the new LA becoming aware of the move, if later. Therefore it is best for parents or young people to notify the new LA (usually the SEND team within Children’s Services) in advance that they are going to be moving into the area.

The new LA then has six weeks to notify the parent or young person that the EHCP plan has been transferred and to let them know when it is going to review the EHCP plan.

Please note: If your child or young person with an EHC plan leaves the local authority area temporarily, for example because of military deployment, a foster placement, or staying with another parent, their EHCP should stay in place. Local authorities must not stop or change an EHCP without first talking to you, your child, and the school. Even if your child is away for many months, or even years, they can be considered to be “ordinarily resident” in your home area, and the local authority remains responsible for their EHCP. While your child is away, the local authority can pause the EHCP, or agree that temporary support is being provided elsewhere, but they cannot remove the EHCP or reduce support without following the correct steps. This means your child keeps their rights, and you keep your right to be involved in every decision.

If you have to move and you are in the middle of the EHCP process, The new LA can apply the legal test set out in the law (section 36(8) of the Children and Families Act 2014) which states an LA must consider;

• whether the child or young person has or may have special educational needs (SEN); and
• whether they may need special educational provision to be made through an EHCP.

If the answer to both of these questions is yes, they must carry out an EHCP needs assessment.

This means that even if the assessment process has been started in one LA, the new LA still has to apply the legal test themselves. If they agree to assess, they should use any reports already generated by the previous LA. Having said this, all LA’s must have regard to the Armed Forces Covenant and should not cause undue delay to the process to not unfairly disadvantage the children of serving personnel.

As soon as the EHCP plan has transferred the new LA has the same legal duties as if they had issued the EHCP plan themselves. The most important duty is to ensure the child or young person receives all of the special educational provisions specified in Section F of his EHCP plan.

If the child or young person’s EHCP names a school for which fees must be paid in Section I, ‘the new authority may not decline to pay the fees or otherwise maintain the child at an independent or non-maintained special school or a boarding school named in an EHC plan unless and until they have amended the EHC plan’ (9.159 COP).

If it is no longer practicable for the child or young person to attend the school or college named in Section I (perhaps because it is too far away) then the LA must arrange for them to attend another appropriate school until they review and amend the EHCP.

The new LA must review the EHCP within either 12 months from the EHCP being made or last reviewed, or 3 months from the date of the transfer, whichever is the later.

If the new LA wants to carry out a new EHCP needs assessment it can do so. After a review or re-assessment the new LA could decide to:

• Keep the EHCP the EHCP the same.
• Make changes to the EHCP. (You will have a chance to make representations about these changes and object to any amendments you disagree with in the same way you would after an annual review.)
• Cease to maintain the EHCP.

Whichever decision the LA makes, if you disagree with it you can appeal to the First-tier Tribunal. You can see how to lodge an appeal via our appeals section on our website.

Where a child or young person with an EHCP moves to Northern Ireland, Wales or Scotland:

The old authority should send a copy of the EHCP to the new authority or board, although there is no obligation on the new authority or board to continue to maintain it. However the COP 10.57 states, When considering provision for Service children with SEND or disabilities, LAs must use all relevant evidence, including statements made for Service children in Wales and Northern Ireland, as well as Co-ordinated Support Plans made for them in Scotland and the Service Children’s Assessment of Need (SCAN) completed for them by SCE who are now part of the Ministry of Defence.

Useful links:

SSCE Cymru :: Supporting Service Children in Education in Wales

Children & Young People – Forces Children Scotland

Education in the UK for service children – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Moving to a new health authority:

Where the move between local authority areas also results in a new clinical commissioning group becoming responsible for the child the old CCG must notify the new CCG on the day of the move or where they were not aware of the move for at least 15 working days prior to that move or within 15 working days of becoming aware. Where it is not practicable for the new CCG to secure the health provision specified in the EHCP the new CCG must within 15 working days of becoming aware of the change of CCG, request the new local authority to make an EHCP needs assessment or review the EHCP. The new local authority must comply with the request.

The NHS has publishes how they will support Forces Families here.

If you have an appeal registered with the SEND tribunal service

You must inform the tribunal immediately if you move house. The tribunal service will then contact the new local authority to tell them about the appeal.

The new local authority may be substituted as a party to the appeal as if they had made the decision. Your appeal will be against them, unless there are good reasons why they should not take over the appeal. If the case is transferred to the new local authority, there will be a new case management process and a new timetable for supplying evidence. The old local authority will take no further part in the appeal.

Defence Children’s Services provides mainstream education for Service children in some overseas locations. As the education, health and social care resources available overseas are different from the UK, MoD services complete an MoD Assessment of Supportability Overseas (MASO) for all Service children with complex needs before an overseas posting is agreed.

It is always a good idea to contact CEAS for advice in the first instance but you are still welcome to contact Hampshire SENDIASS at information@hampshiresendiass.co.uk or call 0808 164 5504.

You may wish to request a copy of your child’s SEND records if you are moving overseas as your child’s previous school will not be able to transfer records out of England. This will ensure that any new school has the information they need to provide the right support to your child as soon as they arrive.

If you are transferred abroad, your child’s EHCP will no longer have any effect as they are not recognised overseas. If your posting is for a limited time and you expect to return to England you may ask that the LA allow your child’s EHCP to become ‘dormant’ rather than ceasing it so it can be reviewed and an updated version be put back in place once you return.

SSAFA have created an extensive guide on having a child with additional needs and what support they will get in MOD schools overseas. You can find this here.

All schools in England receive a pupil premium for the children of serving personnel from The Department for Education (DfE) to help schools address the specific challenges children from service families face and as part of the commitment to delivering the armed forces covenant. This is called the Service Pupil Premium or SSP.

State schools, academies and free schools in England, which have children of service families in school years reception to year 11, can receive the SPP funding. It is designed to assist the school in providing the additional support that these children may need who meets the eligibility criteria.

Pupils attract SPP if they meet one of the following criteria:

• one of their parents is serving in the regular armed forces (including pupils with a parent who is on full commitment as part of the full time reserve service)
• they have been registered as a ‘service child’ on a school census since
• one of their parents died whilst serving in the armed forces and the pupil receives a pension under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme or the War Pensions Scheme

Children have to be flagged as service children ahead of the autumn school census deadline. Service parents need to make the school aware of their status by talking to the head teacher or school admin staff.

In addition to this there is the DfE’s ever 6 service child measure which states that that any pupil in reception to year 11, who has been flagged as a service child since the 2016 autumn school census, will continue to receive the premium.

Ex service personnel should tell the school if they left the armed forces within the last 6 years. Under the DfE’s ever measure, schools will continue to receive SPP for up to 6 years for children whose parent(s) left the armed forces, provided the children were recorded as service children in a school census from 2016 onwards (prior to their parent(s) leaving the forces). The ever measure also applies when service parents divorce or separate or when a service parent dies in service.

Eligible schools receive the SPP so that they can offer mainly pastoral support during challenging times and to help mitigate the negative impact on service children of family mobility or parental deployment.

For other ideas on what your child’s school could spend the SSP on go to: Service Pupil Premium.

If you have a query about the Service Pupil Premium (SPP) Please direct your query to: People-AFFS-Mailbox@mod.gov.uk

The government have created the wraparound childcare scheme which funds out of school hours childcare for eligible children.

The Wraparound Childcare (WAC) scheme funds wraparound childcare during term time for eligible Service children aged 4 to 11 years old (up to capped rates).

You can apply for up to 20 hours per week, term time only (39 weeks per year) of wraparound childcare funding for 4- to 11-year-old children attending before and after school clubs in the UK.

Eligibility criteria

At least one partner (or single parent) must be serving as an Armed Forces Regular (including Full Time Reserve Service Full Commitment).

Dependent children aged 4 to11 must attend school (including home schooled children) and be living with the serving person for the majority of the time unless separated due to service commitments (deployment, residential courses), or when on serving on unaccompanied assignments overseas involuntarily with the family in the UK.

Adopted children, children of long-term relationships and domestic partner children, where they meet the eligibility criteria, are eligible. Where the child is normally resident elsewhere for example with another natural parent or relative, the Service person will be unable to claim WAC funding.

Foster children are not eligible, as WAC eligibility is based on Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) criteria set by HMRC, part of the eligibility criteria for TFC is that the parent has responsibility for the child. Fostered children are ‘looked after children’ and the Local Authority (LA) is responsible for them. The way the LA delivers its responsibility is by employing foster carers, but the LA remains responsible for the child.

• The partner of the Service person must be in paid employment, starting or restarting work within the next 31 days (earning the equivalent of 16 hours at national minimum/ living wage). Both partners must each have an adjusted net income of £100,000 or less per
• The WAC provider must be Ofsted, or equivalent, registered, including schools and childminders.
• A Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) account must be set up with HRMC for each child that Service Personnel wants to claim the funding for.
• The childcare provider must also be signed up to the TFC
• The Service parent has either an assignment order to a UK based unit or is serving on an unaccompanied assignment overseas involuntarily with the family residing in the UK.

Service families can check if they are eligible and how to claim WAC funding by visiting the Discover My Benefits website.

Contact your unit HR team or admin office for any queries about claims. If you have questions about the policy contact PEOPLE-AFFS-WAC-FRO­ mailbox@mod.gov.uk.

Under The Equality Act 2010, a school must take positive steps to ensure that disabled pupils can fully participate in the education provided by the school, and that they can enjoy the other benefits, facilities and services that the school provides for pupils, including extracurricular activities and after school clubs. You can read more about what this might look like here.

Reasonable adjustments during the before/after school club is down to the company providing this service but access to the club is the school’s responsibility. So any company that a school permit to provide clubs must be willing to admit all children and to make reasonable adjustments.

Your child should not be denied access to wrap around childcare due to their SEND needs.

• Little Troopers 
• Service Children in State Schools
• Forces Additional Needs and Disability Forum (FANDF)
• Army Families Federation (AFF)
• Army Benevolent Fund
• Royal British Legion Industries (RBLI)
• Royal Naval Benevolent Trust (RNBT)
• Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund
• RAF Families Federation
• The Veterans Outreach Service 
• Help for Heroes
• Naval Families Federation