Help for Armed Forces families to become school admissions savvy

October 17, 2019

With over 76,000 children from Armed Forces families attending schools in England, additional help is at hand to support these families to navigate the school admissions process.

A new video, funded by Forces Connect South East and produced by Hampshire County Council, is now live, offering more detail on the steps Forces parents need to take to secure a school place for their child, with key dates for applications.

Councillor Andrew Joy, Hampshire County Council’s Armed Forces Champion and Executive Member for Communities, Partnerships and External Affairs, said:

“Our support for the Armed Forces community is particularly important to us, recognising the sacrifices they make for Hampshire and the country. Hampshire is home to over 20,000 serving members, and we are fortunate to have all three services represented across our county. The County Council was one of the first local authorities to sign the Armed Forces Covenant in England, a national commitment that Service personnel, their families, Veterans and Reservists will be treated fairly.

It’s not uncommon for children from Armed Forces families to move as many as 12 times during their school career, so it’s important that parents have as much information on this process as possible. Local authorities’ school admissions teams will do their utmost to accommodate the wishes of families and ensure a school place is offered to them before they have moved to their new location.”

Dad of two, Russ, a serving Army Officer, said:

“You can be deployed at short notice and this often means changing the children’s schools and even moving countries. Understandably this can be challenging for the whole family and the most stressful part of the move can be making sure we get the right school. This new video is a great help in bringing clarity to parents like me, setting out the process and drawing attention to the support that is available.”