Forces Children - Additional Learning Needs

This proposal originates from our work with Armed Forces parents and their children. Indirectly, through the networks of school and education leaders who deliver services to children and are strong advocates on their behalf. Directly, in collaboration with parents and young people themselves; amplified in cooperation with the three forces Families’ Federations and the responsible officer in the Armed Forces Families and Safeguarding service. A gap exists in systematically assembling a comprehensive and balanced picture of education as experienced by the parents and children themselves, particularly away from the major base areas.

This project is to support ex-military personel in societal challenge, as follows:
-Develop a clear pathway to benefit Serving and Veteran parents and their children with additional support needs, when educationally transitioning to and from Scotland. 
-Empowering policymakers with evidence-based recommendations through identification of enablers and barriers impacting the child’s learning journey, wellbeing, and family life, to catalyse whole-system change.

There will be four six-month work packages (WP) associated with this project which are neither mutually exclusive nor sequential. 

WP 1: Groundwork 

Conduct a systematic literature review incorporating Government and MoD reports and other grey literature relating to additional support for learning (ASL) of armed forces children (AFC). Identify strengths, weaknesses, and gaps in the existing evidence base. Deliver a comprehensive picture of the current practice, progress to date, key questions to be addressed and development of data collection tools. Utilise the established National Association of Directors of Education Scotland (ADES) National Education Officer (NEO) networks to create workshop agendas and timetables to establish further commitment to a Scotland-wide pathway. Establish an Advisory Board with key stakeholder representation ensuring planned developments are efficiently harmonised with other whole system improvements with immediate advice on national developments. 

WP 2: Scoping 

Recognising specific differences in approach to ASL in Scotland we will use networks across all schools to understand current practice. A mixed method phased approach to data collection and analysis will allow for scoping, exploration, and explanation. Using ADES and the NEO 2022 data set as baseline we will chart with each local authority children with ASL. Account will be taken of the geography of the population – location in Scotland, whether in a base area or elsewhere, noting whether serving or veteran family. 

WP 3: Consolidating 

Examine the effectiveness of current practices and observe what engagement strategies have been successful/unsuccessful specifically related to the ASL of AFC in Scotland. Work, critically, will include engagement with young people, parents, and schools as well as other key stakeholders and armed forces chain of command. Experience tells us that workshop format where participants engage through action-based activities in which they share experiences, developing their own solutions to the shared challenges and deal with matters that are closest to the point-of-delivery, are the most likely to secure ownership and actual delivery changes in practice. By taking an approach that embeds changes in practice in the existing systems of communication, professional development, and school improvement, the pathway produced will be a legacy in addition to system change.

WP 4: Pathway Development

Synthesis of findings using time to reflect and review to provide a comprehensive Scottish pathway. Dissemination of findings through workshops with key stakeholders, veterans, and families to establish the validity and to prioritise potential actions in pathway development. Publications, conference presentations and media dissemination processes.

1. Develop a clear pathway to benefit Serving and Veteran parents and their children with additional support needs, when educationally transitioning to and from Scotland.

2. Empowering policymakers with evidence-based recommendations through identification of enablers and barriers impacting the child’s learning journey, wellbeing, and family life, to catalyse whole-system change. 

Armed Forces Families
Children (Armed Forces Families)
0-4 (Armed Forces Families-Children)
5-11 (Armed Forces Families-Children)
11-18 (Armed Forces Families-Children)
Partners and Spouses (Armed Forces Families)
Serving Armed Forces Personnel and Reservists
Parents (Armed Forces Families)