Working in partnership to support children from military families RAF Waddington, 15 th June 2018
Matt Blyton, SCISS Executive vice-chair Welcomes House-keeping Packs / evaluations Agenda & discussion groups
AIMS 1. To consider what works well when supporting children from Service families 2. To hear updates and develop knowledge and understanding of this unique group 3. To strengthen partnerships
WELCOME ADDRESS RAF 100
What is SCISS NEAC all about? Partnership group of: • Headteachers: serving and former • Local Authority Officers • Ministry of Defence • Department of Education • Forces Families’ Federations • Service Children’s Progression ( SCiP) Alliance
Roles and responsibilities • To represent, champion and raise awareness of Service children, including those of reservists. • Provide guidance for schools and local authorities, including maintaining a handbook for school leaders and other staff, to help support Service children. • Influence national policy via consultations with government members. • Address the needs of schools with only a few Service children. •
What has happened so far? • Informed and engaged with key partners • Celebrated Service children (SCISS film) • Advised Government and Ofsted • Supported 1000s of schools e.g. HANDBOOK • Researched welfare and performance data • Helped establish the Service Pupil Premium • Managed the Education Support Fund • Supported MKC (Military Kids Club Heroes) 10,000+ children globally
What next? • Continue to champion service children • Develop and pilot a SCISS Charter • Consult with Government • Support schools with few service children • Support Headteachers new to service children’s / families’ needs • Provide training and guidance • Research the impact of what SCISS has enabled.
Table top introductions
The impact of separation and deployment on C&YP
Introduction to afternoon workshops: • Locations on the agenda • Please sign up to 2 at break / lunch • First come, first served!
RAF Benson Community Primary School Effective School Practice and Getting Your Story Across St Steph ph Fawdr dry Headteac dteacher her
Topics Include…. • About RAF Benson Community Primary • Approaches that work for us in supporting Service children • Getting your unique story across • Questions RAF Benson Community Primary School ‘ per conatum ad astra ’ Through endeavour to the stars
And Finally….. Pick me! Pick me! RAF Benson Community Primary School ‘ per conatum ad astra ’ Through endeavour to the stars
How to work with universities to improve service children’s outcomes Philip Dent, Director @scipalliance
Service children are around one third less likely to go to University than the general population Thriving lives for service children June 2018
Practice It is only what we do differently that will deliver different outcomes Research We need to understand the service child’s journey and how to improve it Policy We influence policy, so that it supports our work for service children Thriving lives for service children June 2018
Why it makes sense to work with Universities • Universities spend c. £800 million each year supporting under- represented groups to access and succeed in higher education • Service children are an official target cohort of the Office for Students (OfS), the higher education regulator • SCiP Alliance effective practice hubs are developing across the country • Attitudes to learning and life-long aspirations are formed in early years • Universities are not yet well-informed about S ervice children’s lives and support needs • Universities need to develop connections with schools to fulfil their duties regarding Service children • Universities want to help… and can Thriving lives for service children June 2018
SCiP Alliance Discussion Group Practice How can schools work with Universities to improve children’s education and wellbeing? Research What does research say about the experiences of Primary and Secondary pupils? Policy What needs to change to make the system more supportive for you? Thriving lives for service children June 2018
An Alliance Needs Allies Thriving lives for service children June 2018
Supporting the emotional well-being and resilience of Service children and families - keeping family members close and connected through shared reading Tri-Service charity for Service children and families since 2011 Open to all British Forces serving, injured, retired, reservist Working through individuals, families, supporting structures
Reading Force in essence Supporting good communication between Service families to keep them close and connected • Families encouraged to form informal book groups and choose a book all would read/have read to them • Deployed parents can read and chat about the book over Skype or FaceTime and/or send messages about it • Families pool their thoughts in a special scrapbook - text, emails, drawings, photos, e-blueys – to be kept as a memento • All families who return completed scrapbooks receive a special certificate and book prize
Families submit scrapbooks for feedback
How families feel about Reading Force ‘ The memories of doing this scrapbook together will always be with us and when we were having a bad day or not a lot of time we would have five minutes doing this scrapbook and we all felt better.’ The Warren Family ‘We met every evening after bath time and read one chapter each night. If daddy was at home he read to us or listened too. We like reading books together because we can talk about what is happening and can all join in the conversation.’ Newlyn and Seren Play BBC clip A short video by The Broome Family …
Thank you Reading Force! Register your school today and receive free Reading Force scrapbooks and materials for all your Service children and families (including ex-Service children) - please see information in your delegate pack.
Supporting C&YP with SEND Anna Vrahimi DCYP
Mid morning break Please sign up to 2 workshops & visit stands
SCISS Conference 15 th June Voices of Service Children Martin Lennon – Head of Policy and Public Affairs Charlotte Mannix-Pole – Policy Officer
Who is the Children’s Commissioner? The Children’s Commissioner for England is Anne Longfield OBE. She speaks up for children and young people so that policymakers and the people who have an impact on their lives take their views and interests into account when making decisions about them. Independent of Government and Parliament, the Children’s Commissioner has unique powers to help bring about long-term change and improvements for all children, particularly the most vulnerable. She is the ‘eyes and ears’ of children in the system and the country as a whole and is expected to carry out her duties ‘without fear or favour ’ of Government, children’s agencies, and the voluntary and private sectors.
Primary legislation Primary function: children's rights, views and interests (1)The Children's Commissioner's primary function is promoting and protecting the rights of children in England. (2)The primary function includes promoting awareness of the views and interests of children in England. (3)In the discharge of the primary function the Children's Commissioner may, in particular — (a)advise persons exercising functions or engaged in activities affecting children on how to act compatibly with the rights of children; (b)encourage such persons to take account of the views and interests of children; (c)advise the Secretary of State on the rights, views and interests of children; (d)consider the potential effect on the rights of children of government policy proposals and government proposals for legislation;
Children’s Commissioner’s strategic objectives 1. Building children’s digital resilience 2. Improving the lives of children in care 3. Shining a light on the lives of ‘invisible’ children 4. Shining a light on the lives of children ‘behind closed doors’ 5. Putting children at the heart and the start of policy-making
Methodology Our research involved engaging with and interviewing 40 children in nine focus groups across the country. These focus groups took place in the following formats: 1 group of 8-9 year olds 2 groups of 10-11 year olds 2 groups of 11-12 year olds 2 groups of 14-15 year olds 2 groups of children who were mixed in age: one group with a range of children from 8 to 11 years old and one group with a range of children from 13 to 15 year olds. The locations and schools were selected with the support of Forces link workers at Local Authority level. This enabled the research team to speak to children from within families from a range of backgrounds i.e. Army, RAF and Navy.
Mobility “ I've been in 12 different houses. This is my tenth school. ” (14 yr old girl) “ When I go into a new school I normally just stay quiet and just bite my jumper because I, I don't know why, it's just a habit. ” (10 yr old girl) “ For me, when you’re older it’s not so much about making new friends, it’s about the potential for messing up your life … like … will I have to change my [GCSE] options, will I get to go to the 6 th form I want?” (15 yr old boy)
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