Service Families

Hampshire has the largest population of pupils from Service families of all local authorities, representing all branches of the armed forces. At Marchwood, over 20% of our children come from a Service family. We recognise that being a Service child is a unique experience that brings its own challenges and opportunities. There are a variety of ways in which we can support our Service children; please see below for further information. 

Deployment

We understand that deployment is a fact of life for service families and recognise that when a parent is away from home, even for a short period of time, there will be an emotional impact on the child. We are aware that at times, very little notice is given to serving personnel but it would be very helpful if we are made aware of any upcoming deployment as soon as possible, in order to enable us to support your child.

We are able to offer children the opportunity to chat with an adult and/or with other children who are in a similar position, should they wish to. The children will also have a chance to write letters, draw pictures or make crafts for the parent who is away. 

Support is available for as long as the deployment or absence lasts and can be weekly or on an ad hoc basis. We can also support children whose parent is due to go away or has returned, but who are still feeling a little unsettled. 

Please complete and return the form below to notify us of any forthcoming deployment. Forms can be emailed or a hard copy sent into school. 

Service Pupil Premium

The Department for Education (DfE) introduced the Service pupil premium (SPP) in April 2011 in recognition of the specific challenges children from Service families face and as part of the commitment to delivering the armed forces covenant.

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 2016, (DfE’s ever 6 service child measure)
• 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
• one of their parents is in the armed forces of another nation and is stationed in England

Children can also attract the SPP if they live with a step-parent or foster carer who is a member of the armed forces.

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 headteacher or school office staff.

The purpose of the Service Pupil Premium is to enable schools to offer mainly pastoral support to eligible pupils during challenging times and to help mitigate the negative impact on Service children of family mobility (postings) and parental deployment. 

Further guidance on the Service Pupil Premium, along with eligibility criteria, can be found here.

School Admissions for Service Children

Please watch this short video funded by Forces Connect South East, and produced by Hampshire County Council which provides further information about how service families can secure a school place for their child. 

Helpful links

Please find links to organisations you may find useful below:

• Children's Education Advisory Service (CEAS) - 
• Little Troopers - a registered charity supporting all children with one or both parents serving in the British Armed Forces, regular or reserve.
• Forces Connect App - a free app that provides signposting for all sorts of information for service families, from links to education sites to links to financial, employment and mental health advice services. Click here to download for iPhones and here for Android.