Information - NFF

Education
Directorate Children and Young People
The Directorate Children and Young People (DCYP) has
been recently established as the MOD lead for Service
children and young people. The Directorate is headed up
by Lynda Fisher (the 2-star MOD ‘Director Children and
Young People’). Lynda has a wealth of experience in the
wider children’s services arena and joined the MOD from
Portsmouth City Council where she had held a senior post
as Strategic Director. Key staff appointments within the
Directorate include Safeguarding, Policy, Commissioning
and Communications. The Directorate’s job is to ensure
that every Service child, wherever he or she is living in the
world, has the best possible opportunity to achieve their
full potential and to represent Service children’s needs at
the highest level across all Government Departments and
Devolved Administrations.
DCYP has identified key areas in Service children’s lives
to concentrate on:
• Dealing with upheaval caused by frequent moves of home and school
• Dealing with separation due to the operational deployment of a parent or
close family member or friend
• Promoting and supporting healthy lifestyles
• Providing inspirational and exciting learning and play activities that ensure
that Service children and young people raise their expectations and achieve
at the highest possible levels
• Ensuring that all our children and young people are supported and
protected and that they feel safe
• Providing opportunities for Service children and young people to have their
voices heard and have a say in shaping the services available to them
• Providing access to a range of learning pathways so that our young people
are able to meet the challenges of adulthood and enter the world of work.
where Service children move to. Again,
this is an area which DCYP is very
closely focused on at the moment.
Service Children in State Schools (SCISS)
is a group of representatives from over
800 state schools in England that serve
military communities, local authorities,
Department of Education, Service Children’s Education (SCE) and CEAS, and
played a significant role in persuading Ministers to provide additional funds (the
Service children’s Pupil Premium).
DCYP recently commissioned Ofsted to look closely at the impact of the
partnerships and support for Service children.
The Ofsted Report (published in May 2011)
recognised the strengths of the partnership
working between schools and Commands
overseas, SCE Pupil and Family Services,
CEAS and local authorities and schools
in the UK. Again, DCYP will continue
to work closely with all partners in
implementing the key recommendations of
the Ofsted Report. The Report can be found
www.nff.org.uk under Education.
Please
visit the DCYP
website at www.mod.uk/
ChildrenAndYoungPeople for
further information about what we
do on behalf of all Service children and
young people.
If anyone wishes to submit a comment
or specific questions please e-mail
us at:
LF-PSC-CYP-Mailbox@
mod.uk.
The MOD commissions an annual survey known as ‘Your Say’ which is
anonymous and open to all MOD staff. The responses to the 2010 survey
are of particular interest to DCYP as they relate directly to some of the
priority areas outlined above. For example, the survey highlighted concerns
across the Services population about the upset, upheaval and sometimes
emotional impact caused by frequent moves of home and school as well as
separation caused by frequent operational deployments.
These sorts of issues are very much on the radar of DCYP and, for example,
a key priority within the Children’s Plan is supporting children during times
of upheaval and change. This priority area is led by Mrs Olivia Denson who
also heads up the Children’s Education Advisory Service (CEAS), which sits
within DCYP and provides support, information and advice about all aspects
of education for Service children, particularly when a posting, for example,
necessitates changes to Service children’s educational requirements.
Parents facing a move, who are concerned about the impact on their children’s
education, should contact CEAS before the move for advice. CEAS produces
a useful booklet entitled ‘Moving Schools’ aimed at primary school children
and geared towards helping the children to think about and prepare for their
forthcoming move. CEAS can be contacted on 01980 618 244 or their
website at www.ceas.mod.uk
Another area of concern in the Your Say survey touched on the need for
better liaison between the services provided abroad and schools back in UK
HOMEPORT AUTUMN 2011 37