Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to help reduce the impact of posting on the SEN provision for the children of service personnel.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) recognises the impact of mobile Service life on the families of our Service personnel, including in regard to supporting Service children with Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and have taken a number of steps to mitigate this.

Over the last three years, the MOD’s Service Pupil Support Programme, administered by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust, has distributed over £970,000 in funding to schools and local authorities for SEND support related projects.

In February 2025 the MOD published an advisory note to Local Authority SEND teams and SEND professionals to assist in their delivery against statutory Armed Forces Covenant duties, specifically with regard to SEND services and provision.

The MOD has also funded research conducted by Oxford Brookes University which focuses on how Service life affects the educational opportunities, experiences and outcomes of children with SEND, focusing on what helps these children thrive.

The MOD is currently working with administrations in England, Scotland and Wales to establish resources that support the delivery of positive transition experiences for Service children between UK education systems. We aim to reduce the particular risks associated with Armed Forces’ mobility between the different SEND related systems across the devolved administrations.

In conjunction with colleagues in the Department for Education we have produced guidance for local authorities to clarify arrangements to maintain Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans when children accompany their parents on temporary assignments outside of England. This guidance explained the legal flexibilities available to local authorities and what they should consider in determining the appropriateness of maintaining EHC plans in such circumstances.