Douglas Chapman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2015-12-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what guidance his Department provides to service personnel on choosing state and private schools for their children’s education.

Mark Lancaster

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) Children’s Education Advisory Service (CEAS) provides information, advice and support to Service parents on all aspects of the education of their children. CEAS advice is free and impartial, and covers a range of issues including mainstream state schools and special state maintained schools, state boarding schools, the MOD’s Queen Victoria School Dunblane, and independent schools both day and boarding. CEAS also advise on MOD educational allowances, and the strict eligibility criteria that must be met.

CEAS offer tailored support for Service parents who experience difficulty in obtaining the state school of their choice and where necessary support them through the appeal process. As well as help-lines and an email enquiry service, CEAS provide four dedicated peripatetic Parent Support Officers who are educational professionals and cover all locations within the United Kingdom.

The guidance provided by the MOD was covered in some detail during a House of Commons Defence Committee Inquiry in 2013, and more detail is available in the Fourth Report of Session 2013-14: The Armed Forces Covenant in Action? Part 3: Educating the Children of Service Personnel, which is available in the Library of the House and at the following link:

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmselect/cmdfence/586/58602.htm