NAVY NEWS, FEBRUARY 2011 News and information for serving personnel
Date set out for Armed Forces Day
ARMED Forces Day this year is planned for Saturday June 25. The national event is planned for Edinburgh, but once again the whole nation will be encouraged to host regional events. More details can be found in DIN 2010 09-008.
Keep in the good books
THE book of books for Naval Personnel, BR3 Naval Personnel Management, is no longer a book, but an electronic book – found on the defence intranet and RN web homepage. If you are making reference
to any regulations please make sure that you are referring to online BR3 for the up-to-date, authoritative links.
HOWEVER unpalatable and unsettling, there is no getting away from the fact that Royal Navy and Royal Marines will have to lose approximately 5,000 personnel by 2015 in order to meet the manning requirements of the future Fleet.
personnel either completing their engagements or forecast to PVR within this timescale, this will still not add up to the required figure imposed on the Service by the Government and so a programme is needed to make around 3,000 Naval Personnel redundant. This programme will be conducted in various stages, or tranches, starting in April this year and running until March 2014. Galaxy 29-2010 (Naval
Despite a number of
Redundancies – will you be affected?
Service Personnel Redundancy and Drawdown Programme) and 2011DIN01-016 (Naval Service Redundancy Programme – Excluded Cadres) have been published giving details of those groups of Service personnel who it is already known will not be considered for redundancy at any stage of the programme. These groups have been excluded for reasons such as future branch sustainability and will thus be exempt from consideration during the redundancy programme. A further DIN will be issued
in early April giving the details of those categories,
and specialisations of personnel – known as ‘redundancy fields’ – that will be considered by the first Redundancy Selection Boards. The DIN will also announce any
● 35 years before he was WO1 Baz Cooke
branches
KEEPING up to speed with all of the announcements and developments that 2011 is set to deliver could be one of the biggest challenges that Royal Navy and Royal Marines families face. With this in mind the NFF has launched additional ways to assist with the communication flow. Your experiences and comment
inform meetings, forums and are key to our service providers gaining a full and undiluted view of Service family life. The year 2010 saw the NFF represent these views at 343 diary commitments, please keep them coming... ■ E-Update
e-update!
short, snappy roundup of news and information of interest to Royal Navy and Royal Marines families.
The NFF has launched its new This email update provides a
It will be issued every other month – the first in January 2011. It cherry-picks information from various sources and brings it all together on one neat little page. If you would like to join the e-mailing list please email: info@
nff.org.uk with your name. If you would also like to
receive our quarterly Homeport magazine please include your full postal address. Your details will not be passed on to any other organisations and you can unsubscribe from the mailing list at any time. ■ New NFF website poll Have the recent announcements
● First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Mark Stanhope briefs sailors on board HMS Kent on the day of the Strategic Defence and Security Review announcement
Baz, we’ll miss you...
A STALWART of the Navy’s Internal Comms team, WO1 Baz Cooke MSM MBE, is leaving the service this month. This characterful senior rate is indeed not retiring, but moving on to fresh challenges... Who would have thought that unravelling the Navy’s internal comms wasn’t challenging enough!
Baz started his career in Raleigh, where one senior rate commented: “At Part II training, he shrank into the background, putting in the minimum effort necessary to survive!” He didn’t seem to do too badly in the end however... Baz is the proud bearer of an MBE and MSM, which we have repeatedly discarded due to the exigencies of Navy News housestyle but we thought we might include on this occasion.
It’s your 2-6
NEED to get your message across to the rest of the RN? The 2-6 TV DVD and Navy
constructive ideas about what should be covered to: ■ RN IC hub – 93832 8809, 93832 8821, FLEET-DCS-INFO- Media Mailbox ■ Pauline Aquilina, 9621
85984
News pages are here to spread the word. Your thoughts and opinions are invaluable. Please forward any
other groups identified that will be excluded from the programme. The programme will be compulsory and decisions on who will have to leave the Service will be driven by the numbers and skills of people needed for the Fleet of the future. Personnel who fall within the redundancy fields announced in April’s DIN will be able to apply to be considered for redundancy if they so wish, although there is absolutely no guarantee that they will be chosen. Also, it is inevitable that some of those who do not apply will be made redundant.
Applicants who are selected for redundancy will receive six months notice to leave the Service and those who do not apply but are made redundant will receive 12 months notice, although Career Managers may be able to allow people to leave earlier should they so wish.
at this stage – wait until the DIN is issued in April. To help you to work out how
There is nothing for you to do
much money you might be entitled to by way of compensation if you are made redundant, in addition to the on-line Pensions calculator, a new Redundancy Benefit on-line calculator will be made available on the internet, and will be accessible via the MOD web, from March 2011. For those with no access to the
internet at all, direct contact will be made to ensure that everyone has the latest information and can make informed decisions. Normal resettlement rules will apply to all personnel made redundant and resettlement offices are already gearing up to ensure they maintain their high level of service for all those leaving the Service. We know that the redundancy
programme will generate a huge amount of interest and many questions. Answers to some of the questions can already be found in 2010DIN01-187 (Regular Armed Forces Redundancy Programme). This DIN,
the Galaxy
mentioned above and further Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) can be found on the RN web page which will be the main portal for redundancy information as and when it is released. It can be found in the RN
Internal Communications hub page, accessible from the RN Web home page (RN Information).
There will also be a Redundancy Co-ordination Cell established in Navy Command Headquarters over the coming months to help personnel with any queries. Contact details will be issued
shortly.
In the meantime any queries should be directed to your Divisional Officer, Line Manager or Career Manager.
Key dates (which may vary
either way by a few days) April 4 2011: DIN announcing which specialisations/ branches are being considered for the first tranche and how to apply. September 30 2011: Redundancy notices issued (DIN for second tranche released) March 30 2012: All applicants selected for redundancy leave the Service.
September 30 2012: All non- applicants selected for redundancy leave the Service.
DINs/Galaxy briefs 2010DIN01-187:
Regular
Armed Forces Redundancy Programme
Galaxy 29-2010: Naval Service
Personnel Redundancy and Drawdown Programme) 2010 DIN01-188: Redundancy
Provisions for the Regular Armed Forces
2011 DIN01-016: Naval
Service Redundancy Programme – Excluded Cadres
Getting your railcard
AN UPDATE on the means for obtaining your HM Forces Railcard can be found in DIN 2010DIN 01-235. Eligibility for railcards includes: ■ all members of the Regular
Forces ■ spouses and registered civil partners of personnel who are Personal Status Category (PSTAT) 1. ■ dependent children Further up to four children can
travel in first or standard with the railcard holder at a discounted rate.
Service personnel are to apply to
Unit Admin Offices for Railcards and Photocards,
and should
be aware that there is currently a charge of £15 per railcard issued.
A railcard will not be considered
valid if the applicant’s title, name and initials are not in block capital letters, and if the Unit stamp is unclear or missing. An illegible date will also cause the train company to reject the railcard. Provided the applicant’s appearance has not changed significantly, the existing HM Forces Photocard should be used. In addition, the
Association of Train Operating Companies
(ATOC) have agreed a special concession for widows, widowers, surviving civil partners and dependent children of a deceased service person retain the use of the railcard until its expiry date. After this point, war widows,
widowers and dependants can obtain railcards through the Royal British Legion for £15. For fuller details on War Widows Railcards concessions,
please
contact the Pensions Department (Railcards) of the Royal British Legion on 0203 207 2164. For full details on eligibility, use,
misuse, loss, issue and procedures please see DIN 2010DIN 01-235.
This is the question we are asking on our website poll and we are keen to know your thoughts. Please take a moment to visit
Keep up to speed with the NFF
met under the new rules. These changes become effective from April 1 2011.
The changes to CEA are part of the Strategic Defence and Security Review. A full review of the broad range of allowances paid to Service personnel is ongoing; with further announcements on changes expected later in the year.
CEA rules will be amended in four main areas: the link between Involuntarily Separated Status (INVOLSEP) and CEA, the ‘Sibling Rule’, aggregation of claims and the number of assignments which trigger a formal review.
on pay and allowances made the serving person in your family reconsider their future in the Naval Service?
our website (
www.nff.org.uk) and complete the poll at the top right of the screen. Your responses will be collated and fed back through to the MOD. ■ Homeport Revamp Watch out for the new look Homeport magazine due to hit the streets in early March. The spring 2011 edition will
have a bright, fresh format with a dedicated section for Royal Marines.
Let us know your thoughts on the new design... ■ Families Continuous Attitude Survey (FCAS) 2011 The Families Continuous Attitude Survey was distributed mid-January. It is an opportunity for the spouses and partners of serving personnel to have their say. We encourage all those selected to complete the survey. The Coalition Government has stated that the
Forces Covenant is one of their highest priorities, and that it will be the foundation of how the Government treats Service families and veterans. If you receive a survey please
Armed
In addition to these measures, the Secretary of State has directed that a review of CEA should be conducted to ensure that this expenditure is fully justified. Results will be announced in spring. ■ Changes to the pension and compensation packages for dependants of Service personnel who die as a result of service while holding an acting rank were announced by Defence Secretary Dr Liam Fox in December 2010. There are two parts to the
change, which aim to recognise acting rank in the payments made under the Armed Forces Pension Scheme 1975 and the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme to dependants of Service personnel killed as a result of service. Armed Forces Pension Scheme 1975 (AFPS 75): Currently,
under the
75, death benefits (a survivor’s pension and lump sum) are calculated on the substantive rank held at the date of death, unless the individual held an acting rank for at least a year. Death benefits will now be paid on the basis of the acting rank if the individual’s death has occurred due to Service, regardless of how long the individual has been in the acting rank. These changes came into force on January 3 2011. Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS): The dependants of those individuals holding an acting rank who have died as a result of Service since the AFCS came into force in April 2005, and whose pension benefits did not provide recognition of this acting rank, will receive a single payment of £20,000.
don’t miss your chance to have your say! ■ Continuity of Education Allowances: Changes to Regulations Changes have been announced regarding the regulations that govern eligibility for Continuity of Education Allowances (CEA). CEA rates have not been cut,
however changes to eligibility rules and the governance of claims for the allowance will reduce spend. Claimants will retain the current levels of CEA support providing all eligibility criteria are
AS PART of an ongoing Government-wide initiative to reduce the number of websites, the MOD is in the process of consolidating its web presences. This means that a number of
websites will be brought under the MOD corporate or single Service banner.
This is to compensate for the difference in both the lump sum and income stream that the dependants have received. The changes to the AFCS are
incorporated into legislation this month. You are invited to become one of the growing number of NFF Facebook fans and Twitter followers to receive a Tweet or update whenever we post new items onto the website. Your experiences form the basis of our discussions. To get in touch with the NFF: e-mail: admin@nff.
org.uk, tel: 02392 654374 or write to: Castaway House, 311 Twyford Avenue, Portsmouth, PO2 8RN
Second look at the web
The changes should bring compliance with Central Office of Information mandated web standards and guidelines. Royal Navy and Royal Marine
information will be collected under
www.royalnavy.mod.uk. For further information, DIN 2010DIN 05-067.
see
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AFPS
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