Another frustration raised by families was that they felt it was left to them to maintain contact with MHS if repair works were outstanding or not completed satisfactorily. Other occupants told of problems arising when they were left to deal with sub-contractors directly, with missed appointments and a lack of communication causing the most angst. These are just some examples of breakdown in communication, which can often lead to formal Stage 1 and 2 complaints being submitted.


Personnel Following the announcements made in early 2011 regarding the Strategic Defence & Security Review (SDSR), the Allowances Review and the Tranche 1 redundancies, we were contacted by a number of families concerned about the immediate and long-term impact the changes would have on their careers and home lives. Changes to the Home to Duty (HTD) allowance and Local Overseas Allowance (LOA) caused the most worries, with families telling us they face huge reductions in their household incomes.


Many felt the MoD had ‘moved the goal posts’ and those already mid-tour overseas believed that, having made informed decisions about the impact an overseas assignment would have on their financial status before accepting their post, they now could not afford to continue. Comments made during our overseas visits indicate that some believe the MoD is moving towards a policy of unaccompanied overseas assignments ‘by stealth’ as families will simply be unable to afford to move with their Serviceperson.


Changes to the HTD allowance mean that some families who are allocated SFA away from their parent unit feel they are being financially discriminated against, when compared to others who live in SFA on or close to their duty stations.


During the year we have been contacted by a number of serving personnel who have been made compulsorily redundant or have had their Continuation of service terminated and face huge changes to their long-term plans and financial security. One of the main queries raised was whether they were allowed to retain their SFA, post their discharge date, to allow their children to complete a key stage of education. This issue


has been elevated to both DIO and the relevant MoD Accommodation policy staffs as we believe many more families will be affected as a result of the Tranche 2 redundancies.


Education The Review of the Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) in early 2011 prompted many families to contact us raising their concerns about potential changes to the eligibility criteria for this allowance and the impact this could have on their children’s education. Whilst recognising that this is an emotive subject for many, we provided evidence to the Review team. Subsequently, we raised concerns alongside our sister Federations, about the delay in the publication of the Review and its findings. We also took the opportunity to remind the MoD that, whilst we recognise that this is an expensive allowance only paid to a relatively small number of serving personnel, its primary purpose is to ensure Service childrens’ education does not suffer simply because they are a member of a mobile military family.


During the year it became apparent that the increased scrutiny of all CEA claims was having a major impact on some families. We were contacted by a number of personnel who were deeply concerned by notification from the JPACC that they had to repay vast sums of money as they were deemed to be no longer entitled to claim CEA.


Although we have seen some success with this casework, with several appeals upheld, a number of families are still awaiting a decision and after many months continue to live with the threat of repayment hanging over them – in some cases this amounts to tens of thousand of pounds.


We also received evidence of families continuing to face problems when trying to access school places following an assignment. Issues included: a lack of suitable school places; problems gaining places for siblings at the same school; and the location of schools in close proximity to SFA and the parent unit. We relayed their evidence to the Childrens Education Advisory Service(CEAS) and the Department of Education advocate, through our membership of the Armed Forces Covenant Reference Group (CRG) and await further announcements in 2012 regarding the recognition of Service children within the revised Schools Admissions Code.


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