Balksbury Service Families
Forces Families and the Service Pupil Premium
Balksbury Federation recognises the unique challenges faced by our forces children and their families. If one or more parents of a child serve in the regular armed forces, we provide additional support. You will see our Community Support Leads (CSLs), Mrs Grinham and Mrs Whatley, on the playground every morning. They provide a huge range of support to all of our children and families but, like all staff in the federation, they are passionate about ensuring that all of our service children have everything that they need in order to thrive.
Our Community Support Leads
Forces Club
Our forces children are proud to be members of the Balksbury Federation Forces Club. Every Thursday, led by Mrs Grinham and Mrs Whatley, forces children from across the federation get together to eat, play, create, talk and collaborate. They value this opportunity to celebrate their special community and spend time with other children who understand life as a services family child. Through Forces Club, our children are:
· Nurtured
· Supported
· Celebrated
· United
· Empowered
Balksbury Federation Forces Badge
Our service children led a series of assemblies to explain to our federated community the pride they feel about their parents and the unique challenges they face. They set the children a challenge to design a badge for them. The winning badge is proudly worn by our service children and all staff.
Support for Service Children
Year group teams and federation leaders work together to support our service children. Every half term, Mrs Farrell (Deputy Headteacher) meets with each class teacher to discuss the academic progress and emotional wellbeing of the service children in their class so that we can provide the best opportunities for them.
Staff work together to ensure that our service children:
· Access high-quality after-school clubs
· Receive excellent pastoral support, particularly when a parent has been deployed or is on exercise
· Are able to see parents in different time zones through video link
· Are provided with a ‘Forces Passport’ when they move on to a new school giving details of prior learning, academic strengths, talents and next steps
What can you do as a parent?
If you are a service family, or have been in the past six years, let a member of the Admin Team know, or talk to one of the CSLs. The federation will receive funding for your child from the government which we will use to ensure the right provision is available for your child.
Please do let one of our CSLs know if a family member is away for any reason so that we can put support in place.
Wraparound Childcare
Service families can use the Ministry of Defence Wraparound Childcare Scheme to pay for Drop Off and Pick Up Clubs before and/or after school. Speak to a member of the Admin Team for more Information. For more information about how to claim, see the links below:
Ministry of Defence Wraparound Childcare Scheme
Armed Families Federation: Information for Parents about the WAC Scheme
Balksbury Federation Armed Forces Covenant
The Armed Forces Covenant is a promise by the nation ensuring that those who serve or have served in the Armed Forces, and their families, are treated fairly.
See the link below four our federation promise:
