Information Archive
Checklist for this page
Putting families first
Militating for good health care
Disability Training for Defence Estates Operations Housing
Notification of operational casualties to the media
Storybook Soldiers
Spotlight on Army housing
Queen & Country
Motor Insurance
Veterans Aid
The Army Children Archive (TACA)
Army Family Life
AFF International Families Conference 2008
Written Answer - Coroners (Armed Forces inquests)
Oral questions - Insurance premiums paid by members of the Armed Forces
The Sun Wall of Honour
Putting families first...
AFF Health and Additional Needs Specialist Phyllis Gibson writes for Defence Management Journal on ensuring that families of service personnel with additional needs are catered for in housing allocations. Visit www.defencemanagement.com for more information on the Defence Management Journal.
Back to checklistMilitating for good health care
With concerns over whether the government's new service command paper will improve health care for the military and their families, a member of an army family and a military-based school nurse share their experiences. Read more>>
Article from the October 2008 issue of "Community Practitioner, published by Ten Alps Publishing on behalf of Unite/CPHVA"
Back to checklistDisability Training for Defence Estates Operations Housing
Staff members from DE and the HICs have undergone Disability and Additional Needs Training as part of DE’s ongoing commitment to helping families with a dependant with an additional need. Read more >>
Back to checklistNotification of operational casualties to the media
There have been incidents (e.g. Royal Welsh in early July 07) where the media have released news of a fatality on operations including Unit details before the next of kin (NOK) have been told. This causes great distress amongst the families within the unit who all worry that their soldier is involved.
Many of us would like to have a guarantee from the media that release of information on fatalities will not happen until after the NOK have been contacted. Detailed below is the MOD notification process, an explanation of where the early release of information is coming from, and discussion of how we could change some of the present poor practice by the media.
The MOD does not release any casualty detail until after the NOK has been informed but they are often approached by the media asking for confirmation that there has been an incident. Therefore the MOD is reactive - it only takes action if contacted by the media.
Reactive Response
- Confirm that an incident and fatality has taken place but take a defensive line – the MOD cannot hide or lie about incidents
- Contact Joint Casualty and Compassionate Cell (JCCC) that there is media interest
- Wait for confirmation from JCCC that the family has been informed and find out if they have requested 24 hours before releasing the name. When a family are told of a fatality they are offered up to 24 hours grace before the name is released.
Proactive response
- Once confirmation that NOK have been contacted the casualty/fatality is announced on the MOD website and to the Press Association
- This will be outline detail of where, when and which Unit but not the name
- Permanent Joint Head Quarters (PJHQ) write the eulogy for the soldier to be released with the name
Final
- The name is released when the family give permission, up to 24 hours after notification.
There are still a large number of embedded journalists with the Army in Iraq and Afghanistan. They can, and do send information back to the UK, including information on fatalities. The media have been good at not releasing the name of casualties before NOK have been informed, but still release the name of the soldier’s unit.
Some families learn quickly about fatalities from operational theatre – a soldier will call home on a mobile and say ‘don’t worry it’s not me’. This then spreads around, sometimes even to the press before NOK know.
What we can do
If you read or see release of information about a casualty that does not say that it is released by the MOD or that the NOK have been told then either ask the paper or TV station where their information comes from or ask AFF to do this. We will have to tackle this on a case by case basis to explain the impact and change practice. AFF would be grateful for all feedback so that we can monitor which media outlets have been contacted and responses received.
Back to checklistStorybook Soldiers
Storybook Soldiers is a scheme which provides a link between parents who are away on operations and their children. Soldiers are recorded reading a bedtime story for their children to listen to. For more information contact 10 AEC on Tel: 01980 602370. Email: storybooksoldiers@hotmail.co.uk
Back to checklistSpotlight on Army housing
The Army Families Federation is keen to highlight this issue and would like the Government to commit to a properly funded upgrade programme to ensure that Service accommodation is brought up to a decent standard.
AFF has been working tirelessly to try and improve the standard of accommodation for Army families. On average, housing issues make up 25% of all the contacts AFF receives from Army families; 40% of these are about repairs and maintenance. At the AFF International Conference held in London in June 2006 the morning debate was entirely given over to housing issues - download a transcript of the morning debate or download the Q and A report.
Senior Army personnel are now speaking out about this issue, for the latest news click on the following links:
- Army living conditions: 'Even prisoners are better off' by Gen Sir Michael Rose - Daily Mail (5 Jan 07)
- Backlash grows over troops' squalid living conditions - Daily Mail (5 Jan 07)
- AG condemns Forces housing - BBC report dated 4 Jan 07
- Gen Sir Mike Jackson calls some Army housing 'frankly ashaming.' - BBC report dated 7 Dec 06
- Forces Housing must be improved - BBC report dated 4 Jan 07
- Our poor bloody infantry: Daily Mail (2 Oct 06)
- Who is responsible for military homes? - BBC report (5 Jan 07)
- Growing army of soldiers' wives go to war over their squalid homes - Times (5 Jan 07)
- Under Fire - The Sun (8 Dec 06)
What can Army families do to help? If you would like to help, contact the AFF to let us know what you think about this issue at housing@aff.org.uk
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Queen and Country
This powerful piece of art highlights the social and political importance of artists. In addition to enjoying the work, visitors will be invited to take part in the fulfilment of Steve McQueen’s vision by adding their name to The Art Fund's online petition. The ultimate goal of the project is to persuade Royal Mail to issue real stamps in commemoration of individual service personnel who have died in the current conflict in Iraq. For details visit the website.
Back to checklistService Motor Insurance Policy
The Army remains concerned about the high number of major injuries and fatalities to Army personnel due to RTAs. In 2005 and 2006 there were 44 and 45 off-duty RTA fatalities respectively amongst the Armed Forces. Service Motor Insurance (SMI) has been developed to both encourage better off-duty driving whilst more cheaply meeting the needs of soldiers and Army civilians. Substantial discounts for motor insurance are available with the cover provided meeting soldiers’ unique lifestyle.
Back to checklistVeterans Aid
VETERANS AID is a small 75 year-old charity run by ex-Servicemen for ex-Servicemen. They are based near Victoria Station in London, have a 57-room hostel in Stepney, and an extensive net-work of contacts and partners able to provide support and accommodation across the country. Veterans Aid responds to the diverse challenges of homelessness; giving a bed to any street homeless ex-serviceman or woman calling on the charity.
The Army Children Archive (TACA)
The Army Children Archive (TACA), which was launched online on 1 October 2007, was established by Clare Gibson, a writer and researcher, history graduate and one-time army child, to collect, record and preserve details of the unique aspects of growing up as the child of a soldier serving in the British Army, whether that growing up was done during the seventeenth, eighteenth, nineteenth, twentieth or twenty-first century.
Although it is still in its infancy, it is hoped that TACA will eventually provide a useful source for social, military and family historians, and particularly that it will interest former and current army children, who, on the one hand, may find that it ignites some sparks of recognition that in turn trigger a string of memories, and, on the other, may enjoy the sense of having a rich history all of their own.
Back to checklistArmy Family Life
Corporal David Moorehead and his family describe Army family life in this lovely DVD created by Sgt Will Craig.
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AFF International Families Conference 2008
Find out what happened at the AFF International Families Conference 2008, listen to podcasts, read the Questions & Answers and much more!
CONFERENCE UPDATE - 
At Conference 2008 Commander Regional Forces promised Military Liaison Officers for HICs in the South.
Military Liaison Officers will be appointed to three Housing Information Centres (HICs) by the end of August/September; a temporary Military Liaison Officer is already covering Warminster and Aldershot HICs.
Military Liaison Officers will provide a way of re-engaging the Chain of Command with the housing allocation process, and will provide HICs with both military and local knowledge to assist with allocations.
Quarterly housing meetings to be held - 
As a direct result of Conference 2008 quarterly housing meetings will be held with the Under Secretary of State for Defence, Derek Twigg MP. The three families Federations will attend, together with the Chief Executive Defence Estate, Vice Admiral Tim Laurence, and Director of Housing DE, Air Commodore Elaine West.
The purpose of these meetings is to get ministerial pressure applied to housing issues affecting families; the current top three issues are (1) Moving In/Moving Out standards, (2) Allocations, and (3) Estate Wardens.
If you have comments or experience of these particular issues please let us know - click the feedback button.
Back to checklistWritten Answer - Coroners (Armed Forces inquests)
On 13 November, in response to a question from Dr. Liam Fox (Woodspring, Conservative) regarding the number of uncompleted military inquests, Bridget Prentice, Ministry of Justice, said that as of 9 November, 122 military inquests of fatalities from the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq have not yet been completed.
Back to checklistOral questions - Insurance premiums paid by members of the Armed Forces
On 13 November Defence Minister Baroness Taylor of Bolton answered questions regarding insurance premiums paid by members of the Armed Forces. Lord Selkirk of Douglas asked whether the Government will take steps to ensure that the cost of necessary insurance premiums of Service personnel serving in Iraq and Afghanistan will be met. Baroness Taylor of Bolton said that the MoD already contributed towards inflated life insurance premiums paid by personnel on operations or in high-risk occupations and beyond that it was not planned to meet the cost of extra insurance premiums paid by Service personnel.
Back to checklistThe Sun Wall of Honour
The Sun is running a 'discount for forces' campaign: this link details those businesses that have signed up so far. www.thesun.co.uk/wallofhonour
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