Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Service Children

Monday 2 March 2026 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 3 Partly answered 0 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Rishi Sunak commended the Secretary of State for her work in honouring service families.
  • The Secretary of State agreed to arrange a meeting and praised the Garrison Assist project.
  • Alistair Strathern highlighted issues faced by service families due to the SEND system's failures.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Rishi Sunak Con Richmond and Northallerton
Education Veterans
Context

Rishi Sunak, MP for Richmond and Northallerton, addresses the issue of supporting service children's education, particularly those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in his constituency around Catterick and RAF Leeming.

Question

I associate myself with the Secretary of State's remarks and thank her for her thoughtful answer. I know that we both share a desire to honour the service of those in our armed forces by recognising and addressing the impact on their families. As the MP for Catterick garrison and nearby RAF Leeming, I see in particular the impact on service pupils with special educational needs and disabilities, which I know is something that she cares about. My local school leaders have recently implemented the Garrison Assist project, which seeks to address some of those challenges, and in light of the recent White Paper I met with those school leaders. Will she arrange a meeting for them with officials so that they might share their learnings and so that service pupils across our country can get the support that they need and deserve?

Answer from Bridget Phillipson

Yes, of course; I will be more than happy to make sure that that meeting takes place. I commend the Garrison Assist project for its excellent work. We have looked at the work it has done, and that has given us a strong foundation for many of the changes that we are bringing forward in the SEND system. For example, education, health and care plans and individual support plans will be digital, and that will ensure smoother transitions when children move between local authority areas. It will make a big difference to many children, but particularly children from service families.

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Q2 Rishi Sunak Con Richmond and Northallerton
Education Veterans
Context

Rishi Sunak continues to address the issue of supporting service children's education, highlighting the specific challenges faced by those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in his constituency around Catterick and RAF Leeming.

Question

I associate myself with the Secretary of State's remarks and thank her for her thoughtful answer. I know that we both share a desire to honour the service of those in our armed forces by recognising and addressing the impact on their families. As the MP for Catterick garrison and nearby RAF Leeming, I see in particular the impact on service pupils with special educational needs and disabilities, which I know is something that she cares about. My local school leaders have recently implemented the Garrison Assist project, which seeks to address some of those challenges, and in light of the recent White Paper I met with those school leaders. Will she arrange a meeting for them with officials so that they might share their learnings and so that service pupils across our country can get the support that they need and deserve?

Answer from Bridget Phillipson

Yes, of course; I will be more than happy to make sure that that meeting takes place. I commend the Garrison Assist project for its excellent work. We have looked at the work it has done, and that has given us a strong foundation for many of the changes that we are bringing forward in the SEND system. For example, education, health and care plans and individual support plans will be digital, and that will ensure smoother transitions when children move between local authority areas. It will make a big difference to many children, but particularly children from service families.

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Q3 Alistair Strathern Lab Hitchin
Children & Families
Context

Alistair Strathern, MP for Hitchin, highlights the challenges faced by service families due to regular moves between postings, exacerbating long waits for assessments and leaving them particularly exposed to the postcode lottery in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision.

Question

I am really proud to represent so many service families, but many of those I have been working with are at the sharp end of failures in the SEND system. Regular moves between postings can exacerbate long waits for assessments and leave them particularly exposed to the postcode lottery in SEND provision. As we drive forward long-overdue reforms in this space, how can we make sure that we are centring the experiences of service families so that we can finally do right by those who do so much for all of us?

Answer from Bridget Phillipson

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. That is why, as I set out, we are making changes to ensure that there are smoother transitions for service children—for example, by making both education, health and care plans and individual support plans digital—but there is still more that we need to do. All of us across this House have a responsibility to ensure that those who serve our country receive the best possible education and care for their children. I would be very happy to discuss this further with my hon. Friend or any other Members who have a local constituency concern in this area.

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