Service children with SEND in education

Abstract

Existing research has recognised the impact a parent’s service can have on children within military families. In particular, frequent moves and parental absence have been highlighted as significant stressors for military families, not only because of the immediate impact on the family, but also because of the secondary impact on children’s education. For those service children who also have a special educational need or disability (SEND), military transitions can be particularly disruptive as they struggle to navigate the changes that come with separation and relocation.In this thesis, I sought to explore the experiences of military families with SEND through two different research enquiries. In chapter 2, I describe a systematic review and thematic synthesis of 13 papers which explored military families with children with SEND’s experiences of education. In chapter 3, I detail an empirical study which explored the experiences of service children with SEND in education, with a specific focus around separation and deployment. A tri-perspective approach was employed, involving service children with SEND, their non-serving parents, and school staff that support them. Participants described how separation was unpredictable, as was its subsequent impact on service children and their families. Communicating what separation means to a service child with SEND was challenging, with some categories of need making this increasingly difficult. The importance of schools supporting service children and their wider families was recognised and the types of support families currently experience and would find helpful are discussed.

More information

Identifiers

ORCID for Jessica Louise Glover: orcid.org/0000-0003-2396-2045

Catalogue record

Export record