Special Needs
Forces Special Needs & Disability Group
The Forces Special Needs and Disability Group is a non-publicly funded body, previously known as the "Queen Elizabeth Group" which exists with the support of the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association-Forces Help (SSAFA-FH), to keep Service Families with disabled and special needs dependants (children and adults) in touch with issues that affect them both inside and outside of Service life.
Website: http://www.ssafa.org.uk/specialNeeds.html
The Support Group is directed by a Members' Forum, whose membership is made up of Service parents of children and/ or adults having a disability or special need (SN). The Forum is a pro-active group operating under the SSAFA-FH umbrella, representing all families in all three Services and raises issues affecting them with the military chain of command, MoD and other government departments as appropriate.
The forum is facilitated by the Special Needs & Disability Advisor (SNDA) at SSAFA-FH, who is fully qualified and experienced special needs advisor able to guide and advise on any disability or SN matter. An additional task of the SNDA is to organise annual holidays for SN children and siblings on behalf of SSAFA-FH.
A biennial seminar on disability and SN is open to all Service families having a member with a disability or SN, as well as to interested professionals. All three Services are represented at a senior level, together with manning directorates, the Service Families Task Force (SFTF), the Defence Estates (DE), and Children's Education Advisory Service. These representatives are open to questions and issues raised by those delegates attending. Various group workshops and individual surgeries normally complete this one-day event.
Additional Information: Children's Education Advisory Service (CEAS)
The main focus of the group is the FSNDSG newsletter, which is published four times each year. The names and addresses of those who receive the newsletter are held by SSAFA-FH and staffed by SNDA purely as a mailing list. It is not treated as a register of SN families and no information from it is made available either to any branch of the Services or to outside agencies. The newsletter includes articles on disability and SN, details of various support groups, points of contact and volunteers happy to offer practical advice, support and guidance.
Additional Information: SSAFA-FH by e-mail
To view Terms of Reference - Forces Special Needs and Disability Support Group
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