Who is a ‘service pupil’ or ‘service child’?

The Service Children’s Progression (SCiP) Alliance defines a service child as:

‘a person whose parent or carer serves in the Regular Armed Forces, or as a Reservist, or has done at any point during the first 25 years of that person’s life’.

Although the SCiP Alliance uses the term ‘service child’ in its definition, other terms may be used, such as ‘service pupil’ and ‘young person from an Armed Forces family’. Study Higher primarily uses the term ‘service pupil’.

Contextual Information

Across England there are nearly 80,000 service pupils, with 81% of secondary schools having at least one student in receipt of Service Pupil Premium (SPP) (government funding for schools to provide additional support for service pupils). Within the Study Higher region (Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire and Swindon) there are 5753 service pupils in total, of which 2140 are secondary school students.

Young people from Armed Forces families are underrepresented in higher education (HE) in England compared to the national average, and research suggests that this gap has increased in recent years.

Due to the nature of military family life, service pupils have a variety of experiences and needs that are influenced by multiple factors, such as mobility and deployment. These factors can have an impact on young people in various ways, for example on their attainment, wellbeing and engagement with school, in addition to HE progression.

Overall, Study Higher works to support the many service pupils within its region and tackle the HE participation gap.

Study Higher events for service pupils 

In 2021, Study Higher started its Future Focus programme to specifically support service pupils. We organise higher education (HE) campus visits and events for service pupils within the Study Higher region that give impartial information about future options and an experience of HE. Please see details of our upcoming events below (more details to be confirmed for the 2024/25 academic year). 

Arts and Humanities Day

When: Thursday 21st November 2023

Where: Oxford Brookes University, Harcourt Hill campus

Year group: 9 and 10

Agenda:

• Interactive workshops in the arts and humanities, including a creative translation session with the University of Oxford, a music workshop with Buckinghamshire New University and a history workshop from Oxford Brookes University.
• Speed-interviewing with professionals and students in the arts and humanities

STEM Day

When: Thursday 20th March 2024

Where: RAF Brize Norton

Year group: 9 and 10

Agenda: TBC

How to register: More information available soon. However, if you have any questions please contact Rosanna Mills on: r.mills@brookes.ac.uk

The impact of Future Focus in 2023/24

In 2023/24, Study Higher organised three campus events for service pupils through the Future Focus programme, addressing the unique experiences of young people from Armed Forces families and supporting higher education progression. Since 2021 we have worked with 109 service pupils in years 9-11 and facilitated eight events with different higher education institutions providing young people with the opportunity to explore different progression pathways.

Please see our 2023/24 impact report below. 

Applying to do a degree at college or university:

If you are a service pupil who is thinking of applying for a degree, or you are supporting a service pupil, you might find this information useful. We have highlighted some key information about UCAS, personal statements and UCAS’ ‘tick the box’, which informs HE providers of a young person’s service pupil status.

Support from HEIs for service pupils

The guidance document below details the support available that is offered across the country for students from Armed Forces families who are considering university/higher education level study.