Finding a school

Local authorities and admission authorities must allocate a school place in advance to the children of Service personnel that are relocating.

The authority will need to see an official letter declaring a relocation date and intended address.

They must accept a Unit postal address, or if appropriate, a 'quartering area' address in the absence of a new home postal address.

England

Search for primary, secondary and special needs schools near you or anywhere in England on the GOV.UK website. You can also find out about school performance and access Ofsted reports.

Wales

Find detailed information about schools in Wales on the Welsh government My Local School website.

Scotland

Search for schools in Scotland, and view their inspection reports, on the Education Scotland website.

Northern Ireland

Search for schools in Northern Ireland on the NIDirect government website.

Boarding school

The RAF appreciates that some Serving personnel parents believe that boarding provides a more stable and uninterrupted education for their children.

Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA)

The MOD RAF will pay a boarding school allowance of 90% of the fees (up to a maximum limit). This is known as Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA).

Read full details on GOV.UK

Find a boarding school

The Service Parents' Guide to Boarding Schools website helps Armed Forces personnel choose a UK boarding school, using the Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) available to them.

This site contains a searchable database of the main independent schools, the MoD (Armed Services) schools and colleges and maintained boarding schools.

The schools database also covers special education needs boarding and provides details of the schools that offer awards for the children of Armed Forces parents.

Help paying for your Childcare

Service parents are eligible for financial support from the Government to help with their childcare costs.  

Full details of what is available and how to apply are on the official Government Childcare Choices website.