Learning and Professional Development

Build a Forces-aware practice to help children and young people from Armed Forces families thrive.

Children and young people from Forces families are navigating life events and identities that their civilian peers don’t have. This could mean coping with a parent’s deployment, transitioning to civilian life with their families, or feeling a sense of pride and belonging within the Armed Forces community. Every experience is unique.

If you’re an educator or another professional working directly with children, increasing your knowledge of Forces life will help you provide the right support. Even if you don’t work directly with Forces children, understanding their lives helps you make better decisions on their behalf.

Here are some tools to help you deepen your understanding of Forces life and develop your professional practice.

Online webinars for educators and professionals

We offer free online webinars exploring the lives of children and young people from Armed Forces families. This learning is here for anyone who wants to make a positive impact on the lives of Forces children.

The conversations bring together practitioners across the UK and abroad, representing education, health, local authorities, the third sector, academia, and the Armed Forces community. Armed Forces parents and family members may be interested in this learning too.

You’re welcome to join the conversation or explore the archive of previous webinars. Like a podcast, you can listen to these conversations to support your understanding of the lived experiences of Forces children and their families.

You can access the entire catalogue of ‘In Conversation’ webinars on our YouTube channel, addressing topics such as:

The transition to civilian life
Supporting young carers in the Armed Forces community
Support for Forces children in the early years

‘In Conversation’ Webinar Playlist

We host a new webinar almost every month. Follow us on Eventbrite to keep up-to-date with upcoming conversations:

Forces Children Scotland on Eventbrite

Below, you’ll find our most recent webinar.

CPD-accredited training across 11 modules

Children and young people from Forces families have told us that professionals don’t always understand the lives they lead, and that this can affect their education, wellbeing and more.

When professionals understand the realities of Forces life—such as deployment, mobility, and family separation—they can offer more timely, informed, and empathetic support.

Our free, accredited learning modules equip educators, school counsellors and other professionals with practical knowledge to better support children and young people from Armed Forces families.

These modules can be completed in-person or online as part of your continuing professional development (CPD) activities. We can also offer them in e-Book format, to complete at your own pace.

If you’re interested, please get in touch with our learning team:

Module One: An Introduction to the Armed Forces and forces children

This module introduces the experiences and views of children and young people from this community and explores where they live across Scotland.

It also provides insight into the shape of their distinctive childhoods, and some of the challenges they might encounter such as the impact of highly mobile lives and coping with deployments, and celebrates their unique identities.

Best suited to: professionals who are new to working with children and young people from armed forces and veteran families, professionals who are new to policymaking in this area, or anyone interested in learning more about this unique community of children in Scotland.

Module Two: Children and young people from Armed Forces and Veteran Families and their rights

This module explores the experiences of this community through a child rights lens, taking time to consider the opportunities and challenges associated with upholding children’s rights amidst the unique armed forces context.

The session also provides an overview of the policy context in the UK and Scotland.

Best suited to: professionals or parents/carers who are interested in understanding more about the rights and obligations across international and domestic law and policy that shape the lives of children from armed forces and veteran families.

Module Three: Understanding the Armed Forces Covenant

This module introduces the Armed Forces Covenant and the Armed Forces Covenant Duty, aiming to upskill professionals on the legal obligations placed on public bodies across the areas of education, health and housing.

Best suited to: professionals working within public bodies across education, health and housing, or anyone interested in understanding more about the Covenant and what it means for children and young people.

Module Four: The mobile lives of children and young people from armed forces and veteran families

This module explains the experience of ‘mobility’ in the armed forces community and explores what this can mean for children and young people, with a particular focus on the education and social transitions they can experience as a result.

Best suited to: professionals working with children and young people from armed forces and veteran families, particularly those in education, health, housing or youth work settings, or anyone looking to broaden their understanding about this unique experience.

Module Five: Understanding the child’s experience of deployment and separation from parents

This module explores how children from the armed forces community might experience separation from their parents, such as in the context of deployment, weekending and the use of boarding. This session will also explore the cycle of deployment from the child’s perspective.

Module Six: Young carers within the armed forces and veteran community

This module explores the experiences of young carers within armed forces and veteran families, recognising the various circumstances that lead to children from this community gaining additional caring responsibilities such as during deployments, weekending, or in the event of parental death or injury.

Best suited to: professionals working with children and young people from armed forces and veteran families or young carers, particularly those in education, health, housing or youth work settings, or anyone looking to broaden their understanding about this unique experience.

Module Seven: Supporting children and young people as they transition to civilian life

This module explores the child’s experience when their serving parent leaves active service with the armed forces, exploring the impact of this transition on the child’s identity and how they can be welcomed into their new civilian lives.

Best suited to: parents/carers or professionals working with children and young people from armed forces and veteran families, particularly those in education, health, housing or youth work settings, or anyone looking to broaden their understanding about this unique experience.

Module Eight: The mental health and wellbeing of children and young people from armed forces families

Module Nine: Supporting Submariner babies, children and young people: Insights and Lived Experience

Module Ten: Understanding the Forces Children's Rights Charter

Module Eleven: Early years support for babies and young children from armed forces families

Learning Resources

We co-produce resources with children and young people from armed forces and veteran families, that can be used to educate civilian peers and colleagues, or as a tool to develop your own practice.

Access our resources below.

Forces Life board game and comic

Want to learn more about life in an armed forces or veteran family? Co-developed with young people from armed forces and veteran families, the Forces Life board game and comic book aims to help civilian audiences to better understand what it’s like to be a forces child.

Find out more

Your Mind Matters Project

A new mental health and wellbeing service co-produced with and for young people from armed forces and veteran families, funded by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust. We deliver face-to-face support services in the West of Scotland and have launched a digital resource hub.

Find out more

Tornado of Change Project

Moving to civilian life can hit like a tornado for some children from armed forces families across Scotland and beyond. We understand that while some will make a smooth transition, others may find it worrying, overwhelming and disorientating. But you can help…

Find out more

Learning and Professional Development

Build a Forces-aware practice to help children and young people from Armed Forces families thrive.

Online webinars for educators and professionals

CPD-accredited training across 11 modules

Learning Resources

Forces Life board game and comic

Your Mind Matters Project

Tornado of Change Project

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