New Report Finds Forces Kids 'Resilient'

A new report says children whose parents are in the military face a unique set of challenges.

The Children's Commissioner for England, Anne Longfield, says in general, forces kids are happy and resilient.

“The vast majority of service children we spoke to during this project were happy, resilient and incredibly proud to have a parent serving in the Armed Forces"

The report suggests they need more support to cope with the pressure they're under.

Anne Longfield, Children's Commissioner for England: "With the right help, there's a lot they can draw on"

The report, ‘Kin and Country: Growing up as an Armed Forces Child’, looked at the lives of primary and secondary school children with parents in the Armed Forces.

The children were asked about moving school or country, how their lives at home and school change with deployment and whether or not they feel they receive the support they need to cope with the changes.

The report found that the children have developed advanced coping mechanisms - they make friends easily and adapt to new situations well.

Anne Longfield said that although there are many charities doing great work to help military kids, the Ministry of Defence could also do more.

"I want to see a child-focused approach to supporting military families that takes into account the complex challenges that are inevitably part of growing up in an Armed Forces family”