Future Accommodation Model pilot supports Lee, Army SSgt, into the perfect Service Family Accommodation for his blended family

 

Watch Lee share his story about how, with support from the FAM pilot, he’s eligible to receive needs-based Service Family Accommodation with his long term established partner, baby and children that stay with him on a regular basis:

https://youtu.be/q7wcU7_YDlQ (please view video in Google Chrome for best usability)

As the FAM pilot enters its final year, we continue to look at how the offer has supported Service personnel. One of its biggest benefits is the fact that it applies equally to personnel whether single, married, in a civil partnership, long term established relationship, and those who have children over 80 nights per calendar year.

Colchester: Primary Schools near to Colchester Garrison

www.stmichaelsprimary.co.uk

www.montgomery-jun.org.uk

st-johns-green.eschools.co.uk

www.iceniacademyclmat.co.uk

www.hamiltonprimary.com

Information provided by Colchester HIVE

Issue affecting Pinnacle appointments in the SE and SW regions + complaints and compensation in general

 

1. Issue affecting appointments in the South East and South West regions

Last week we alerted you to an urgent issue where VIVO’s system was not receiving appointments being transferred by Pinnacle. Since then, we have worked hard with our suppliers to understand the causes, reduce the impact on families and find a resolution.

Unfortunately, the issues are impacting families through missed appointments, and we understand how frustrating this is for families.

VIVO has reported 1733 missed appointments due to this issue that have affected 1125 families. The technical teams have identified the causes of the problem and fixes are currently being deployed. While it will take a few days to permanently fix the underlying issue, a business continuity plan (BCP) has been implemented with a temporary solution while the permanent solution is put in place. Early feedback suggests this has significantly reduced but we aim to eliminate it entirely. Therefore, further measures have been agreed with immediate effect to strengthen this BCP. The Pinnacle team at the National Service Centre are supporting by providing information across to the VIVO such that checks can be made to prevent further missed appointments.

Met Police - The Little Book of Big Scams 5th Edition

 

The Little Book of Big Scams aims to raise awareness of the ever-evolving ways that criminals use to scam the public out of hard earned money.

Click here​ for an online copy.

Defence Health and Wellbeing Strategy 2022-2027 published

MOD has published the latest Defence People Health and Wellbeing Strategy (2022-2027) which sets out measures to improve the health and wellbeing (HWB) of Defence People and aims to maximise their employability and deployability.

The strategy aims to promote the importance of health and wellbeing across Defence, adopting a holistic approach to mental health, physical health and social health, recognising the need to educate and enable people to live healthy lifestyles in healthy environments.

Families serving overseas – university applications

 

This advice follows a recent case where a dependent based overseas with their serving parent was treated as an international student by a university admissions office, which led to the incorrect fees system being applied. This should not take place – any dependent accompanying their serving parent/s overseas should be treated as a UK resident.

The relevant regulation is Schedule 1 of The Education (Student Support) Regulations 2011, as amended by The Education (Student Fees, Awards and Support) Amendment (No 3) Regulations 2021.

Paras 4 and 5 of the amended Schedule state:

TogetherAll: Parent and Caregiver support

Balancing work and parenting can be tough. If you need somewhere to share how you're feeling, @Togetherall has a dedicated group for parents & caregivers to connect, share experiences and support each other​.

TogetherAll: Military Group

Togetherall has dedicated group for the military community to connect, share experiences and support each other

RBLI Lifeworks Course

 

Pinnacle Employment Opportunities

 

The Role – Customer Solution Manager

Reporting to the Customer Solutions Delivery Manager the Customer Solution Managers will provide a first-class complaint resolution service to our armed forces families. The team will deal with complaints in a timely manner and help keep customer satisfaction levels positive, the team will champion change on behalf of service families and in turn enhance the lived experience.

For more information and/or to apply click the LINK