The Army Benevolent Fund is delighted to award Forces Children Scotland a grant to develop an innovative communications tool with, and for, children from military families with additional support needs.

Forces Children Scotland is Scotland’s oldest military charity, supporting children and young people from armed forces and veteran families to realise their potential and thrive. The charity provides education and learning, mental health and wellbeing, grant-giving and life-changing experiences which help young people develop skills and confidence and connect with their peers.

Adult woman and child who is using a tablet featuring a visual communications tool
Forces Children Scotland will develop a Talking Mat with and for forces children

With our donation, Forces Children Scotland will work with specialist social enterprise, Talking Mats Ltd, together with children from armed forces communities, to co-produce a Talking Mat Visual Communication Tool and roll out this approach across its services in Scotland.

A Talking Mat is a visual communication framework which supports people with communication difficulties to express their feelings and views. This tool, designed by and for young people from forces families, will be the first of its kind, and available in digital and physical formats, in partnership with Talking Mats Ltd.

Tablet displaying a Talking Mat visual communications framework on screen
A Talking Mat is a visual communication framework which supports people with communication difficulties to express their feelings and views.

Having a parent in the military often means moving frequently and having to settle into a new home, school, and community, while dealing with separation and disrupted routines. Through our funding, the new tool developed by Forces Children Scotland will enable children across Scotland with additional support needs to express their feelings and views about experiences they find difficult to verbalise.

It will also help enhance Forces Children Scotland’s evidence base and improve its understanding and consideration of young people’s needs, helping shape its support services.

Brigadier (Ret’d) Peter Monteith, Chief Operating Officer, Army Benevolent Fund said:

“The Army Benevolent Fund is delighted to fund Forces Children Scotland to develop this innovative approach to communication for young people with additional support needs. Giving young people from military families the tools they need to communicate is vital for their wellbeing – and we are proud to support Forces Children Scotland in this novel project.”

Forces Children Scotland Deputy CEO and Policy Lead, Meg Thomas, said:

“We offer our sincere gratitude to the Army Benevolent Fund for their generous funding to co-develop our Talking Mats Communication Tool.

“As a children’s rights and strengths-based charity, this funding will enable Forces Children Scotland to work directly with children from armed forces families with additional support needs to ensure they have appropriate means to communicate their lived experience and realise their potential and thrive.

“Rolling out our forces-specific Talking Mat will enable our team to ensure these children have a voice. Organisations and agencies will also have the opportunity to use this tool. This will ensure effective communication is accessible to everyone coming into contact with forces children who have communication needs.”

For more information, visit Children & Young People – Forces Children Scotland