Last week I co-hosted a roundtable with Alex Baker MP and Minister for School Standards Georgia Gould on an issue I care deeply about; the experiences of Armed Forces families with children who have Special Educational Needs or Disabilities.    

Military families are disproportionately affected by SEND-related issues, and the unique challenges of Service life often intensify the shortcomings in the current system. Today’s announcement on SEND reform will therefore have a significant impact on the Armed Forces Community.

On Thursday, as Chair of the Armed Forces Community APPG, I and APPG officer Alex Baker MP, met with Minister Gould, Minister for School Standards. The meeting followed our January APPG session focused on Service children with special or additional educational needs, and provided an opportunity to raise the concerns highlighted then, particularly in the context of the forthcoming White Paper on SEND reform.

This week I met with Lt Col Joe Winch, a colleague from my Staff College days, to discuss the challenges faced by veterans living with complex PTSD. We spoke about the lifelong impact that complex PTSD can have, not only on veterans themselves but also on their families, as well as the MoD's initiatives Op Valour, which provides recovery pathways for veterans and Op Fortitude, which focuses on tackling veteran homelessness.

Last week, I chaired the latest meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on the Armed Forces Community, beginning with our AGM and followed by an important discussion on how the Armed Forces Covenant works in practice for Service children with special or additional educational needs or disabilities.

The Armed Forces All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) gathered on Tuesday, January 13th, 2026, to hold its Annual General Meeting (AGM). This event marked the official start of the APPG’s 2026 engagement year and provided an opportunity to reflect on the progress made in 2025.

Last week, as Chair of the Armed Forces Community APPG, I was pleased to host a meeting on social care and the Veteran Friendly Framework for care homes. With over 26,000 veterans living in care homes across England and Wales, it’s essential that social care services recognise military service and understand the unique experiences many veterans and their families bring with them.

This week we the Armed Forces Community APPG hosted its first drop-in event in Parliament on transition from service to civilian life and the skills that service leavers can bring to the civilian workforce. The drop-in was an opportunity for MPs to come and learn how to help constituents who are managing the transition.  

This week, I chaired the latest meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Armed Forces Community, which focused on the treatment of military compensation within the benefits system. Military compensation is intended to recognise the service and sacrifice of those who have been injured or fallen ill while serving our country. Yet too often, these payments are still treated as income in means-tested benefits, leaving some of the most vulnerable veterans and bereaved

APPG for the Armed Forces Community meeting minuets on the 13th May 2025

APPG for the Armed Forces Community, Minutes from meeting on 25th February 2025. Topic: non-UK members of the Armed Forces Community

This week's meeting of the Armed Forces Community APPG focused on the challenges of the many service people, families and veterans who don’t