Service Children's Education (SCE) was an organisation of the United Kingdom government responsible for the education of the children of British Armed Forces families and Ministry of Defence (MoD) personnel serving outside of the United Kingdom. They provided schools and educational support services from Foundation Stage through to sixth form. They are headquartered at Trenchard Lines, Upavon, Wiltshire."SERVICE CHILDREN'S EDUCATION ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS 2012-2013" (Archive). Service Children's Education. PDF p. 3/62. Retrieved on 28 February 2015. "Any enquiries regarding this publication should be sent to us at Headquarters Service Children's Education, Trenchard Lines, Upavon, Wiltshire"
It was previously an executive agency of the MoD, but this status was removed on 31 March 2013 following the reduction of service personnel based abroad. However, it continued to operate under the SCE name as part of the MoD's Directorate Children and Young People (DCYP).
At one point the organization's mission was taken over by DCYP, which was created in 2010. In 2021 DCYP was separated into two organisations: Defence Children Services (DCS) and Armed Forces Families and Safeguarding (AFFS).
History
During the 1980s, the British Families Education Service (BFES) was renamed Service Children's School (SCS). In 1997 it took its current name Service Children's Education (SCE). Despite the various changes to the name and administration, it continues the mission of its predecessors: providing education for the children of British Armed Forces personnel. Former teachers who taught in SCE schools or under its previous incarnations the BFES and SCS may join the BFES/SCE Association.
In 2001 a collection of archives of the British Families Education Service / Service Children's Education Association was deposited at UCL Special Collections. The papers can be used to research the history of the schools and the lives of the teachers working in them. UCL Special Collections does not hold the official records of the British Families Education Service (BFES), Service Children's Schools (SCS) or Service Children's Education (SCE). These were the formal bodies responsible for the education of children of British Forces and the Ministry of Defence personnel stationed outside of the UK. The formal records are held by The National Archives. Log books of some schools are held by the National Army Museum.
Management Headquarters and offices SCE were headquartered at Trenchard Lines, Upavon, Wiltshire. The business support office are co-located with that of the Children's Education and Advisory Service since August 2012."SERVICE CHILDREN'S EDUCATION ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS 2012-2013" (Archive). Service Children's Education. p. 7 (PDF p. 8/62). Retrieved on 28 February 2015.
SCE was headquartered in the Wegberg Military Complex in Wegberg, Germany,"Recruitment" (Archive). Service Children's Education. May 30, 2003. Retrieved on February 28, 2015. "Application packs may be obtained from the Personnel Section (Recruitment) at HQ Service Children's Education, Building 5, Wegberg Military Complex, BFPO 40[...]""Frequently Asked Questions" (Archive). Service Children's Education. May 3, 2003. Retrieved on February 28, 2015. "HQ SCE, Block 5, Wegberg Military Complex, BFPO 40" until 2012. It briefly moved to JHQ Rheindahlen, until that base closed, too, in 2013.
In addition SCE had offices in Bielefeld, Germany and Episkopi Cantonment, Cyprus."ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS 2009/2010" (Archive). Service Children's Education. p. 1 (PDF p. 9/62). Retrieved on February 28, 2015.
Curriculum Schools follow the English National Curriculum, administer national assessments and public examinations, and are inspected by His Majesty's Inspectorate, via Ofsted. Teachers have recognised UK professional qualifications and the majority are recruited specially from the United Kingdom through the Civil Service.
Schools The agency operates primary and secondary schools in Europe and Asia and also provides educational facilities in territories such as the Falklands and Gibraltar where there is a significant British military presence. The schools are typically grouped by garrison (including its outlying bases).
Schools are:
Belgium SHAPE Primary School (British section), Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe, BelgiumSHAPE International School - British Section
Brunei Treetops Early Years Setting and Hornbill Primary School (Seria)
Cyprus King Richard Secondary School, Dhekelia St. John's Secondary School, Episkopi Akrotiri Early Years Setting and Akrotiri Primary School, RAF Akrotiri Ayios Nikolaos Early Years Setting and Ayios Nikolaos Primary School, Ayios Nikolaos Station Dhekelia Early Years Setting and Dhekelia Primary School Episkopi Early Years Setting and Episkopi Primary School
Falkland Islands Mount Pleasant Primary School, RAF Mount Pleasant, Falklands
Germany Attenborough Early Years and Attenborough Primary School (Sennelager) St David’s Primary School (Ramstein)
Gibraltar Sunflowers Early Years Setting and St Christopher’s Early Years Foundation Stage
Italy BFS Naples Primary School , Italy
Netherlands AFNORTH Primary School (Brunssum)
Former Schools
Germany Secondary schools
Cornwall School, Dortmund Edinburgh School, Münster Gloucester School, Hohne (closed July 2015) Havel School, RAF Gatow, Berlin. Closed 1994. Was also the primary school until the building of Gatow First school in 1977 Kent School, Hostert, near Schwalmtal (boarding school) (closed 1993) King Alfred School, Plön (closed 1959) King's School, Gütersloh (closed 2019) Prince Rupert School, Rinteln (closed July 2014) Windsor Boys' School, Hamm (boarding school) (closed 1983) Windsor Girls' School, Hamm (boarding school) Windsor School, formerly Queen's School, Rheindahlen (closed July 2013) Virtual Tour of the Windsor School / Windsor Boys School Hamm, Germany
Primary/middle schools Alanbrooke Primary, Dortmund, BFPO20<*Alanbrooke Primary Dortmund BFPO20> Andrew Humphrey School, WWildenrath (closed 2012) Ark Primary School, JHQ Rheindahlen (closed July 2013) Attenborough First School, Sennelager Attenborough Primary School, Sennelager Ayrshire Barracks Primary School, Mönchengladbach Bad Salzuflen School, Bad Salzuflen Bader First School, RAF Brüggen BFES Germany RAF Borgentreich Bielefeld School, BielefeldBielefeld School website Bishopspark First School, Paderborn Blankenhagen School, GüterslohBlankenhagen School website Brüggen School, Elmpt, formerly RAF Bruggen (closed July 2015)Brüggen School website Buckeburg Primary School, Buckeburg (now Immanuel Schule Schaumburg) Bünde Primary School Cambridge Infant School, Münster Cheshire Middle School, RAF Bruggen Charlottenburg First School (closed 1990s) – Its facilities was taken over by the newly founded Berlin British School in 1994. Churchill School (with annex in Kiel), Verden. Closed 1993 Dalton Middle School, Düsseldorf Derby School, Osnabrück (closed 2008) Fleming Primary School, Enger Gatow First School Berlin, Headmaster John Hancock (1977-1994), (school closed on 4 November 1994) Griffon School, RAF Wildenrath (became Andrew Humphrey School in c1992) Haig Primary School, GüterslohHaig School website Hakedahl Primary School, Detmold Hameln School, Hameln Hampshire School, Monchengladbach. Closed 2001 Hamm Primary Hannover Primary School Hastenbeck Primary School, Hastenbeck Heide School, Fallingbostel Hemer Primary School Herford Primary School, Herford (split into Lister and Fleming) Hildesheim Primary School Hobart Primary School, Detmold Iserlohn Primary School Jerboa Primary School, Soltau John Buchan Middle School, Sennelager John Buchan School, Sennelager (closed 2019) Krefeld Primary School (closed in 2002) – It is now the site of Franz-Stollwerck-Schule. Lancaster School, Minden Lippstadt Primary School, Lippstadt Lister Primary School, Herford (closed in July 2015) Maas First school, RAF Laarbruch Marlborough School, Osnabrück Merlin School, RAF Wildenrath (closed in 1991) Möhne Primary School, Soest Montgomery School, Hohne Mountbatten Primary School, Celle Oxford Primary School, Münster (closed in 2013) Pegasus Primary School, RAF Wildenrath Rhine Middle School, RAF Laarbruch Robert Browning School, Paderborn Scott School Fallingbostel Shackleton School, Fallingbostel Sir John Mogg Primary School, Detmold (closed July 2014) Slim School, BergenSlim School website Spandau Primary School, Berlin St Andrew's Primary School, Rheindahlen St Barbara's Primary School, Wulfen St Christopher's Primary School, Rheindahlen St Clements Primary School, Wickrath St David's Junior School, Rheindahlen St David's Primary School, Ramstein St George's Primary School, Rheindahlen St Patrick's Primary School, Rheindahlen St. Peter's Primary School, Lübbecke Suffolk School, Minden Talavera Primary School, Werl Tower School, Dülmen Trenchard School, Gütersloh Victoria School, Dortmund Wavell Primary School, Bergen Wellington First School, Osnabrück Wetter Primary School, Wetter (Ruhr) Wildenrath Primary, Wildenrath William Wordsworth First School, Sennelager York Junior School, Münster
Gilbraltar St. Christopher's Middle School, Gibraltar
Hong Kong Gun Club Hill Primary School, Hong Kong Minden Row Junior School, Kowloon, Hong KongPersonal experience, I attended the school Sek Kong Primary School, New Territories, Hong Kong St. Andrew's Primary School, Kowloon, Hong Kong Stanley Fort Primary School, Hong KongMy father was Headmaster in 1960s St George's School (closed 1996) – The Australian International School Hong Kong uses some of its former facilities., Victoria Junior School, Victoria Barracks, Hong KongMy sisters and I attended the school. My father was Deputy Head.
Singapore Secondary schools Alexandra Grammar School.Memories of Singapore and Malaya, Derek Tait, Driftwood Coast Publishing, 2007, page 161 Later merged into Bourne School, it is now the site of ISS International School Preston campus. Bourne SchoolThe Education Committees' Year Book, 1962, page 975 Alexandra/Gillman Secondary Modern School – later merged into Bourne School, the former compound (including Gillman Barracks) is now occupied by an art gallery, the NTU Contemporary Art Singapore (NTU CCA), and other small businesses.Gillman Barracks St John's School.Education, Volume 129, Councils and Education Press, 1967, page 596 In 1971, the United World College of South East Asia, then known as the Singapore International School, was established at St John's former campus; it adopted its present name in 1975.
Primary schools Alexandra Junior School Changi Junior School Nee Soon Primary School Pasir Panjang Junior School Seletar Junior School Tengah Junior School
Infants schools Tanglin Infants School, Tanglin Barracks, Dempsey Road Alexandra Infant School Pasir Panjang Infant School
Malta Infants schools Army Children's School St Andrew's Pembroke Royal Naval School Verdala (now the Liceo Guzeppi Despott Junior Boys Lyceum) RAF Luqa RAF School for Infants Safi St David's Mtarfa Army Children's School Tigne
Secondary schools Royal Naval School Tal Handaq (now the Liceo Vassalli Junior Lyceum)
Other countries Colony of Aden (now in Yemen) Khormaksar School, RAF Khormaksar
Belgium Emblem Primary School, Antwerp
Belize Toucan School, BATSUB (closed 2011)
Brunei BSCS Berakas BSCS Muara
Malaysia Bourne School, Kuala Lumpur Slim School, Cameron Highlands (1951–64, re-opened in Malacca in 1965 at Terendak Camp) The Army School, Johore Bahru, MalaysiaMy father was Headmaster in 1969
Norway St George's School, Bekkestua, Oslo
Nepal Dharan school, Dharan camp
See also British Families Education Service Naval Education Service Queen's Army Schoolmistresses Royal Army Educational Corps
References
External links Official website BFES/SCEA Association – association for former BFES, SCEA, SCS and SCE teachers and alumni SCE Schools (Archive)